Speaking Events Continue to Evolve and Grow
By Jana Riggins, Speech and Debate Director | Tuesday, September 09, 2014 10:37 AM
It’s the dawn of a new day, a new school year and I hope you are as excited as I am to begin the journey of this new competition year! The academic department at UIL is always seeking ways to bring growth and progress to our program, so my column this month is full of important changes and updates in every speaking event. Indulge in what will seem like a potpourri bulletin board.
The biggest news in Cross-Examination Debate is the confirmation of our site and location for the CX Debate State Tournament. You may have noticed on our original tentative calendar that two weeks were marked for state debate with a “TBD” notification. That is because for some time now, I have been exploring the possibility of alternative sites. This summer, I notified all debate coaches registered in the UIL speech coach database of our decision that, for 2015, the state debate tournament will remain at UT-Austin and will be hosted during the week of March 16 – 21.
Although that is spring break for the university, so you might imagine that the city would be empty of the 50,000 students at UT. Actually, Austin is the host for other major events during that week, including South by Southwest (SXSW) a huge international film, interactive, and music festival. Coaches should be aware that Austin’s downtown hotels are usually booked solid months in advance because of their proximity to festival venues, so you are advised if you have not already booked your hotel in anticipation that you may qualify a team to the state debate tournament, you should do so immediately. As soon as your district competition has concluded, if you do not quality students, I urge you to be considerate of the hotel industry and promptly cancel your reservations.
The state debate tournament has a long, rich history of 104 years being held in the Capitol City so the consideration to move the tournament is not as simple as it might seem. There are complicated logistical issues involved in moving the nation’s largest debate tournament. We also know that students love the magic that is Austin, truly a unique city in the Lone Star State and many times, we are able to host the final rounds in the Texas State Capitol, which adds to the specialness of the event. But, rest assured, the League is working to address issues of having the tournament fall in the same city and at the same time as another important event. As the popularity of Austin and SXSW has grown, it takes early preparation on the part of debate coaches to make the state meet experience a grand one for students.
With our youngest event, Congress, there are new rules, procedures and opportunities. Schools must file their Intent to Participate form online by Oct. 1. This allows the District Clerk and Committee to have time to plan for the district meet. Congress districts are not organized by traditional spring meet alignment but rather by Education Service Centers. Be certain you are registering under the appropriate ESC number. The UIL form gives you geographical information to assist and confirming with your administration is a good idea before submitting the form.
One of the significant changes in Congress this year is that schools can, and are encouraged, to submit original authored bills and resolutions for consideration by the District Committee. This expands the learning opportunities for students as they discover how to draft effective legislation and prepare authorship speeches. A template is posted on the Congress webpage that should be used for submission. Sample legislation from last year’s state meet is available online in addition to instruction on writing legislation included in the online document, “Overview of the Contest”. Submit your legislation by Sept. 15 directly to your District Clerk.
Congress districts may be held Nov.1–15. Your District Clerk is listed on the Congress webpage with contact information. If you have filed your Intent form, you should already be included in all the communication coming from the District Clerk. Contact the individual listed as your Clerk, if you are not receiving details concerning your district competition. Remember: Congress is unique. It is a fall and winter competition, making it easier for students heavily involved in spring competition to participate. Because Congress is not part of the Academic Conflict Pattern, it does not conflict nor prohibit a student from entering other speaking events or academic events later in the spring.
If your school did not participate in this amazing event last year and you are not sure what it is all about, be sure to bring your students to one of our four regional Student Activity Conferences. At each conference, we have scheduled three sessions specific to Congress, including a discussion session with state competitors from last season so you can discover strategies for success in this legislative event. Visit our Congress webpage. It is full of great resources and materials. This year, a study packet is also available. See our online store. The state tournament for Congress will be held in Austin Jan. 12-14, 2015.
Prose and Poetry saw dramatic changes last season in literary categories. In the second season, don’t assume all is the same. The categories have been tweaked, some of the documentation requirements have been altered dramatically and even introductions have been addressed differently. It is imperative that you and your students carefully study the new category descriptors. I have posted these online with the changes in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS to draw specific attention to what is NOT the same. You will need to orient your students, as well judges if you are hosting tournaments this season. To aid you in this, the Prose & Poetry Handbook has been revised and these changes explained in detail. I highly recommend that you visit our online store and purchase one or more copies of the new book so your students glean the necessary information prior to League-qualifying meets.
One of the important changes in Poetry is that in Category B, only poets whose biographies appear on the Poetry Foundation website can be used in performance. Last season, as long as the poets were featured in an article or their poems were somewhere on that website, the poet was eligible to be performed. That is no longer true. To be eligible for performance, the poet’s biography page must appear on Poetryfoundation.org.
In Prose, clarifying language was included for Category B so that students would not miss the mark, as many did last season. In this performance, a minimum of two types of sources is required and the works must be by different authors. The key word is “types.” We found that some students were reading two of the same kinds of literature, such as two fiction pieces. That missed the mark of the intent of the category, which was to explore different types of works to develop a program. To aid coaches and students with Prose Category B, I have scheduled a special workshop at each Student Activities Conference that focuses on the opportunities this category provides for creativity and the integration of various types of literature, including dramatic literature, which up until now has never been an opportunity. Take advantage!
There are other critical changes within the categories and documentation requirements that I have not covered in this brief column. Order a copy of the Prose & Poetry Handbook so you get a thorough discussion of all the changes for 2014-2015.
In Extemporaneous Speaking, review the Electronic Retrieval Devices Guidelines. They have been updated with new language. Practice topics will be posted during the fall, starting later this month. These will appear on the Extemporaneous Speaking webpage. If you have registered with this year’s information as a speech coach in our database (see the Speech homepage for the link), you will receive an email from the State Office each time a new set is posted. I also suggest that you check out the online store for the Extemporaneous Speaking Handbook. Included in what can and can’t be taken into the prep room is a document that explains the UIL philosophy and approach to writing topics. These insights could prove to be valuable as your extemporaneous speakers work to get an edge in UIL Extemporaneous Speaking.
The fall topic for Lincoln Douglas Debate was released on August 15. RESOLVED: On balance, government restrictions on threatening speech are desirable. This UIL LD Debate topic will be used September through December 2014. If you are hosting any type of invitational tournament this fall, whether UIL or TFA, I urge you to use this topic. It leads to great debates on the First Amendment, is a clearly focused resolution for novice debaters, a subject that makes recruiting new students into your debate program easy because of its student appeal, is truly a value resolution and links to real-world happenings in the news each and every day. Happy debating!
One last change to share with you is that the Academic Department is providing growth opportunities for our dedicated assistants. They each have linked up with a new director and thus, after 14 years working in the theatre division of the League, Jenny Nichols has joined the Speech, Debate and Congress team. Lisa Atkins will be working with Journalism and A+, Elisabeth Sikes with Theatre and Glenda Munoz with general academics. Together, they will contribute their skills to make each UIL contest and every state meet event the very best experience for your students. I hope you’ll welcome Jenny warmly to this crazy world we call forensics!
As the fall gets underway, I have much more information to share with you. The new 6A conference, different regional sites and the appointment of new Regional Advisory Committees means major changes are upon us! I urge you to visit UIL speech online, attend a SuperConference in your area, read each of the new UIL speech contest handbooks for the latest details, and watch for more Leaguer columns to come.
Have an incredible year in UIL forensics!