Feb 25, 2018 Smart Debate Tournament

Smart debate is half speech time of public forum debate.  Read here to understand more: https://asiandebateleague.com/programs-2/programs/smart-debate/

LOCATION: Asian Debate League

CITY, COUNTRY: Taipei, Taiwan

GRADE LEVEL: 4 - 6

AM FLIGHT: 8:00 - 1:00 PM

PM FLIGHT: 1:00 - 6:00 PM

TOPIC: Artificial Intelligence

REGISTRATION FEE: 1,500 NT

CONTACT EMAIL: rl@asiandebateleague.com, dl@asiandebateleague.com, zl@asiandebateleague.com

PHONE: 02-2876-1866

FUTURE TOURNAMENT: https://asiandebateleague.com/tournaments/invitation/

ALL ADL TOURNAMENTS: https://asiandebateleague.com/tournaments/2014-15-adl-tournaments/

HOW TO PREPARE: To help your child prepare well for this event, please do the following:

1. Print Extra Evidence. When you print extra for them, please print them one-sided, so that the back page is empty. That way, they can write notes on the evidence. 

2. How to Prepare: Don't staple the evidence together; Rather, separate them, and organize them in the accordion folder. And please read this. http://us5.campaign-archive1.com/?u=dcd9396d66e5e5e4900321c57&id=794cb65ae1 

3. How to do Summary & Final Speeches: http://us5.campaign-archive1.com/?u=dcd9396d66e5e5e4900321c57&id=a411814b3b

4. Arrange time for them to practice together with their partners or with other teams.

5. If you feel your child needs extra help, you can also contact the high school tutors in this group - Allen, Brian, Brandon, and McKenzie - Jessie's official smart debate assistant coaches.

Improvements

First, we have doubled the number of rounds! Instead of 2 Preliminary + Semi rounds, students now enjoy 4 Preliminary + Quarter + Semi + Final Rounds. This means, your child will now debate 4 minimum rounds, receiving a minimum of 4 ballots, 4 comments from 4 different judges, but at the maximum could be debating 7 rounds.

Second, the tabbing will be updated to NSDA standard! Two rounds will be preset and two rounds will be "power matched," by the computer automated system. This means, their 3rd and 4th round will be paired so that students are debating opponents who are similar to their own level. 

Third, NSDA member students will receive NSDA Points! For each round of debate, students will receive 4 points for 1 win and 2 points for 1 loss. However, annual service fee will apply for ADL staff to manage your NSDA points on the web. To understand more about NSDA Points, please read here: https://asiandebateleague.com/points/njfl-points/

 Debate Rules

1. Make Copies of your Case for the Opponent: Your opponent has the right to scrutinize your evidence, so please bring enough copies for your opponent.

2. If you don’t speak loud or clear: Then, your opponent has the right to sit/stand near you to discern your arguments. 

3. Time Your Own Speech: Contestants must time themselves; cannot entirely depend on the judges.

4. Open Crossfire: If your judge permits, partner assistance will be allowed during the crossfire.

5.  Judge Adaptation: Before each round, debaters can assess “judging preference” simply by asking the judge how s/he personally votes. A good debater can use different strategies to persuade judges of different backgrounds. Thus, be mindful that it is not the fault of the judge that s/he is not convinced, since the burden of proof and persuasion lies with the debater.

Speech Rules

1. Submit for Approval: You should submit your speech to ADL for approval to be safe.

2. Cannot Repeat the Same Speech: Cannot deliver the same speech you did last year.

3.  Make Copies for the Judge: A judge might request to see your speech script. Thus you need to bring enough copies to the tournament for the judges. 

4.  Impromptu Resources Allowed: Impromptu contestants can bring in hard copies of articles, organizers, notebooks, dictionaries, and etc. into the rounds to prep for their speeches.

a.  Drawing: The first speaker draws 2-4 topics/questions, choose one, and return the other; the other contestants draw in like manner, in the order of speaking. If a contestant draws a topic/question which s/he has spoken already in a different round must return it and draw again.

b. Preparation:  As soon as a question is chosen, the contestant will prepare a speech without prepared notes.  However, students may use published books, magazines, newspapers and journals or articles.

c. No other material will be allowed in the prep room other than stated above – e.g., speeches, handbooks, briefs and outlines are prohibited from the prep room.

5. Time Limit: After you have spoken for a half minute past your speech limit (5. 5 minutes), a judge might or might not allow you to continue and finish your speech. After one minute past the time limit (6 minutes), a judge might decide to disqualify you.   

Code of Conduct

1. Punctuality: If you are not in the room on time, the debate will start without you. If your team is absent, your opponent wins automatically. Under pressure, a judge might decide to skip grand crossfire.

2. Electronic Devices: Electronic devices during the debate and speech rounds will be permitted, ONLY if they are disconnected from the internet and muted. One caught using the internet during the rounds, will be suspended from the tournament. But internet usage in between the rounds is allowed.

3. Judges’ Decision is Final: A judge may disclose or close the decision, meaning for various reasons (usually due to time pressure), a judge may refrain from explaining the results in detail. However, it is the duty of the judge to write clearly the reasons for voting on the ballot.

4.  Judges’ Fairness: ADL has handpicked the very best judges available in Taiwan. However, if you feel that you were judged unfairly, please don’t complain to anyone on the day of the tournament, as no one will have the time to listen. Wait until you have received your ballot. Then address your concerns directly to your debate coach during the class time, so everyone can learn from the experience.

5. Grievances about Unfairness: ADL will not listen to unsubstantiated grievances unless you have a video clip of the action in question.

6. Participants’ Code of Conduct: Participants must not a) make insulting comments, jokes, insults, or insinuations about another person’s culture, race, religion, gender or sexual orientation whether in the presence of that person or not; or b) engage in any form of violence or uninvited physical contact with another individual.

7. Coaches’ Code of Conduct: a) coaches cannot confront judges in an aggressive manner after a debate; b) feedback between teams and judges must be given and received in a constructive and non-confrontational manner.

8. Parents’ Code of Conduct: a) Parents CANNOT video record the debate rounds, unless EVERYONE in the room give you the permission to do so; b) during the contest, parents CANNOT TALK with their child via vocally, facially, or bodily; c) parents CANNOT COMMUNICATE with their child during the contest by means of showing notes, passing notes, or by texting via devices.

9. Everyone’s Code of Conduct: Any contestant or a judge leaving the tournament prematurely MUST first obtain permission to leave because you could have advanced to higher rounds or needed to judge in later rounds, but by you leaving prematurely creates a delay and chaos in later rounds.

10. Breach of Code: If a participant believes that another participant has breached this Code of Conduct, s/he may report the breach to the tournament tab room officers. If found guilty, the violators will be disqualified from the tournament.