Is the Judge Ready?

Is the judge ready? Is the timer ready? Is the negative team ready? And so goes the beginning of debate season. Last weekend, our 6 debate teams had their first workday debate time. It was supposed to happen with the other three Oregon clubs, but due to the weather, we couldn't travel there. Our local coach and teacher decided to throw together an event here since all of us had a clear schedule for the day anyway. It was a great idea and great practice for them. However, they never thought they would be debating one another.....other teams in their club. This would not normally happen. They make every effort to have you debate teams in the other clubs. This being a workday all of the topics for debate had been made available so they could prepare in advance to argue with negative evidence.  It wasn't until last minute that they realized they would be debating teams that they had not prepared for.  

The topic: (revealed in early November)

Resolved that the United States Fereral Government should substantially reform or abolish its policies covered by the Commodities, Nutrition, and/or Crop Insurance Titles of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008.

In other words, The Farm Bill. If you don't know anything about the Farm Bill, ask any one of these young adults. They have learned more than you would ever want to know about commodities, sugar, dairy and farm subsidies, direct payments, crop insurance, food stamps, the National School Lunch Program (REALLY?? in the Farm Bill???? I know I was amazed and surprised too). Why this topic? Because it is up for renewal this year, so anything goes! You may see it in the news often during this year. Even our GOP candidates were recently caught debating sugar subsidies.

Preparing for their first Affirmative Debate

Farmer Girl (isn't it kind of appropriate that FARMer Girl is debating the FARM Bill?) never thought she would do debate. When her sister did it three or four years ago, she begged me to promise to never make her do it. However, the only thing I made her do was to take the class offered at our co-op and I didn't have to try very hard to convince her to continue. She made the decision to pursue the debate season when the class ended. Her and another girl tentatively decided to become partners. However, this girl was unable to debate this year as her parents were not quite ready for her to travel away and stay overnight. Farmer Girl was able to team up with another friend, Sven, who would have otherwise debated with his brother. Their topic: changing the way those on food stamps or SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) "double dip" while also receiving free lunches (and sometimes breakfast and dinner with snacks in between) at school.


This is said brother who debates with girl to the left.



Everyone having a great time!

Brother against brother.



Farmer Girl looked everywhere for a purple box and then settled for a black one.
Soon after, Walmart had this color and blue ones. We exchanged it....

 It was a Stop/Start debate in that the judge could stop and comment, give advice, or ask questions. Thus, it took much longer, but was very beneficial for all of them. Farmer Girl and Sven's first speech called the 1AC or the First Affirmative Constructive builds their plan and must be 8 minutes or less. Farmer Girl read for this one and had practiced a number of times at home in front of the mirror. Reading very fast, she was able to get it in just under 8 minutes. However, here, due to nerves, she was able to read it in SEVEN minutes! What did the judge say? Slow down and speak more clearly with pauses. The audience who were allowed to participate in commenting too, also asked her to slow down. However, it is kind of beneficial for them in that the negative team can't get the information down quickly enough. We have since shortened it so she can speak more clearly and succintly with DRAMATIC pauses.

This was a rebuttal against their negative evidence.
 Not all of them are having fun, huh?

And the negative team "rebutting" the affirmative team's plan,
mandates, harms, or advantages....or at least trying to...

A more experienced team quietly conversing and planning their next move.
Check out the pink box!

Trying very hard to debate against this plan on abolishing crop subsidies.
Something I am only beginning to understand.

One of the hard things about debate is that when you are arguing the negative side, you often agree that what they are doing is actually a good thing and you have to struggle to not say, "That's a great idea. Let's do it." However, if you have done your preparation, you will have in your box all kinds of evidence that supports your argument against their plan. What becomes difficult is finding your evidence, debating the stock elements effectively, and convincing the judge that their plan won't work. You only have to poke one significant hole in their stock issues to win as a negative team. The affirmative team, on the other hand, has to win all four stock issues and keep you from poking even one hole in their plan! You must show it is significant, topical, necessary, and possible (or more officially called significant, topical, solvent and inherent).   It is much easier to win a negative. I can't really remember what they won at this workday though....in fact, I don't know if I saw the sheets..... the judge's tally sheets.....

This is our entire club: 6 teams.


The following weekend, we were able to attend the make-up work day in Oregon. However, only four whole teams could go. Two halves had other committments including Farmer Girl's partner so she teamed up with Sven's brother. At this workday, each team participates in 4 debates, two affirmative where they run their own plans and then two negatives where they don't know who or what they will come up against until their 1AC begins. Then begins the scramble to argue against their plan in the ensuing two hours using their wits, logic, and the evidence in their box! Like I said earlier, this being a workday, they knew ahead what the plans were, but not who they belonged to. At the next debates in the next three months, they will not have this advantage. Also, Farmer Girl and Sam each wanted to run their plan one time in the affirmative for the experience and to find the holes so they would be better prepared next time. This made it a bit more complicated and challenging for them. They could not argue for each other's plan as effectively since they knew their own plan better and the other's plan not very well at all!

This debate happened in the kitchen!

This one in the sanctuary.

Working together.
 I love seeing all of them looking so professional and business like in their debate clothes.
They all look so grown up!

Debate must be over now :)

Using their 5 minutes of "prep" time to find evidence and prepare for rebuttal.

Feeling more comfortable at the last of 4 debates, she looked more
confident and convincing as she talked to the judge about the holes in the affirmative team's plan

At the end of the day, each participant receives a certificate, but most importantly, they get their judge's sheets and find out if they won or lost.  It also covers comments and recommendations as well as speaker points. The final tally for Farmer Girl and her partner who was not really her partner? They won both an affirmative (running her plan) and a negative against the team shown above. Winning two is a great start and winning affirmative is even harder. They are all off to a wonderful beginning and have their work cut out for them in the weeks ahead leading up to the next debate. Gathering evidence, tweaking plans, or completely changing them are all in the works. I can't wait to see their progress!