Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Week 1, Day 2
Objective: Discuss classroom expectations, policies, and procedures.  Welcome!

1. Welcome Back!
1. I'm glad you're back today.  Hopefully, yesterday you weren't inundated with too much information.  Don't get me wrong debate is a lot of work, but it is SO MUCH FUN!  And I truly believe it will get you ready for the "real world" better than ANY other activity that you can be involved with in high school!  Another added benefit is that there is a TON of scholarship money available to those that are looking to continue their debate through college!!!!!!!
2. Answer any questions you might have from yesterday and the syllabus/constitution. 
3. Debate schedule
1. Located under the "Tournament/Event Schedule" tab above.
2. I realize that there are a lot of band conflicts, I will work with you on those.  
4. Differences between CX and LD
1. You will need to pick one of these areas to focus on.  Below you will find some general information about the two events.
2. CX (aka Policy) Debate: 
1. At one end of the spectrum, policy debate is a very rigorous format which requires a great deal of research, leaving the student an expert on a specific area.  Students across the country will be preparing for and debating on a single, broad topic selected by the National Forensic League for the entire academic year.  Topics vary widely by year; however, all topics are about big picture issues that policy makers consider, such as how to protect the marine environment, US support of UN Peacekeeping Operations, deployment of US troops in bases abroad, etc.  The result of having a single year-long topic that is standardized across the country is that students become experts in the topic, and a well-prepared student will be familiar with many hundreds of pages of research material on the topic.
2. Policy debate is a two on two format; a student and one partner compete against other teams of two students at tournaments (teams of two students competing against one another).
3. In general, evidence (researched material) will always outweigh analytic arguments.  Debates about the credibility of sources are common, and teams build “cases” solely from the research that they have done (although many debate “squads” write cases as a group and multiple teams from the same school might argue essentially the same case).  
   • • (information from: https://snfi.org/select-the-right-program)
3. LD (Lincoln-Douglas) Debate:
1. Lincoln Douglas (LD) debate is generally about questions that are of a deeper moral or philosophical nature.  Here, the debate will be about "big issue" or moral questions such as whether we should prioritize security or liberty, whether the US should intervene in foreign countries to protect human rights, etc.  The topic changes every two months, and is standardized across the country.  Whereas arguments of pragmatics often are effective in policy debate, LD is more often about the principles and philosophy, and an LD case is structured around a philosophical objective, with arguments supporting why that objective ought be valued over all else (for example, security is most important, and then principled arguments explaining why that is the case).  There is a lesser research burden for LD versus policy debate, and an LD case is often substantially written by a student, with pieces of quoted research brought in at strategic locations (as opposed to a policy case being all about the evidence).
2. LD debate is the only format that is one-on-one.  Some students prefer this style for the ability to control your own destiny, as you win or lose based solely on your own arguments as opposed to also relying on a partner. (information from: https://snfi.org/select-the-right-program)
5. Speaking Drill with www.spreeder.com
1. Spreeder.com is a free online speed reading software designed to improve your reading speed and comprehension.
6. As always, please email me with any questions you might have-cavalos@godleyisd.net.