International Debate Education Association

National Junior Forensic League

National
Tournament
Manual
St. Mary’s Hall – San Antonio, TX
June 26-28, 2009
Table of Contents

Tournament Schedule ........................................................................................................................3

Tournament Procedures
Entry Guidelines, Judging Responsibilities and Fees .................................................................4
Debate ................................................................................................................................................4
Individual Events (Speech) ..............................................................................................................7
Congressional Debate.....................................................................................................................9
Awards............................................................................................................................................. 10

Event Overviews
Public Forum Debate.................................................................................................................... 11
Lincoln-Douglas Debate .............................................................................................................. 12
Policy Debate ................................................................................................................................. 13
Extemporaneous Speaking .......................................................................................................... 14
Original Oratory............................................................................................................................ 15
Impromptu ...................................................................................................................................... 15
Interpretation Events.................................................................................................................... 16
Student Congress .......................................................................................................................... 17
Exhibition Events ........................................................................................................................... 21

Judging
General Judging Instructions ...................................................................................................... 22
Lincoln Douglas Debate ............................................................................................................. 23
Policy Debate ................................................................................................................................ 24
Public Forum Debate.................................................................................................................... 24
Extemporaneous Speaking .......................................................................................................... 25
Original Oratory............................................................................................................................ 25
Literary Interpretation Events.................................................................................................... 26
Impromptu ...................................................................................................................................... 27
Congressional Debate.................................................................................................................. 27

Frequently Asked Questions ................................................................................28

Tournament Web Site (Updates/Topics, Ammenities, etc.)

www.nflonline.org/AboutNFL/MiddleSchoolNationalTournament

Contact Information:
Registration, Fees Tournament Operations (Event Procedures/Rules, Judging)
Elizabeth Carson Adam Jacobi
[email protected] [email protected]
503-370-6244 920-748-6206
Please check the Frequently Asked Questions for an answer before contacting one of the coordinators.

2 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

IDEA/NJFL Tournament Schedule
Time Debate Speech Pattern A Speech Pattern B Congress

Thursday 25 June
5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. Early Registration, Cambria Suites
Friday 26 June
7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. Registration at St. Mary’s Hall
9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Debate Round 1 Round 1A
11:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Lunch Lunch Lunch
11:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. Lunch Rnd. 1B (draw 11:30) Session 1 (starts 11:30)
1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Debate Round 2 Round 2A
3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Rnd. 2B (draw 3:00) Session 2 (starts 3:00)
5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. Debate Round 3 Round 3A
Saturday 27 June
8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. Debate Round 4 1st Elim. Round
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Round 3B (draw 9:30) Session 3 (starts 9:30)
11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. Debate Round 5 Lunch
12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. Lunch 2nd Elim. Round Lunch Lunch
1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. 1st Elim. (draw 1:00) Super Congress
3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. 1st Elim. Round 3rd Elim. Round
4:45 p.m. - 6:15 p.m. 2nd Elim. Round * Exhibition *
Sunday 28 June
8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. * Exhibition * 2nd Elim. (draw 8:00)
rd
10:00 a.m. - 11:30 p.m. 3 Elim. Round
12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. Lunch Lunch 3rd Elim. (draw 11:30) Lunch
Lunch
2:15 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Awards Ceremony

Debate: Policy Debate, Public Forum, and Lincoln-Douglas

Pattern A: Dramatic Interp, Humorous Interp, Poetry, and Prose / Exhibition: Storytelling

Pattern B: Extemp Speaking, Original Oratory, Impromptu, and Duo Interp / Exhibition: TV Commercial
Student Congress

Cross-Entering:
• Students can enter one of the three debate events.
• In the speech events, students can enter two events per pattern (A or B)
• Any student entered in Debate can also enter in either Student Congress or two events in Pattern B.
• Any student entered in Congress can also enter in either a Debate event or two events in Pattern A.
• All students can participate in the Exhibition of TV Commercial if pre-entered/registered by their coach and ifthey
have not advanced to the 2nd Elim. Round of Debate.
• All students can participate in the Exhibition of Storytelling if pre-entered/registered by their coach and if they have
not advanced to the 2nd Elim. Round of Pattern B.

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 3

Tournament Procedures
I. Tournament Entry
A. Registration Fees
1. School Fee: $125 - covers the annual organization membership dues for both IDEA and NJFL as all
schools or clubs attending the tournament must be members in good standing with both
organizations. In the event that a school or club is already a member in good standing with one or
both of these organizations, those dues may be deducted from the school fee (for example if a
school is a paid member of NJFL that school can deduct the $35 NJFL membership fee from their
school fee).
2. Per Student Entry Fee: $30 - covers a student entry in up to two events and a lifetime membership
in IDEA and NJFL.
a. Each additional event entry/slot is $20. No student will be allowed to enter more than
two events per speech pattern. Any student entering in a debate event will not be allowed
to enter in events listed in pattern A.
b. Pre-registering for the exhibition events of TV Commercial and Storytelling is $5 per entry
(with a school entry limitation of 5 entries in each event); students must be pre-registered
to be allowed to participate in these events, but are not required to participate
B. Eligibility for the 2009 IDEA/NJFL national tournament will be based on enrollment during the 2008-2009
school year; students must have been registered in sixth, seventh, or eighth grade.
C. Tournament Qualification: IDEA and the NJFL extend an open invitation to all students who meet the
eligibility requirements. There is no qualification process for this tournament.
D. A school may not enter more than eight (8) entries in any event.
E. Cross-entry restrictions: see the Tournament Schedule and restrictions under each section for particular
details.
F. Judging Responsibilities and Fees
1. All judges will be eligible to judge in both speech patterns regardless of their school’s entries. All
judges will be committed through the first elimination round in all events. Judges from a school with
at least one student qualifying for elimination rounds will be committed through the conclusion of
the tournament.
2. Judging Commitments: (new) – we wish to encourage only those who are genuinely interested in
evaluating students to provide an educational experience to judge at this tournament. We prefer
educators and those with experience to write thoughtful and thorough critiques of students.
Therefore, schools/clubs attending are asked to provide judges in the following ratios, or pay the
hired judge fee as listed (lower costs than in the past):
Event Group One judge required for: Per Hired (Uncovered) Judge Fee
Speech Every 5 entries or fraction thereof* $65
Policy Debate Every 2 teams or fraction thereof* $65
PF/LD Debate Every 3 entries or fraction thereof* $65
Congress Every 8 entries (maximum/limit) $65
* e.g., 6 speech entries = 2 judges
3. The NJFL is interested in hiring judges, and will offer a limited number of contracts. If you know of
someone interested in being hired to judge at the IDEA/NJFL National Tournament please have
them contact Adam Jacobi at [email protected].
II. Events
A. Debate: this tournament will offer competition in Public Forum, Lincoln-Douglas and Policy Debate
formats. Students may not cross-enter between these events, but may enter Speech Pattern B or Congress.
1. Topics announced at www.nflonline.org (see “Current Topics”) for the current NFL National
Tournament (for high schools) will in effect for this tournament.
2. A Policy or Public Forum team shall consist of only two students, and an LD entry will be only one
student. No substitutions will be permitted within any team or for and LD debater once
competition has begun.
3. Prompting: Oral prompting, except for time signals, by a speaker’s debate partner is not prohibited
but is discourages and may be penalized by some judges. Oral prompting, again except for time
signals, by any person other than the speaker’s debate partner is strictly prohibited and can result in
the disqualification of the debater(s).

4 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

4. Reading of evidence
a. The team or debater is responsible for the validity of all evidence he/she/they read in the
round.
b. In all rounds of Lincoln-Douglas and Public Forum, debaters should, at a minimum, orally
deliver title of the source and the author’s name. In Policy Debate, all debaters shall orally
deliver the name of the author title of source (E.G. title of book, not chapter; title of
journal, not article), and complete date.
c. In all rounds of debate, complete citations for each piece of evidence introduced in the
round must be available in the round. Written citations must include name of the author,
qualifications, complete title of source (E.G. title of book, not chapter; title of journal, not
article), and complete date. Online sources must also include the title of the site, database,
or access point, the date accessed, and the web address. The additional citation required
for online sources must appear on all evidence, but is not required to be read. Should two
or more quotations be used from the same source, the author and title need be given
orally only for the first piece of evidence from that source. In the subsequent oral citation,
only the author’s name is required.
d. No internal ellipsis (Ellipses occur after the first word of the quotation and before the final
word) may be used in evidence cited on a card, or ellipses may be shown on cards, if the
original source or a Xerox copy is present. The evidence may be read in ellipsed form, but
the entirety of the evidence must be available in one of the two ways previously cited.
e. Personal letters, emails, interviews and telegrams are not be admissible as evidence.
f. A debater/team – when asked by the opposing debater/team for a copy of a card, plan
text, case, etc. – is free to decided whether or not to provide the requested information. If
a team refuses to supply the information, they shall not be penalized in anyway. However,
in such instances where a judge requests to see a card, plan text, case, etc. for the purpose
of making his or her decision the debater/team should comply.
g. Challenging evidence cited in a debate: definitions of Non-existent evidence or evidence
which seriously distorts the intention of the original source –
i. "Serious Distortion" exists when the evidence itself contains added or deleted
word(s) which do not clarify but in fact change the position of the author with
respect to the issues in question.
ii. "Non-existent evidence" means that
01. Reasonable search is unable to produce the original source and/or the
team reading the evidence is unable to provide the original source or a
Xerox copy of the relevant pages.
02. The evidence cited is not located in the original source cited.
03. Typographical errors in citation will not automatically result in the
evidence being labeled non-existent, if the team reading the evidence can
produce the correct information.
h. Procedures for initiating and reviewing evidentiary challenges
i. Responsibilities of teams challenging evidence:
01. Indictments or protests of the validity of evidence must be made on
substantive grounds.
02. A challenger must have either the original source or a Xeroxed copy of
the source being cited, or
03. A challenger must demonstrate that reasonable search has not been able
to locate the source – Xeroxed copies of relevant pages in Books in
Print, Readers Guide, P.A.I.S., etc.
ii. Initiating and reviewing protests:
01. Any official protest on the validity of evidence citing specific violations
must be presented in writing to the Tournament Director, the school
being challenged, and the tournament ombudsperson immediately
following the round in which the contested evidence was used and prior
to the beginning of the next round of debate.
02. The Tournament Director shall rule on the protest no later than 7 days
of its receipt.
iii. Appeals
01. Appeals of the Tournament Director’s decision shall be made in writing
within 5 days to the Tournament Protest Panel.
02. The Protest Panel shall use whatever means necessary in making the final
decision on the dispute.
IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 5
iv. Penalties
01. Evidence lacking the required citation and challenged by the opposition
shall be disregarded by the judge unless said citation is proffered
immediately in the subsequent speech. At the conclusion of a challenge
related to the oral presentation of or the in round availability of a
citation, the judge is the sole determiner of the level of penalty in the
round in relationship to the level of the violation, not to exceed a
maximum penalty of a loss with zero points, as part of the judge’s
decision making process.
02. If an evidence violation is presented where a debater is found to have
committed a “serious distortion” or to have used “non-existent
evidence,” at the conclusion of due process, the offending debater(s) may
be disqualified from the tournament at the Tournament Committee’s
discretion.
03. Depending on the severity, an offense MAY result in notification of said
offense to their school administration, loss of all tournament award,
including trophy and School of Excellent participation points for the
offending student(s), and/or revocation of membership.
v. Tournament Adjustments:
01. Under no circumstance shall a tournament or part of a tournament be
re-run because of a violation of these rules.
02. In the case of a disqualification of a contestant, all previous ranks and
decisions of other contestants stand and no revision of past round ranks
will take place.
5. Judging Conflicts: Contestants in any debate event who are scheduled to be judged by someone
who has, at any point in time, coached or taught them or with whom they have a close personal
relationship are responsible for reporting that fact to the ombudsperson immediately. Failure to
comply may result in disqualification from the tournament.
6. If fewer than 18 participants sign up for a particular debate event, then the event will be cancelled.
7. Preliminary Round Pairing Procedures
a. The National Tournament shall consist of no fewer than five preliminary rounds for each
debate category in which all entries are guaranteed participation (except in the even of a
bye).
b. In the event of an odd number of entries in a given debate format one team in each round
will be awarded a bye. That bye will be tabulated as a win, and debater/team receiving the
bye will be awarded speaker points equal to their speaker point average in the other four
rounds of competition. The bye will be assigned randomly in rounds one and two. In
rounds three, four and five the bye will go to the lowest seed. In the event that the lowest
seed has already received a bye the bye will advance to next lowest seed as no
debater/team will receive more than one bye.
c. Debaters/teams will be constrained from meeting other debaters/teams from their school
or club.
d. Debaters/teams will be constrained from meeting other debaters/teams they have
previously met in prelims.
e. Rounds one and two of all debate divisions will be paired randomly with exception of the
previous mentioned constraints. All rounds following round two will be paired using a
high-low with in brackets method of powering.
f. For Policy and LD sides will be randomly assigned for odd numbered rounds (1,3 and 5). In
even numbered rounds (2 and 4) side constraints will be enforced and the debater/team
will be assigned to the side opposite from the side assigned in the previous round.
g. For Public Forum a coin toss will be used to determine sides and speaker order.
h. Scheduling judges for preliminary rounds
i. All preliminary rounds of debate will be decided by one judge.
ii. No coach shall be scheduled to judge his or her own debater/team.
iii. When possible a judge will not be scheduled to judge a debater/team more than
once.
8. Pairing Procedures for Elimination Rounds
a. The number of entries in each debate division will determine if the number of teams in that
division that will break to elimination rounds. Any division with less than 24 entries will
break directly to semifinals (top four debaters/teams). Any divisions with more than 24
entries but less than 40 will break to quarterfinals (top eight debaters/teams), and any
6 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual
division with more than 40 entries will break to octofinals (top 16 debaters/teams). Under
no circumstances will the National Tournament break more than 16 debaters/teams in a
given division of debate.
b. Once elimination rounds begin, school or club constraints will no longer apply. A
debater/team may be paired to debate another debater/team from the same school or
club. In such situations the coach of record for debaters/teams involved may opt to
advance either debater or team without holding the actual debate, or the coach may
decide to require his or her debaters to debate the round. In which case the tournament
will provide the necessary judges for the round to take place.
c. For elimination rounds all debaters/teams will be seeded and paired accordingly.
Debaters/teams will be ranked using the following formula:
i. Total number of wins.
ii. Single adjusted speaker points with the highest and lowest single-ballot points
dropped.
iii. Unadjusted speaker points.
iv. Opposition win-loss record.
v. Double adjusted speaker points with the first and second highest and lowest
single-ballot points dropped. At this point if the tie is still unbroken, speaker
points will continue to be adjusted to triple adjusted then quadruple adjusted if
necessary.
vi. In the event of an unbreakable tie, the seeding of the teams in questions will be
determined by a coin toss.
d. The following guidelines will be used to pair elimination rounds.
i. In the first elimination round the highest seed will debate the lowest seed, the
second seed will debate the second lowest seed, so on. For example in octofinals
the 1st seed would debate the 16th seed, the 2nd seed would debate the 15th seed,
the 3rd seed would debate the 14th seed, the 4th seed would debate the 13th seed,
and so on ending with the 8th seed debating the 9th seed.
ii. Elimination round brackets are not reseeded following each round. This means if
the 16th seed defeats the 1st seed in octofinals then the they assume the 1st seed.
iii. For Policy and LD - If the debaters/teams paired to debate in out rounds met in
prelims then they will debate on opposite sides in the elimination round. If the
two debaters/teams have not met previously at the National Tournament then
they will flip a coin for sides. Sides in Public Forum will always be determined by
the coin toss.
e. Scheduling judges for elimination rounds
i. All elimination rounds of debate will be judged by a minimum of three judges.
ii. No coach shall be scheduled to judge his or her own debater/team.
iii. When possible a judge will not be scheduled to judge a debater/team more than
once.
B. Individual Events: this tournament will offer competition in eight individual speech events, which
include Dramatic Interpretation (DI), Humorous Interpretation (HI), Poetry (POE), Prose (PRO),
Extemporaneous Speaking (EX), Original Oratory (OO), Impromptu (IMP) and Duo Interpretation (DUO).
For scheduling purposes, these events will be divided into two patterns: A (DI, HI, POE and PRO) and B
(EXT, OO, IMP, and DUO).
1. Cross-entry restriction: Students entering a debate event will only be allowed to enter individual
events in Section B. No student will be allowed to enter more than two events in each section
2. If fewer than 18 participants sign up for a particular event, then the event will be cancelled unless
that event is Prose, Poetry, Humorous Interpretation, or Dramatic Interpretation. In the case that
either prose or poetry (or both) fail to attract the minimum number of entries the events will be
collapsed into one event. The same is true for Humorous and Dramatic Interpretation.
3. Preliminary Round Sectioning
a. Each contestant is guaranteed three randomly sectioned preliminary rounds of
competition.
b. When possible no student should be placed in a section with another student from his or
her school or club.
c. Each student should meet a variety of opposition in each round.
d. Each student should be assigned a variety of speaker positions in preliminary rounds.
e. If a student is cross-entered, she or he should be schedule as the first speaker (or as close
as possible) in one event and last speaker (or as close as possible) in the other event.
f. Scheduling judges for preliminary rounds
IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 7
i. Preliminary rounds of speech events will be evaluated and ranked by one judge.
ii. No coach shall be scheduled to judge a student from her or his school or club.
iii. No judge shall judge the same student more than once during prelims.
iv. Contestants in any speech event who are scheduled to be judged by someone
who has, at any point in time, coached or taught them or with whom they have a
close personal relationship are responsible for reporting that fact to the
ombudsperson immediately. Failure to comply may result in disqualification from
the tournament.
4. Elimination Rounds
a. The number of entries in each speech event will determine the number of individuals that
can advance to elimination round competition in that event. If an event has fewer than 24
entries then the event will break directly to a final round of six contestants. If an event has
more than 24 but fewer than 60 entries that event will break to semifinals, and any event
with more than 60 entries will break to a quarterfinal round.
b. Prelim scores will not carry over to elimination rounds except that for the purpose of
scheduling the first elimination round. From that point on scores reset after each round.
c. Scheduling judges: elimination rounds of speech events will judged by at least three judges.
No coach shall be scheduled to judge a student from her or his school or club. A judge
will not see a student more than once.
d. Quarterfinals
i. In the event that a quarterfinal round is necessary (for events with more than 60
entries), the top 24 contestants after prelims will advance to a quarterfinal round.
ii. The top 24 contestants will be determined using the following formula.
01. lowest cumulative ranks from the three prelims
02. Ties in ranks will be broken based on the highest number of speaker
points
03. If a tie still exist it will be broken based on the number of firsts in
prelims, then seconds, then thirds, etc. if needed.
04. If a tie is unbreakable by this formula, all tied contestants shall be
included in the quarterfinal round.
iii. Quarterfinals will consist of four sections with six contestants in each section.
Sectioning will be done as follows, protecting school constraints before seeding
(speaker order will not necessary follow the seed strength listed):
Section x Section y Section z Section n
24th seed 23rd seed 22nd seed 21st seed
17th seed 18th seed 19th seed 20th seed
16th seed 15th seed 14th seed 13th seed
9th seed 10th seed 11th seed 12th seed
8th seed 7th seed 6th seed 5th seed
1st seed 2nd seed 3rd seed 4th seed
e. Semifinals
i. In the event that a quarterfinal round was held, the top 3 participants from each
quarterfinal section will advance to semifinals. Placement in each section will be
determined first by lowest composite rank. If a tie exist then preference will be
given to the contestant with the highest composite speaker points, and if a tie still
exist it will be broken based on the number of 1st in quarters, then 2nd, then thirds
and so on if needed. In the event that the tie can not be broken those tied will all
advance to semifinals. Once the top three from each section are determined they
will be seeded 1-12 using the same formula as was used to determine top three in
each section.
ii. If no quarterfinal round is held, the top 12 contestants after prelims will advance
to semifinals. The same formula used to determine quarterfinalists (see the
section on quarterfinals) will be used for semifinals.
iii. Semifinals will consists of two sections with six contestants in each. Sectioning will
be completed as follows (school constraints, speaker order same as d.iii. above):
Section x Section y
12th seed 11th seed
9th seed 10th seed
8th seed 7th seed
5th seed 6th seed
4th seed 3rd seed
1st seed 2nd seed
8 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual
f. Finals
i. After semifinals the top six contestants (3 from each section) will advance to the
final round. The process for determining these contestants is the same as
determining semifinals (see section on semifinals). Finals will consist of a single
section with six contestants.
5. Exhibition Events: to gauge interest in possibly offering events popular to regional/state middle
school leagues, we are this year offering two events, where students will be evaluated on a rubric,
rather than competitive ranking, and can earn merchandise prizes by accruing a certain point total.
a. Storytelling
b. TV Commercial
C. Congressional Debate: this tournament will offer the legislative format of debate, which will run
on the same schedule as Speech Pattern B (cross-entry between Congress and Pattern B is not allowed).
1. Any coaches/teachers interested in submitting student-written legislation from their schools must e-
mail it to [email protected] by May 1. The complete legislation packet will be released for
by May 7 at www.nflonline.org/AboutNFL/MiddleSchoolNationalTournament.
Templates and guidelines for writing legislation are at www.studentcongressdebate.org. The
National Junior Forensic League will review submitted legislation for adherence to the guidelines on
the aforementioned Web site, and will supplement the docket as necessary with age-appropriate
bills.
2. Cross-entry restriction: Students entering Congress will only be allowed to enter Debate events or
individual events in Pattern A.
3. There must be at least 18 entries registered, or Congressional Debate will be cancelled.
4. Preliminary Round Sectioning
a. Students will be assigned to Congress chambers of 14-28 students apiece, and will debate
in three preliminary sessions of approximately two hours each.
b. Students from the same school/club will be separated, except to allow for an affiliated
judge to score in a chamber without students from her/his school.
c. Preliminary sessions will be evaluated and ranked by two judges, who will score individual
speeches and answers to questions, as well as preferentially rank the students in each
session. The parliamentarian’s ballot will break any otherwise unbreakable ties.
i. A parliamentarian will be assigned to each chamber (or one of the judges will be
designated as “parliamentarian”). S/he will supervise each chamber: to call the roll
and ensure students are in assigned seats, to intervene in case a chamber
becomes too deeply involved in parliamentary rules, and correct gross errors in
procedure. S/he should remain in the background, but step forward firmly when
her/his presence is required. The purpose of the Congress is to debate
legislation, and it is the parliamentarian's duty to see that this is done.
ii. A high school student or adult will be assigned to serve as the presiding officer for
each chamber, who will call on contestants to speak, serve as timekeeper, and
ensure that tournament rules and parliamentary procedure are being adhered to
in each chamber. The parliamentarian will assist the presiding officer as necessary.
The presiding officer may be assigned to also serve as a judge, but then item iii
immediately below will also apply.
iii. Contestants in Congress who are scheduled to be judged by someone who has, at
any point in time, coached or taught them or with whom they have a close
personal relationship are responsible for reporting that fact to the ombudsperson
immediately. Failure to comply may result in disqualification from the tournament.
5. Agenda: to facilitate maximum time for debate, the agenda will be set in the order legislation
appears in the docket packet released by May 7. Students may move to Suspend the Rules and alter
the agenda in individual chambers, but the parliamentarian may step in and overrule this, if s/he
believes this motion is being used abusively or excessively.
6. Super Congress (Final Round)
a. If there are 14-18 contestants in the preliminary session, no Super Congress will be held.
If there are 19-28 students, the top 12 will advance; if there are 29-36, the top 18 will
advance; if there are 37 or more, the top 24 will advance.
b. Scheduling judges for preliminary rounds
i. The Super Congress will feature a panel of 3 or 5 judges.
ii. No coach shall be scheduled to judge a student from her or his school or club.

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 9

7. Ethics and Evidence
a. Conduct
i. A congressperson’s conduct shall be above reproach and he/she should never be
guilty of intentional harassment. Impeaching and censuring other participants is
not allowed.
ii. Participation in this event demands the seriousness of purpose and maturity
possessed by real world policymakers. All adult officials, including scorers, will
hold each participant to this standard.
iii. Congresspersons should have a cooperative nature and if there is a problem, then
the student should take any concerns to an adult official.
iv. Participation in the legislative debate is essential. Extended absence from the
chamber during a session will affect a contestant’s overall impression and
performance. The practice of “open chambers” interferes with the
parliamentarian’s ability to monitor student participation.
b. Evidence and Use of Electronic Devices
i. Visual aids are permitted in Student Congress, provided they do not require
electronic retrieval devices in the chamber.
ii. All evidence used is subject to verification. Honesty and integrity are of utmost
importance in legislative debate. Falsification or deliberate misuse of evidence
may result in the legislator being suspended by tournament officials.
iii. Computers, cell phones, music players and games are not to be used in the
chamber during a session. Traditional timing devices are permitted.
III. Awards
A. Individual awards: will be given to all students advancing to the semifinal and final rounds of all speech events
and quarterfinalists, semifinalists, and finalists in all debate events.
B. School awards: this tournament does not present “sweepstakes awards,” rather, it confers “School of
Excellence” awards. Exhibition events do not factor into these awards.
1. Contestants reaching elimination rounds will count towards School of Excellence Awards.
a. A school will receive one point for each speech event entry qualifying for the quarterfinal
round (if necessary) and one additional point for each subsequent elimination round
reached.
b. A school will receive one point for each debater or debate team reaching the octofinal
round (if necessary) and one additional point for each subsequent elimination round
reached.
2. The Debate School of Excellence Award will be presented to the top five point earning schools
with at least one entry in debate and/or Congressional Debate.
3. The Individual Events School of Excellence Award will be presented to the top five point earning
schools with at least one entry in a speech event.
4. The Overall School of Excellence Award will be presented to the top three point earning schools
with at least one entry in both debate and speech.

10 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

Public Forum Debate: Overview
Public Forum is a team debate event that advocates or rejects a position posed by the monthly resolution topic. The clash
of ideas must be communicated in a manner persuasive to the non-specialist or “citizen judge”, i.e. a member of the
American jury. The debate should:
Display solid logic, lucid reasoning, and depth of analysis
Utilize evidence without being driven by it
Present a clash of ideas by countering/refuting arguments of the opposing team (rebuttal)
Communicate ideas with clarity, organization, eloquence, and professional decorum

The round starts with a coin toss; the winning team selects either:
The side (pro or con) they will argue
The speaker order (begin the debate or give the last speech).
The team that loses the toss will then decide their preference from the option not selected by the winner (i.e., if the
winning team decides to speak last, then the losing team may decide which side they will argue). The debate, therefore may begin
with the con side, arguing against the topic. Times for speeches are:

Speaker 1 (Team A, 1st speaker ) ....................4 min. During "crossfire," the two previous speakers stand, asking
Speaker 2 (Team B, 1st speaker) ......................4 min. and answering questions in a polite, but argumentative
exchange. Unlike traditional cross-examination, both speakers
Crossfire (between speakers 1 & 2) ............3 min. may question each other, however, the first question of the
crossfire period is asked to the speaker who just finished.
Speaker 3 (Team A, 2nd speaker ) ...................4 min. Summary speeches are rebuttals that extend earlier
Speaker 4 (Team B, 2nd speaker )....................4 min. arguments made or answer opposing refutations, and may
incorporate new evidence, but not new arguments.
Crossfire (between speakers 3 & 4) ............3 min.
In the grand crossfire, all four debaters may remain seated,
Speaker 1 Summary..............................................2 min. asking and answering questions. The first question is asked by
Speaker 2 Summary..............................................2 min. the team that had the first summary to the team which had the
last summary. After that, any debater may question or answer.
Grand Crossfire (all speakers) ....................3 min. The final focus is a compelling restatement of why the judge
should vote pro or con. Given the short period, the team must
Speaker 3 Final Focus ..........................................1 min. decide what arguments weigh most importantly on the decision.
Speaker 4 Final Focus ..........................................1 min. No new arguments are accepted in the final focus speeches.
Each team may use up to two minutes of prep time.

The judge is the chairperson of the round (facilitating the coin flip and giving time signals if requested), and may halt any
crossfire lacking civility. S/he may not interact in the crossfire.

Judges evaluate teams on the quality of the arguments actually made, not on their own personal beliefs, and not on issues
they think a particular side should have covered. Judges should assess the bearing of each argument on the truth or
falsehood of the assigned resolution. The pro should prove that the resolution is true, and the con should prove that the
resolution in not true. When deciding the round, judges should ask, “If I had no prior beliefs about this resolution, would
the round as a whole have made me more likely to believe the resolution was true or not true?” Teams should strive to
provide a straightforward perspective on the resolution; judges should discount unfair, obscure interpretations that only
serve to confuse the opposing team. Plans (formalized, comprehensive proposals for implementation), counterplans and
kritiks (off-topic arguments) are not allowed. Generalized, practical solutions should support a position of advocacy.

Quality, well-explained arguments should trump a mere quantity thereof. Debaters should use quoted evidence to
support their claims, and well-chosen, relevant evidence may strengthen – but not replace – arguments. Clear
communication is a major consideration. Judges weigh arguments only to the extent that they are clearly explained, and
they will discount arguments that are too fast, too garbled, or too jargon-laden to be understood by an intelligent high
school student or a well-informed citizen. A team should not be penalized for failing to understand his or her opponent’s
unclear arguments. In short, Public Forum Debate stresses that speakers must appeal to the widest possible audience
through sound reasoning, succinct organization, credible evidence, and clear delivery. Team points provide a mechanism
for evaluating the relative “quality of debating” by each side.

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 11

Lincoln-Douglas Debate: Overview
Lincoln Douglas debate centers on a proposition of value, which concerns itself with what ought to be instead of what is.
Values are ideals held by individuals, societies, governments, etc. Neither side is permitted to offer a plan (a formalized,
comprehensive proposal for implementation); rather, they should offer reasoning to support a general principle.
Debaters may offer generalized, practical examples or solutions to illustrate how the general principle could guide
decisions. Hallmarks include:
1. Parallel Burdens: No question of values can be determined entirely true or false. This is why the resolution is
debatable. Therefore neither debater should be held to a standard of absolute proof. No debater can realistically be
expected to prove complete validity or invalidity of the resolution. The better debater is the one who, on the whole,
proves his/her side of the resolution more valid as a general principle.
Burden of proof: Each debater has the equal burden to prove the validity of his/her side of the resolution as a
general principle. As the resolution is a statement of value, there is no presumption for either side.
Burden of clash: After a case is presented, neither debater should be rewarded for presenting a speech
completely unrelated to the arguments of his/her opponent.
Resolutional burden: The debaters are equally obligated to focus the debate on the central questions of the
resolution, not whether the resolution itself is worthy of debate. Because the affirmative must uphold the
resolution, the negative must also argue the resolution as presented.
2. Value Structure: The debater establishes a value structure (or framework) to serve two functions: a) to provide
an interpretation of the central focus of the resolution, and b) to provide a method for the judge to evaluate the
central questions of the resolution. The value structure often (but not always) consists of:
Definitions: The affirmative should offer definitions, be they dictionary or contextual, that provides a reasonable
ground for debate. The negative has the option to challenge these definitions and to offer counter-definitions.
Value Premise/Core Value: A value is an ideal held by individuals, societies, governments, etc. that serves as the
highest goal to be protected, respected, maximized, advanced, or achieved. In general, the debater will establish a
value which focuses the central questions of the resolution and will serve as a foundation for argumentation.
Value Criterion/Standard: Generally, each debater will presents a standard, used to:
explain how the value should be protected, respected, maximized, advanced, or achieved.
measure whether an argument protects, respects, maximizes, advances, or achieves the value.
evaluate the relevance and importance of an argument in the context of the round.
The relationship between the value premise and the criterion should be clearly articulated. During the debate, the
debaters may argue the validity or priority of the two value structures. They may accept their opponent’s value
structure, prove the superiority of their own value structure, or synthesize the two.
3. Argumentation: Debaters are obligated to construct logical Timing - Timekeeping is required. If no
chains of reasoning which lead to the conclusion of the affirmative timekeeper is used, debaters may time for
or negative position. The nature of proof may take a variety of their opponent or the judge may keep time.
forms (e.g., a student’s original analysis, application of philosophy,
examples, analogies, statistics, expert opinion, etc.). Arguments Affirmative Constructive 6 min.
should be presented in a cohesive manner that shows a clear Negative Cross-Examines Aff. 3 min.
relationship to the value structure. Research should be conducted Negative Constructive 7 min.
and presented ethically from academically sound and appropriately
cited sources. Affirmative Cross-Examines Neg. 3 min.
4. Cross-Examination: Questioning should clarify, challenge, Affirmative Rebuttal 4 min.
and/or advance arguments in the round. Negative Rebuttal 6 min.
5. Delivery: Effective oral communication requires clarity of thought Affirmative Rebuttal 3 min.
and expression. Arguments should be worded and delivered in a Prep time for each debater 4 min.
manner accessible to an educated non-specialist audience. This
communication encompasses:
Written: Cases and arguments should be constructed in a manner that is organized, accessible, and informative to
the listener. The debater should employ clear logic and analysis supported by topical research.
Verbal: The debater has the obligation to be clear, audible and comprehensible, and to speak persuasively to the
listeners. Additionally, debaters should strive for fluency, expressiveness, effective word choice, and eloquence.
Non-verbal: The debater should demonstrate an effective use of gestures, eye contact, and posture.
Throughout a round, debaters should demonstrate civility as well as a professional demeanor and style of delivery.
12 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual
Policy Debate: Overview
Policy debate focuses on the advocacy of a plan or policy action. The affirmative team should outline the harms in the
current system or some sort of need. Then they should present a policy that would satisfy the need they have outlined. In
addition the affirmative may discuss additional advantages to the policy.

The negative team may argue that the affirmative policy fails to meet the need they have outlined (i.e. the affirmative does
not solve). The negative also has the option to present disadvantages to the policy (the policy may solve the problem, but
it will create new problems).

Other ways do exist for structuring an affirmative case or negative strategy, but in the end the debate should focus on
whether or not a particular policy is an appropriate course of action.

Timing - Timekeeping is required. If no Stock Issues

constructive speech, one period of questioning, one

timekeeper is used, debaters may time for Often, judges view the round in terms of stock issues, or major
Each individual debater must give one and only one
their opponent or the judge may keep time. questions that both teams need to address. They are:
Affirmative Constructive 8 min. Inherency: Does the plan exist in the status quo (the way
Negative Cross-Examines Aff. 3 min. period of answering, and one rebuttal. things are now)?
Harms: What’s the problem with the status quo?
Negative Constructive 8 min. Significance: How big is the problem in the status quo?
Affirmative Cross-Examines Neg. 3 min. Solvency: Does the affirmative plan solve the problem?
Topicality: Does the affirmative plan meet the terms of
Affirmative Constructive speech 8 min.
the resolution? Is it an example of the resolution?
Negative Cross-Examines Aff. 3 min.
Negative Constructive speech 8 min. In the traditional view, the affirmative has to successfully defend
the argument that their plan meets all five of the stock issues: it
Affirmative Cross-Examines Neg. 3 min.
can’t exist already (inherency), it has to address an important
Negative Rebuttal 5 min. problem (harms and significance together), it has to fix that
Affirmative Rebuttal 5 min. important problem (solvency), and it has to be an example of
the resolution, to ensure a fair debate (topicality). If the
Negative Rebuttal 5 min.
negative can prove that the affirmative violates any one of the
Affirmative Rebuttal 5 min. stock issues – for example, that the plan won’t fix the problem
Prep time, per team 8 min. (solvency) – then the negative wins the debate.

Disadvantages
Sometimes an affirmative plan can solve for all five of the stock issues and still be a bad idea. For example, an affirmative
plan to dissolve the entire U.S. prison system would certainly remedy the problem of excessive detention, doesn’t exist in
the status quo, and very substantially decreases the government’s ability to detain without charge. However, there are
still extremely good reasons not to vote for such a plan: prisoners might run rampant on the streets; people would be
less afraid to commit crimes since they would know that there were no prisons to punish them for breaking the law; lots
of prison staff would be out of employment, and so forth.

A disadvantage is a somewhat more structured way of arguing that the negative consequences of a plan provide a reason
not to vote for it. Disadvantages have several important parts:
Uniqueness: is the disadvantage happening in the status quo? If a disadvantage argues that an affirmative plan will
cause the economy to stagnate (stop growing), then it can be proved non-unique if an affirmative effectively argues
that the economy is already stagnating and, hence, the plan wouldn’t make the economy any worse than it already is.
Link: does the plan cause the problem to happen? If a disadvantage argues that releasing detainees held at
Guantanamo Bay would cause terrorism to increase, the negative has to prove that prisoners there are involved in
terrorism and that their captivity is important to preventing terrorism.
Impact: does the plan cause something bad to happen? If a disadvantage argues that limiting the government’s ability
to conduct sneak and peek searches under Section 213 of the USA PATRIOT Act would impair the government’s law
enforcement ability, the negative has to prove that law enforcement by the government is a good thing.

Cross-Examination
The questioner shall control the use of the time and may interrupt the respondent, but may not comment on the answers
or make any statement of his/her own views.

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 13

Extemporaneous Speaking: Overview
Topics
Topics will cover United States domestic policy, United States foreign policy, and the foreign policies of foreign nations.
The tournament director will obtain a list of questions aimed for middle level ages and phrased for contest use, based on
subjects discussed in standard periodicals during the current school year. Themes by round are:

• Round 1: United States Political Issues

• Round 2: Science, Health & Technology News
• Round 3: Energy & Environment Issues
• First Elim. Round: International News
• Second Elim. Round: Business News
• Third Elim. (if needed): varied, from above

Drawing
Thirty minutes before the round is to begin, the first speaker shall draw three questions, choose one, and return the
other two. Other contestants shall draw in like manner, in the order of speaking, at intervals of seven minutes.

Preparation
As soon as a question is chosen, the contestant shall withdraw and prepare a speech without consultation and without
references to prepared notes. Students may consult published books, magazines, newspapers, and journals or articles,
provided…
• They are originals or Xeroxed copies of originals.
• Original articles or copies must be intact & uncut.
• There is no written material on original or copies.
• Topical index without annotation is allowed.

No other material shall be allowed in the extemp prep room other than stated above. Extemp speeches, handbooks,
briefs, and outlines shall be barred from the extemp prep room. Underlining or highlighting on materials will be allowed if
done in only one color on each article or copy.

No electrical retrieval device may be used, but printed material from “on line” computer services may be used. Source
citations of such materials must meet MLA standards.

Recusal
A contestant may not leave the prep area without first checking out with the proctor. A student leaving without
permission will be ranked last in that round.

The Speech:
Time: Contestants shall speak not more than seven minutes. No minimum time is mandated. Judges should provide time
signals at 6:00 and 6:30. A contestant who exceeds this time limit by more than :30 seconds is not eligible for a first place
rank. Speakers may use one index card per round, up to 4-inches by 6-inches. These cards may only be written on in the
preparation area.

14 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

Original Oratory: Overview
This contest shall comprise only memorized orations actually composed by the contestants and not used in any previous
contest year. No visual aids are permitted.

Subject –Any appropriate subject may be used, but the orator must be truthful. Any non-factual reference, especially a
personal one, must be so identified.

Length – Delivery shall require not more than 10 minutes. Judges should provide time signals at 9:00 and at 9:30. A
contestant who exceeds this time limit by more than :30 seconds is not eligible for a first place rank.

Quotation – Not more than 150 words of the oration may be direct quotation from any other speech or writing and
such quotations shall be identified in a printed copy of the oration supplied prior to registration. Extensive paraphrasing
from other sources is prohibited.

Script – The Tournament Director must receive a copy of the orator’s script by Friday, June 5, 2009, e-mailed from the
same address as the head coach who registered – to: [email protected]. The script should identify the quoted
materials, state the number of quoted words, and by virtue of submitting the script, the orator and the coach attest that
the oration is the original work of the contestant.

Impromptu Speaking: Overview

Topics – Impromptu topics will include proverbs, abstract words, events, quotations, and famous people.

Drawing – Five minutes before the round is to begin, the first speaker shall draw three topics, choose one, and return
the other two. The other contestants shall draw in like manner, in the order of speaking, at intervals of six minutes. The
same list of topics shall be used for the drawing by each section. A different subject area will be used for each round.

Preparation –
As soon as a topic is chosen, the contestant shall withdraw and prepare a speech without consultation and without
references to prepared notes. Students may consult published books, magazines, newspapers, and journals or articles,
provided:
• They are originals or Xeroxed copies of originals.
• That original article or copy is intact and uncut.
• There is no written material on original or copy.
• Topical index without annotation is allowed.

No other material shall be allowed in the impromptu prep room other than stated above. Speeches, handbooks, briefs,
and outlines shall be barred from the prep room. Underlining or highlighting in materials will be allowed if done in one
color on each article or copy. No electrical retrieval device may be used, but printed materials from “online” computer
services may be used.

Recusal – A student may not leave the impromptu prep room without permission of the proctor.

Notes – Speakers may use one index card per round, up to 4-inches by 6-inches. These cards may only be written on in
the preparation area.

Time – There is no minimum qualifying time, but the contestant must cover the subject adequately. Maximum time is
five minutes. Judges should provide time signals at 4:00 and at 4:30. A contestant who exceeds this time limit by more
than :30 seconds is not eligible for a first place rank.

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 15

Literary Interpretation: Overview
Selections – Selections used in these contests shall be cuttings from published, printed novels, short stories, plays or
poetry. A cutting must be from a single work of literature: one story, or one play, or one novel. No school publications
or recorded material that is not printed and published is acceptable. Adaptations may be made for the purpose of
transition.

Monologues are acceptable in Dramatic and/or Humorous Interpretation. During the presentation the contestant must
name the author and the book or magazine from which the cutting was made. Adaptations of television skits or other
non-published material are prohibited. In duo interpretation, each of the two performers may play one or more
characters, so long as performance responsibility in the cutting remains as balanced as possible. (If the selection is prose
or poetry and contains narration, either or both of the performers may present the narration.)

Poetry is writing which expresses ideas, experience, or emotion through the creative arrangement of words according
to their sound, their rhythm, their meaning. Poetry may rely on verse and stanza form. During the presentation the
contestant must name the author and the book or magazine from which the cutting was made. No plays or other
dramatic materials may be used.

Prose expresses thought through language recorded in sentences and paragraphs: fiction (short stories, novels) and non-
fiction (articles, essays, journals, biographies). During the presentation the contestant must name the author and the book
or magazine from which the cutting was made. No plays or other dramatic materials may be used. A student may not use
the same Poetic or Prose source s/he used in Duo, Dramatic or Humorous at any IDEA/NJFL/MSFL tournament, nor may
a student duplicate the same work among cross-entered events.

Focus – Use of focal points and/or direct contact with the audience should be determined by the requirements of the
literature being interpreted. In Duo Interpretation, focus may be direct during the introduction and the performers may
look at each other but must be indirect (off-stage) during the performance itself.

Presentation & Time – DI, HI, DUO

Each selection is presented as a memorized selection without the use of physical objects, script, or costume. Presentation
shall not exceed 10 minutes. Judges should provide time signals at 9:00 and at 9:30. A contestant who exceeds this time
limit by more than 30 seconds is not eligible for a first place rank.

Presentation & Time – Poetry, Prose

Presentations shall not last more than 7:00 minutes. Judges should provide time signals at 6:00 and at 6:30. A contestant
who exceeds this time limit by more than :30 seconds is not eligible for a first place rank. Performances must be from a
manuscript (which will be in a folder). Reading from a book or magazine is not permitted. Movement below the waist is
not allowed.

16 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

Student Congress Debate: Overview
How Congressional Debate Works
Legislation: the purpose of legislation is to change the status quo, so ideas should stem from a desire to solve
problems or meet needs. The best legislation is debatable, meaning there is some degree of controversy in either the
topic or how the legislation intends to addresses the issue(s). Before students draft legislation, they should research
the scope of jurisdictional power Congress has for lawmaking on the given topic, and what agency (or agencies) of
the federal government would be responsible for enforcement and implementation of that legislation.
The legislation must be typed, double-spaced, and no longer than one page. A specific title should indicate
the legislation’s intent or action (a title that simply states “concerning or related to” an issue doesn’t indicate
enough detail).
Preparing a bill - The first words of a bill are "Be It Enacted by the Student Congress here
assembled," followed by numbered sections (which may include lettered sub-points), which detail
the policy to be taken, defines key terms and outlines the plan of action – including funding,
describes the governing agency and enforcement mechanism(s), and implementation date.
Preparing a resolution
Resolutions begin with one or more “Whereas” clauses, which state principal reasons for adoption.
Following the final whereas clause, is a transitional phrase, “now, therefore, be it” which
immediately precedes the “Resolved” clause, which indicates the resolution’s precise purpose,
“Resolved, By the Student Congress here assembled that…”
An optional “Further resolved” clause may indicate further purpose or intention for action.
All lines should be numbered, except the title and signature line.
Generally, the author’s name and school should be included following the last line of the legislation.
Legislation that does not conform to these guidelines may be rejected from consideration for the docket.

Following are samples of legislation, formatted in the proper manner. Digital word processing templates for legislation
are available for download at www.studentcongressdebate.org.

A Resolution to Urge Further A Bill to Establish a Specific Policy

Action on a Specific Issue BE IT ENACTED BY THE STUDENT CONGRESS HERE
1. WHEREAS, State the current problem (this needs to be ASSEMBLED THAT:
2. accomplished in one brief sentence); and 1. SECTION 1. State the new policy in a brief declarative
3. WHEREAS, Describe the scope of the problem cited in 2. sentence, or in as few sentences as
4. the first whereas clause (this clause needs 3. possible.
5. to flow logically from the first); and 4. SECTION 2. Define any ambiguous terms inherent in
6. WHEREAS, Explain the impact and harms perpetuated 5. the first section.
7. by the current problem (once again, the 6. SECTION 3. Name the government agency that will
8. clause needs to flow in a logical 7. oversee the enforcement of the bill along
9. sequence); now, therefore, be it 8. with the specific enforcement mechanism.
10. RESOLVED, By the Student Congress here assembled 9. SECTION 4. Indicate the implementation
11. that: state your recommendation for 10. date/timeframe.
12. dealing with the problem (the resolution 11. SECTION 5. State that all other laws that are in conflict
13. should be a clear call for action); and, be it 12. with this new policy shall hereby be
14. FURTHER RESOLVED, That (an optional additional 13. declared null and void.
15. recommendation; if not used, end the
16. previous “resolved” clause with a period). Introduced by Name of Student, School, NFL District

Introduced by Name of Student, School, NFL District

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 17

Researching the Docket The tournament will post a docket of legislation. Schools/clubs are encouraged to
brainstorm affirmative and negative arguments and find supporting evidence through research.

Role Playing
Students should act the part being the senator or representative, who weighs the needs of the
theoretical constituents they represent. This includes speaking as a legislator would talk, and acting genuinely nice
to other delegates. If students think of the purpose of Congress as serving a higher need of solving problems in
our society (rather than as a debate competition), they will take it more seriously. Humor is okay, but shouldn’t
be the emphasis of speaking or conduct.
Students should dress the part professional legislators wear business attire. Dress shoes are highly
recommended with restraint toward tasteful accessories that would not distract an audience.
Upon arrival, students are assigned to chambers, labeled as a “Senate” or “House (of Representatives),” where
they would be assigned the appropriate courtesy title (Senator or Representative). A seating chart will be
established, which facilitates easier identification by student presiding officers and judges.
When referring to another legislator, state “Representative (or Senator) [last name] from…”
The correct way to obtain the floor is to rise immediately at the conclusion of the preceding speaker’s remarks
and say “Mr./Madam President (or Mr./Madam Speaker).” If another legislator is recognized, take your seat until
he/she relinquishes the floor.
It is unnecessary for speakers to state they yield to questions, because the rules conventionalize the period for
questioning. The presiding officer – who has a seating chart – controls calling on questioners, however, a
legislator may call for a suspension of the rules to allow for recognition by the speaker on the floor.
Do not argue with presiding officers; they are appointed to run the chamber, and their decisions should not be
challenged unless they violate the rights of the assembly or its members. For significant errors:
Stand and say “I rise to a point of order.” After the presiding officer says “state your point,” reply by stating
what you believe has been done wrong, and then site down. Until the presiding officer – who may first
confer with the parliamentarian – answers, neither you nor any other member may say anything.
If you still believe the presiding officer is wrong and the mistake should be corrected, rise and say “I appeal
the decision of the chair.” This motion requires a second. There is no discussion, but the legislator making
the motion may briefly explain why he/she thinks the presiding officer should be overruled. The presiding
officer then takes the vote by saying “those voting to sustain the presiding officer…” and “those voting to
overrule the presiding officer…” Once the vote has been taken and the results announced, the decision is
irrevocable and no further discussion is permitted on the manner.
Do not abuse the motion for previous question. The reason it requires a two-thirds vote is it limits the free
expression rights of legislators in the chamber. While majority rules for actions an assembly takes, the rights of
minority to engage their peers in discourse is the very foundation of our democracy. When a legislator moves
the previous question immediately after speaking, it sends the message “I gave a speech, and I don’t care if others
wish to have the same opportunity.” Limiting other contestants’ opportunities to engage in debate by suspending
rules to alter the agenda, or by laying legislation on the table is even worse, and should be discouraged by
presiding officers. If debate truly gets one-sided and repetitive, that is the only true purpose of the Previous
Question.
Procedure
1. Recognizing Speakers
a. When more than one speaker seeks the floor, the presiding officer must follow the recency method:
i. First recognize students who have not spoken during the session
ii. Next recognize students who have spoken fewer times
iii. Then recognize the student who have spoken least recently (earliest)
iv. Before precedence is established, the presiding officer should explain his/her recognition
process and it must be fair, consistent and justifiable.
v. During the preliminary session of Congress recency may not reset, to ensure that all
students in a chamber have an equal opportunity to speak and receive evaluation from
scorers. Recency will reset for the Super Session.
b. A student may be recognized to speak as often as possible and may speak more than once on the
same issue.

18 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

c. A speaker may yield time on the floor during debate (for questions or clarifications) but that
speaker will remain in control of his/her three minutes (see #4 below regarding questioning).
2. Speeches introducing legislation are allotted up to three minutes, followed by two minutes of questioning by
other delegates. A student from the school who wrote the legislation gets the privilege of recognition
(called authorship), regardless of recency; otherwise the presiding officer may recognize a “sponsor” from
the chamber, provided this recognition follows the recency guidelines above. Regardless, this speech of
introduction must be followed by two minutes of questions. Should no student seek recognition for the
authorship/sponsorship, the chamber should move to lay the legislation on the table until such time that a
student is prepared to introduce it.
3. Following the introductory speech on legislation, the presiding officer will alternately recognize negative and
affirmative speakers, who will address the chamber for up to three minutes followed by one minute of
questioning by other delegates. If no one wishes to oppose the preceding speaker, the presiding officer may
recognize a speaker upholding the same side. When no one seeks the floor for debate, the presiding officer
may ask the chamber if they are “ready for the question,” at which point, if there is no objection, voting may
commence on the legislation itself. There is no “minimum cycle” rule, however, if debate gets “one-sided,”
the chamber may decide to move the previous question.
a. In the event a student speaks on the wrong side called for by the presiding officer and the error is
not caught, the speaker shall be scored and the speech shall count in recency, but the speaker must
be penalized at least three points for not paying close attention to the flow of debate.
b. In the event a student speaks on an item of legislation not currently being debated, said speech shall
count in recency, but zero points shall be awarded.
4. The presiding officer fairly and equitably recognizes members to ask questions following each speech. The
presiding officer starts timing questioning periods when s/he has recognized the first questioner, and keeps
the clock running continuously until the time has lapsed. Speakers are encouraged to ask brief questions,
and may only ask one question at a time (two-part/multiple-part questions are not allowed, since they
monopolize time and disallow others to ask their questions). There is no formal “permission to preface,”
however, presiding officers should discourage students from making statements as part of questioning, since
that is an abusive use of the limited time available.
5. The presiding officer will pause briefly between speeches to recognize any motions from the floor, however,
he/she should not call for motions (at the beginning of a session, the presiding officer should remind
members to seek his/her attention between speeches).
6. Amendments must be presented to the presiding officer in writing, with specific references to lines and
clauses that change. This must be done in advance of moving to amend.
a. The presiding officer will recommend whether the amendment is “germane” – that is, it upholds the
original intent of the legislation – otherwise, it is considered “dilatory.”
b. A legislator can only move to amend between speeches. Once that motion is made, the presiding
officer will read the proposed amendment aloud and call for a second by one-third of those
members present, unless he/she rules it dilatory.
c. Should students wish to speak on the proposed amendment, the presiding officer will recognize
them as per recency, and the speech will be counted toward their total, accordingly.
d. Simply proposing an amendment does not guarantee an “author/sponsor” speech, and any speeches
on amendments are followed by the normal one minute of questioning.
e. Amendments are considered neutral and do not constitute an affirmative or negative speech on the
original legislation.
f. If there are no speakers or the previous question is moved, the chamber may vote on a proposed
amendment without debating it.
7. The PO determines the method of voting on each question that comes before the chamber. ALL simple
majority votes are based upon the number of legislators PRESENT and VOTING in the chamber; therefore,
the PO does not need to call for or count abstentions. For all votes requiring a fraction of the chamber to
agree to a motion or question (2/3, 1/3, 1/5, etc.), the chair determines whether the chamber agrees with
the motion/question using the number of legislators PRESENT in the chamber at the time of the vote.
Because of this system, the PO must track the number of legislators in the chamber at all times. Notes on
voting:
a. Final votes on legislation, amendments, and motions to appeal the chair require a recorded vote.
b. Voice voting is acceptable for all other votes, but a recorded vote must be taken if any one
legislator calls for a division of the chamber.
c. A roll call vote is permitted if such a request is agreed to by 1/5 of the chamber.
8. Ask permission to leave and enter the chamber when it is in session (move a personal privilege). However,
do not interrupt a speaker who is addressing the chamber.
9. Since the rules above ensure fairness for competition, they may not be suspended; the presiding officer
should rule such motions out of order.
IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 19
Table of Most Frequently Used Parliamentary Motions

Amendable?
Debatable?

Interrupt?
Required?
Adapted for use in National Forensic League Student Congresses

Second

May
Type Required
Motion Purpose Vote
24. Fix time for reassembling To arrange time of next Yes Yes-T Yes-T Majority Yes
meeting
23. Adjourn To dismiss the meeting Yes No Yes-T Majority No
Privileged

22. Recess To dismiss the meeting for a Yes Yes Yes-T Majority No
specific length of time
21. Rise to a question of privilege To make a personal request No No No Decision of Yes
during debate the Chair
20. Call for orders of the day To force consideration of a No No No Decision of Yes
postponed motion the Chair
19. Appeal a decision of the chair To reverse a decision Yes No No Majority Yes

18. Rise to a point of order or To correct a parliamentary No No No Decision of Yes

parliamentary procedure error or ask a question the Chair
17. Division of the chamber To verify a voice vote No No No Decision of Yes
the Chair
Incidental

16. Object to the consideration To suppress action No No No 2/3 Yes

of a question
15. Divide a motion To consider its parts separately Yes No Yes Majority No

14. Leave to modify or To modify or withdraw a No No No Majority No

withdraw a motion motion
13. Suspend the rules To take action contrary to Yes No No 2/3 No
standing rules
12. Rescind To repeal previous action Yes Yes Yes 2/3 No

11. Reconsider To consider a defeated motion Yes Yes No Majority No

again
10. Take from the table To consider tabled motion Yes No No Majority No

9. Lay on the table To defer action Yes No No Majority No

8. Previous question To force an immediate vote Yes No No 2/3 No

Subsidiary

7. Limit or extend debate To modify freedom of debate Yes Yes Yes-T 2/3 No

6. Postpone to a certain time To defer action Yes Yes Yes Majority Yes

5. Refer to a committee * For further study Yes Yes Yes Majority Yes

4. Amend an amendment ° To modify an amendment 1/3 Yes No Majority No

3. Amend ° To modify a motion 1/3 Yes Yes Majority No

2. Postpone indefinitely To suppress action Yes Yes No Majority No

Main 1. Main motion To introduce a business Yes Yes Yes Majority No

* No. 5 should include: ° Nos. 3 and 4 by:

1. How appointed? T = Time 1. Adding (inserting)
2. The number 2. Striking (deleting)
3. Report when? or to what standing committee 3. Substituting

20 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

Exhibition Events: Overview
Television (TV) Commercial
TV Commercials are for one to three people. The art of a commercial lies in the student’s ability to say a lot about the
product or service in a short amount of time. The product being presented must be an original idea of the students
presenting it, not something taken form another source (such as spoofs from Saturday Night Live). Props, costumes,
music, and anything else necessary to try to sell the product will be allowed. Attire appropriate to the presentation may
be worn. Catchy jingles or phrases are encouraged.

This event gives students an opportunity to use imagination in preparing and delivering a brief presentation. This is a
simulation of a television commercial, therefore there can be no interaction between presenter(s) and audience.
Rhetorical questions, however, are allowed. The speech must be presented from memory, using notes, or
extemporaneously. Each contestant may use of one 4x6 card (or smaller), but note cards are not required.

Delivery shall require 1-3 minutes. A contestant/team who exceeds this time limit by more than :30 seconds is not eligible
for a first place rank.

Judging
Judging will be based on originality, persuasiveness, creativity with props and costumes, vocal/facial/body expression, and
use of space by the whole team. The commercial should be done in good taste, but its tone can – and should – be
creative, entertaining, and enthusiastic.

Storytelling
The art of storytelling is older than reading, dating back to long before printing was invented, but it is modern too. The
storyteller uses vocal variation and physical movement to suggest different characters and character relationships in order
to make the story come alive in the mind of the listener.

Storytelling is a single published, printed story, anecdote, tale, myth or legend that must be retold without notes or
Props, and is appropriate content for a five year old. It is to be memorized, include a memorized introduction to set the
scene, and give the title and author. Movement is allowed and one chair may be used. No other props or costumes will
be allowed. The performer should present the piece to the audience as if they were kindergarten children. Judging will
be based on the student’s interpretation of the story through vocal control, facial/body expressions, use of space, and the
ability to act out the story to make it come alive.

The maximum time is 5 minutes, but the story may be briefer without penalty. A contestant who exceeds this time limit
by more than :30 seconds is not eligible for a first place rank. An introduction, which creates the atmosphere/mood for
the story, grasps the attention of the audience should include the title of the story, and either the author or culture from
which the story comes must be included within the 5-minute time limit (but may be delivered after a brief teaser). The
delivery must be extempore, not read. No book or script may be used. The story may be delivered standing or seated.
Gestures, pantomime and characterization, may be used with restraint but the focus must be on the narrative.

The retelling must be true to the original tale. The contestant may not add original material or materially change the
content of the story.

Judging
The art of storytelling is to create a mood wherein a spoken narrative transports the audience to the time and place of
the story being recounted. A storyteller is a narrator - not an actor or actress - and although gestures, pantomime,
movement, and characterization are not barred, they must be used with restraint.

The focus of the presentation must be on the narrative, with the teller acting as a presenter and not a performer. The
teller must clearly grasp and convey the meaning of the tale. The judge should rate highly the mechanics of superior
speaking: fluency, vocal variety, articulation, eye contact, gesture. The presentation should be extempore, not read. No
book or script may be used. The storyteller may speak standing or seated. No props or visual aids may be used.
"When the teller has been successful in bringing the tale to life, the telling will seem entirely natural, almost effortless"
IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 21
General Judging Instructions
• Judges should report to the ballot distribution location at least 15 minutes prior to the beginning of the round.
• We ask judges to be “Standby” to replace other judges who do not show up. Since this is an important
commitment, we ask that “Standby” judges remain available in the lounge area.
• Judges should report to their assigned room at least five minutes before the round is scheduled to begin.
• Please do not swap/trade judging assignments with another judge on your own. If there’s a problem, please alert
tournament officials. It’s important that we track exactly who judges a particular round, so we can ensure fresh
critics throughout the tournament.
• All judges should read the instructions and rules for any event with which they are unfamiliar.
• When judges serve on a panel, they must make their decisions independently of one another and NOT
CONFER regarding decisions/rankings/ratings.
• Judges should in no way intervene in or interrupt a performance. Judges are to act as SILENT evaluators.
• Judges may converse with students before the round starts, but should not demonstrate favoritism .
• Students should always be respectful of one another and of you, and you should set a tone of decorum and professionalism.
• Judges should refrain from revealing their decisions to contestants. DISCLOSURE IS NOT PERMITTED!!!
• Judges must turn in ballots/critique sheets to tournament staff, immediately following each round.

A Positive Approach To Writing Critiques

• Be tactful – Judges must not make rude, cruel, unkind or sarcastic comments on the students’ critique sheets.
• Be constructive – Judges must realize that criticism is not mere faultfinding. The best criticism is that which
builds up as well as tears down. Judges should make constructive suggestions for overcoming areas that need
improvement.
• Be specific – Judges should provide accurate and specific suggestions for improvement and avoid vague,
general comments.
• Be thorough – Judges must go beyond a rank or rating, providing students with as thorough an analysis as
possible, justifying their decision.

Judging Policy, LD and Public Forum

• During the questions phase (cross-examination) of Policy and LD, the time belongs to the debater asking the
questions. The questions should be brief and the answer short and specific. The person asking questions should
not attempt to refute answers provided by the other team/debater, nor should the team/debater answering
questions attempt to argue with or question the individual asking the questions.
• At the judge’s discretion, policy debaters may opt for an open cross-examination where all four debaters
participate in the cross-examination.
• During crossfire in Public Forum, the time is to be shared by both sides. The team speaking first in the debate
should be given the chance to ask the first question. Both questions and answers should be brief and specific.
Speakers should stand during regular crossfire and remain seated during the Grand Crossfire.
• Judges must render their decision within ten minutes of the end of the final speech in the round.

Judging Speech Events

• If a contestant is not present when his/her number is called, the judge is to go on to the next one. When the
tardy contestant arrives, s/he should be heard next. Some students are participating in another event scheduled
for the same time, and they cannot avoid being late. For the same reason, a student may have to leave
immediately after speaking.
• As students announce their subjects, the judge is to please write the title of the selection in the designated space
on the ballot.
• If a contestant exceeds the time limit indicated for each event, the contestant is not to be disqualified, but if the
speaker is more than :30, that speaker is not eligible to receive a 1st place ranking
• If a contestant does not arrive by the end of the contest, the judge is to inquire about the absent contestant
before s/he marks the ballot. Every contestant should be heard.
• After all contestants have been heard, they are to be ranked 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5, in order of excellence. Number 1 is
the best speaker. You may have more than one contestant with a 5th place ranking.

22 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

Judging Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Lincoln-Douglas Debate teaches critical thinking and public presentation skills. Your role as a judge is to determine which
debater did a better job of convincing you that his/her side of the resolution more valid as a general principle.

1. Before the Round – Find out the exact wording of the debate resolution and write it down.
2. To Begin the Round – You will be instructed as to which side the debaters have been assigned.
a. The Affirmative debater should be listed on the left side of the ballot and you may ask the debater to sit on
the left side of the room as you, the judge, look at the debaters.
b. The Negative debater should be listed on the right side of the ballot and you may ask the debater to sit on
the right side of the room as you, the judge, look at the debaters.
c. Record each debater’s code and side. You can confirm this information with the debaters.
d. When both debaters are ready, the Affirmative debater will stand in the front of the room to deliver the
initial speech.
3. During the Round –
a. While the debaters may keep track of their own time, judges need to monitor speaking times during the
round. Speech times and order are listed on the ballot.
b. Each debater has five minutes of preparation time (total) in each round, which can be used prior to any of
that debater’s speeches or cross-examination period. Judges need to monitor how much preparation time
has elapsed for each debater.
c. You are encouraged to take note of arguments made to assist you in making your decision at the end.
d. Keep track of what a debater says, if anything, in response to the other debater’s arguments. To ensure
fairness, your notes should help you determine if a debater is improperly making brand new arguments in
the final rebuttal speeches to which the opposing debater has no opportunity to respond.
e. Judges should not ask questions during the round.
4. After the Round –
a. Check your codes carefully. This is especially important when marking the winner of the debate.
b. In your written comments, please be as constructive and educational as possible. Provide a detailed
justification of your decision, referring to the central issues the debaters presented in the round. Evaluate
the round based only on the arguments that the debaters made and not on personal opinions or on
arguments that you would have made.

Your decision about which team wins SHOULD NOT be based upon –
Personal bias: A judge’s preference for a side of the resolution or a topic bias should not enter into the decision.
A judge must decide the round based on the arguments presented in that round. Objectivity is the primary
responsibility of any judge.
Partiality: The judge should not be influenced by the reputation of or relationship with the debaters, schools, or
coaches. If a situation arises where impartiality is in doubt, the judge has the responsibility to report this potential
conflict of interest to the tab room.
New arguments introduced in rebuttals: The judges shall disregard new arguments introduced in the
rebuttals. This does not include the introduction of new evidence in support of points already advanced or the
answering of arguments introduced by opponents.

A decision SHOULD BE based upon any or all of the following -

Burden of proof: Which debater has proven his/her side of the resolution more valid as a general principle by the
end of the round? No debater can realistically be expected to prove complete validity or invalidity of the resolution.
A judge should prefer quality and depth of argumentation to mere quantity of argumentation. A judge should base the
decision on which debater more effectively resolved the central questions of the resolution rather than on
insignificant dropped arguments.
Value structure: Which debater better established a clear and cohesive relationship between the argumentation
and the value structure?
Argumentation – Which debater better presented his/her arguments with logical reasoning using appropriate
support? Which debater best utilized cross-examination to clarify, challenge, or advance arguments?
Resolutionality: Which debater best addressed the central questions of the resolution?
Clash: Which debater best showed the ability to both attack his/her opponent’s case and to defend his/her own?
Delivery: Which debater communicated in a more persuasive, clear, and professional manner? A judge should give
weight only to those arguments that were presented in a manner that was clear and understandable to him or her as
a judge.

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 23

Judging Policy Debate
Judges are expected to carefully and fairly decide the outcomes of a debate. Any judge who cannot fairly decide a
particular debate should notify a tournament director, competition coordinator, or other responsible person and remove
herself from judging. Judges are never assigned to judge students from their own school.

Judges are ultimately responsible, however, for making sure that they will judge debates in a fair manner. There are two
outcomes for a debate. The judge must decide the winning side of the debate. That is the team that argued successfully on
the topic. If the proposition team proves its case, the judge should reward the proposition team. If the proposition team
did not prove its case, the judge should declare the opposition team as the winner. There are no ties in debates. Neither
can two teams win a debate or both teams lose a debate.

In addition to deciding the winning team in the debate, a judge must award individual points to each of the four debaters.
Student are rated on a scale of 0-30 points, with “30” points awarded for a perfect performance. The judge should
consider public speaking, argumentation, and teamwork skills in assigning individual speaker points. It is possible to give
the same speaker points to more than one student.

After careful deliberation of the outcome of the debate, the judge will complete a ballot, a record of the debate, given to
her by the tournament host. The judge will then announce the outcome of the debate to the participating teams. The
judge will explain the reasons that a particular side has won the debate.

The judge will provide some constructive criticism to help debaters improve in future debates. The judge will then
complete the written ballot, providing a detailed description of the reason(s) for the outcome, as well as listing any
additional comments to help debaters improve their public speaking and debate skills.

Judging Public Forum Debate

Public Forum Debate is a team event that advocates or rejects a position posed by the resolution. A central tenet of the
debate is that the clash of ideas must be communicated in a manner persuasive to the non-specialist or “citizen judge”, i.e.
a member of the American jury. While Policy Debate focuses on a plan to solve the problem(s) posed by the resolution,
and Lincoln Douglas Debate focuses on the core value of the resolution, Public Forum Debate focuses on advocacy of a
position derived from issues presented in the resolution, not a prescribed set of burdens. In Public Forum Debate, a plan
or counter plan is defined as a formalized, comprehensive proposal for implementation. Neither the pro or con side is
permitted to offer a plan or counter plan; rather, they should offer reasoning to support a position of advocacy. Debaters
may offer generalized, practical solutions.

New arguments in the “final focus” should be ignored. The “final focus” must be based on argument and issues previously
addressed in the debate.

Logical reasoning, maturity of thought, and effectiveness of communication are of primary consideration. Evidence,
examples, and analogies are to be used for the purpose of illustration.

The debate should:

• display solid logic, reasoning, and analysis
• utilize evidence but not be driven by it
• present a clash of ideas
• counter the arguments of the opponents (rebuttal)
• communicate ideas with clarity, organization, eloquence, and professional decorum

In making a decision, a judge should be as objective as possible. Remember these are propositions upon which there may
have strong feelings of which the debaters are unaware. Judges should adjudicate the round as it is debated, not as they
personally feel.

24 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

Judging Extemporaneous Speaking
The extemporaneous speech should not be regarded as a memory test of the material contained in any one magazine
article, but rather as an original synthesis by the speaker of the current fact and opinion on the designated topic as
presented by numerous sources.

The contestant therefore should be held accountable for strict adherence to the precise statement of the topic drawn and
discounted severely for shifting to some other phase of the topic on which s/he might prefer to speak.

The information presented should be well-chosen, pertinent, and sufficient to support the central thought of the topic.
The material should be organized according to some logical plan to produce a complete speech within the time allowed.
Delivery should be free from marked defects in the mechanics of speech -- poise, quality and use of voice, enunciation,
fluency, bodily expressiveness -- and should be effective in enlisting and holding the interest of the audience.

The best extemporaneous speech combines clear thinking, good speaking, and interesting presentation to establish a
definite thought with respect to the subject chosen. Do not require a contestant speaking on a controversial subject to
take a personal stand on that issue.

S/he may do so, or s/he may elect to present both sides of the controversy as currently set forth in the his/her own plan.
There is NO minimum qualifying time for the extemp speech. Do not penalize a contestant for brevity unless s/he fails to
cover adequately the subject s/he has chosen.

Maximum time is seven minutes. Impose no penalty for slight overtime, but if the speaker exceeds the maximum speaking
time by more than :30 seconds, S/He is not eligible to receive a 1st place ranking.

Judging Original Oratory

Since orations have been written by the contestants delivering them, the judges should consider thought, composition,
and delivery. However, since this is a contest in speech rather than in essay writing, the emphasis should be placed on the
speech phase. Thought and composition should be considered primarily in the way they are employed to make effective
speaking possible.

The orator should not be expected to solve any of the great problems of the day. Rather, s/he should be expected to
discuss intelligently, with a degree of originality, in an interesting manner, and with some profit to his/her audience the
topic s/he has chosen. Any appropriate subject may be chosen but the orator must be truthful. Any non-factual reference,
especially a personal one, MUST be so identified.

Although many orations deal with a current problem and propose a solution, the judge is expressly reminded that this is
not the only acceptable form of oratory. The oration may simply alert the audience to a threatening danger, strengthen its
devotion to an accepted cause, or eulogize a person. The orator should be given free choice of subject and judged solely
on the effectiveness of its development and presentation.

The composition should be considered carefully for its rhetoric and diction. The use of appropriate figures of speech,
similes and metaphors, balanced sentences, allusions, and other rhetorical devices to make the oration more effective
should be noted especially. Use of American English should be more than correct; it should reveal a discriminating choice
of words and altogether fine literary qualities. It should be especially adapted to oral presentation.

Delivery should be judged for mastery of the usual mechanics of speech -- poise, quality and use of voice, bodily
expressiveness, and for the qualities of directness and sincerity which impress the oration upon the minds of the audience.
An orator should not be penalized for a few seconds overtime but if the speaker exceeds the maximum speaking time by
more than :30 seconds, s/he is not eligible to receive a 1st place ranking.

No particular style of delivery is to be set up as the one correct style to which all contestants must conform. Rather, each
contestant is to be judged upon the effectiveness of his/her delivery, free to choose or develop whatever style will best
give him/her that effectiveness with his/her particular oration. No visual aids are permitted.
IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 25
Judging Literary Interpretation
The art of interpretation is to be regarded as recreating the characters in the story presented and making them seem
living and real to the audience. Presentation shall be from memory and without the use of physical objects or costume.

A selection for interpretation must be a cutting from a single literary work: one novel, or one short story, or one play, or
one or more poems. Monologues are acceptable. During the presentation, the contestant(s) must name the author and
the book or magazine from which the cutting was made. In Duo Interpretation each of the two performers may play one
or more characters, so long as performance responsibility in the cutting remains as balanced as possible. [If the selection
is prose or poetry and contains narration, either or both of the performers may present the narration.]

Adaptation may be for the purpose of transition. The selection should be judged for its appropriateness as contest
material and its suitability to the particular contestant using it. The use of good literature should be noted favorably and a
selection devoid of literary merit graded lowest.

This is a contest in interpretation. The contestants should be evaluated on poise, quality and use of voice, inflections,
emphasis, pronunciation, enunciation, physical expression, and especially the ability to as to be an interesting and integral
part of the story rather than just "filler" between portions of dialogue. A speaker that exceeds the maximum speaking
time for the event by more than :30 seconds is not eligible to receive a 1st place ranking.

The final test of good interpretation is the ability to use all these factors so successfully and unobtrusively that the hearer
forgets that this is a contest and in a created atmosphere is carried away to the time and place of the story being
unfolded.

Scripted Events (Poetry & Prose)

Poetry is writing which expresses ideas, experience, or emotion through the creative arrangement of words according
to their sound, their rhythm, and their meaning. The more traditional poetry generally has a somewhat regular rhythm,
often with a definite, sometimes repeated rhyme scheme. Nontraditional poetry may do away with regular rhythm and
rhyme, but rhythmic flow of the individual line remains an integral part of the structure. Unlike prose, which consists of
sentences structured into paragraphs, poetry relies on verse and stanza form. Selections from plays (dramas) may not be
read in this contest.

Prose is writing which corresponds to usual (ordinary, common) patterns of speech. Unlike poetry, which emphasizes
emotions and/or ideas expressed through figurative language recorded in verse and stanza, prose expresses thought
through language recorded in sentences and paragraphs. Prose includes fiction (short stories, novels) and nonfiction
(articles, essays, journal entries, biographies). Cuttings from plays (dramas) may not be read in this contest.

The contestant will have prepared a presentation which will not last more than five minutes, including a required
introduction which will state at least the title(s) and author(s). The presentation itself may be of an entire work, a cutting
of a single longer work, or a collection of shorter works or short cuttings of longer works by one author or several
authors arranged in a program. Any selection used in the performance must have been printed and published.

The contestant will perform the reading (interpretation) using a manuscript (which may be in a folder). Reading from a
book or magazine is not permitted. Since the contestant will be holding a manuscript, use of that manuscript should be an
integral part of the performance. Responsive use of the body (i.e., spontaneous changes in posture and gesture) is
permissible so long as this active use of the body is appropriate to the demands of the selection and a natural outgrowth
from the literature being performed.

Along with appropriate, effective physical presentation, the contestant will also be evaluated in terms of technique
(breathing, tone, pitch, enunciation, phrasing, pace, etc.) and artistry (presentation of mood and imagery, vocal
characterization -- if required, creation of unifying effect, etc.). The final test of good interpretation is the ability to use all
these factors so successfully and unobtrusively that the audience forgets that this is a contest and in a created atmosphere
is carried into the real or imagined world of the selection.

26 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

Judging Impromptu Speaking
The Impromptu speech should be regarded as an original interpretation by the speaker of the designated topic as
supported by varied materials and gives a contestant opportunity to be creative and imaginative. An impromptu speech
should reveal the student's ability to organize his thoughts in a logical manner.

The contestant should be held accountable for strict adherence to the topic drawn and discounted severely for shifting to
some other topic on which s/he might prefer to speak. The information presented should be well-chosen, pertinent, and
sufficient to support the central thought of the topic.

The material should be organized according to some logical plan to produce a complete speech within the time allowed.
Delivery should be free from marked defects in the mechanics of speech -- poise, quality and use of voice, enunciation,
fluency, bodily expressiveness -- and should be effective in enlisting and holding the interest of the audience.

The best impromptu speech combines clear thinking, good speaking, and interesting presentation with respect to the
subject chosen. Notes are not permitted.

There is NO minimum qualifying time. Do not penalize a contestant for brevity unless s/he fails to cover his/her subject
adequately. Maximum time is five minutes. Impose no penalty for overtime unless it is excessive.

There will be a five-minute preparation time. Impromptu topics will be chosen from proverbs, ordinary things, abstract
words, events, quotations, and famous people.

Judging Congressional Debate

Speeches in Congress should be clearly and logically organized, and characterized by depth of thought and development of
ideas, supported by a variety of credible quantitative (statistical) and qualitative (testimony) evidence analyzed effectively
to draw conclusions. Compelling language, an attention-grabbing introduction and clear transitions should clearly establish
the speaker’s purpose and give perspective to the issue’s significance.

Argument – The speaker should contribute to the spontaneity of debate, effectively synthesizing response and
refutation of previous ideas with new arguments. If the speaker fields questions, he/she should respond with confidence
and clarity.

Delivery – The speaker should have polished, deliberate, crisp and confident vocal control and physical poise. Delivery
should be extemporaneous, with few errors in pronunciation. Eye contact should meaningful and consistent.

Judges award 1-6 points for each individual speech a student gives, accounting for the student’s answers to questions. It is
entirely acceptable to award 6 points if the judge feels the student met the burdens of argument and the standards above.
If the students fell short of expectations, the judge may deduct points as s/he sees fit. Scores of fewer than three (3)
points are rarely encouraged, and should be reserved for such circumstances as abusive language, a degrading personal
attack on another legislator, or for a speech that is extremely brief (less than 45 seconds) or delivered without purpose
or dignity for the cause demanded by the legislation. Substantial written comments and description of specific incidents
should accompany such scores.

At the end of a session, judges will also rank students in order of best to “least best,” accounting for all students’ overall
participation and conduct during the session.

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 27

Frequently Asked Questions
What is the role of the MSFL in the The role of the ombudsperson will be to investigate
tournament? and adjudicate protests of alleged violations of
Advise IDEA and NFL on policies and procedures tournament rules and standards.
that will overcome shortcomings of past tournaments Protests must be presented by a school’s designated
to establish a respectable and consistent annual event. adult or “coach of record” – student complaints and
One MSFL member will serve on the three member protests will not be acknowledged.
Tournament Committee (which also includes one Protests must be presented in writing in a timely
person from IDEA and the NFL) that will be manner and include:
responsible for making final decisions on matters not o The Complaint
solved through the ombudsperson at the tournament. o Identification of the judge and school
affiliation
How have the rules been determined? o A signature of the coach presenting the
Rules were decided by IDEA in consultation with NFL complaint
and other relevant forensics organizations. o Details of the event violation including:
Rules were based upon existing NFL and IDEA rules Event, Round Number, Section, Room
and standards, but have been modified in some cases Number, Student Contestant Code and the
to more appropriately suit middle school students. Time of the alleged infraction.
The rules published in this handbook are the final When there is disagreement with the
rules and this handbook should be used by ombudsperson’s decisions regarding protests, a three
contestants and coaches in preparation for the person committee representing IDEA, NFL, and MSFL
tournament. will make the final ruling on the protest.

Is there a minimum/maximum number of How many awards will be awarded?

participants? Individual events: 12 semifinalists and 6 finalists.
The minimum number of participants per event is 18. Debate: 4 quarterfinalists, 2 semifinalists, 2 finalists.
If fewer than 18 participants sign up for a particular Congress: 6 finalists and up to 12 final session
event, the event will either be cancelled, or in the participants
case of Dramatic Interpretation/Humorous Schools of Excellence: 5 Debate Schools of
Interpretation and Poetry/Prose the events will be Excellence, 5 Speech Schools of Excellence, and 3
collapsed into a combined event. Overall Schools of Excellence.
There is no maximum number of participants.
How will schools register for the tournament?
Who will be responsible for paying for judges, Schools can download an application form on
awards, food etc? www.iDebate.org; completed registration forms
• IDEA will collect all registration and judging fees as should be emailed as attachments to Liz Carson,
well as cash sponsorship contributions and IDEA will [email protected].
be responsible for paying for all costs associated with Payments can be made by credit card or check.
the tournament such as judges’ fees, awards, etc.
• The tournament host will arrange and IDEA will pay Will there be a limit on the number of
for a reasonable amount of food and beverages for spectators in a room?
the judges, tab room etc. The tournament will limit the number of spectators
• The tournament host is responsible for arranging for per room in accordance with fire safety codes and
food and beverages sales to event participants at the maximum capacity assigned to each room.
reasonable rates. Food sales can be a revenue
generating activity for the tournament host. Are there supervision requirements?
Each student at the National Tournament shall be
Who will manage the tab room and run the under the immediate supervision of an adult who may
tournament? be his/her speech coach, parent, or other adult
The tab room will be managed by IDEA and the NFL approved by the school principal. Coaches with
IDEA and NFL will appoint a tournament director entries from their school may not also supervise
students from another school district, without
Who will serve as the ombudsperson, and written permission of both district superintendents.
what will her/his responsibilities be? Students are not allowed to enter competition rooms
IDEA and the NFL will assign an ombudsperson without judges being present. Students are required
to wait outside the room until judge(s) arrive.

28 IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual

What constitutes a forfeit? of other contestants stand and no revision of past
A contestant who does not appear at the scheduled round ranks will take place.
time to speak shall be marked last. A debate team
more than 15 minutes late shall forfeit the decision. What are the rules regarding the use of
The ombudsperson may waive these penalties for computers and Electronic Retrieval Systems?
valid reasons such as students who are double The use by contestants of any computer or electronic
entered. retrieval system (recording or information retrieval
system) now known or to be invented is prohibited
What happens if a student competes in the during any rounds at the National Tournament (this
wrong section? includes preparation for extemporaneous and
If a student/team competes in the wrong contest impromptu speaking). Electric or electronic devices
section of a speech event or against the wrong may be used for the sole purpose of keeping time.
opponent in a round of debate, at no fault of their Judges may use a computer to take notes while
opponent or the tournament officials, that judging during competition at the National
student/team will automatically receive last in the Tournaments. Materials printed from “on line”
section to which they were assigned and zero services are permitted in debates and the extemp
speaker points for that round. Any score assigned in prep room. Electronically retrieved evidence used in
the wrong section shall be ignored. Debaters will any IDEA contest must conform to the citation
receive a loss for that particular round and zero standard of the Modern Language Association.
speaker points. Any decision or speaker points from Exceptions will be made to this rule only to comply
the assigned in that round will be ignored. with ADA standards.

How many Judges in the round? Under what circumstances will an event be
Preliminary debates and contests shall be judged by canceled?
one judge; elimination rounds including semi-finals In the case of an individual event or debate event
and finals shall be judged by a minimum of three with insufficient entries for a reasonable competition,
judges the Tournament Director may decide to cancel that
event. The minimum number of individual events
How can Protests be lodged and how are they contestants or debate teams required will be 18.
adjudicated? If there are fewer than 18 students entered in an
See rule number 7-8 regarding the role of the Oral Interpretation of Literature event, the
Ombudsperson. The Tournament will provide a form Tournament Director may decide to collapse related
in the Main Room on which all protests must be filed. events together. Collapsible Events are:
These protests will be reviewed first by the Prose Interpretation and Poetry Interpretation
ombudsperson and, in the event that a decision is not Dramatic Interpretation and Humorous
possible or the decision is challenged, the protest will Interpretation
be forwarded to the three person Tournament
Committee. Will individual events scoring be cumulative?
The Tournament Committee’s decision shall be final. No. Contestants scores in preliminary rounds will not
carry into the out rounds.
What happens if a student/team is Once elimination begin, scores will again reset prior
disqualified? to the start of each subsequent round.
In case of a disqualification of a contestant in the
national tournament, all previous ranks and decisions

IDEA/NJFL Middle School National Tournament Manual 29