I am the Coach at Carrollton High School, Carrollton, GA. I have been coaching for a number of years. I have coached policy, LD, and PF debate.

I expect debaters to weigh arguments, if you don’t then I'm going to weigh them and you probably won't like that. I like warrants in case. If they provide a warrant and your only response is "they don't have evidence for this" but it logically makes sense, I'm likely to give them some ground on it. Tell me why your response matters and delinks their case. Speed is okay as long as you speak clearly. Arguments that you want me to vote “off of” should be extended through summary and final focus. I don't flow crossfire. If it's important, say it in a speech. I think that debate should be about integrity and truth, meaning be aware of the language you use and the validity of your evidence. There is no place in debate for misconstruing and/or using fake evidence. The flow is important for me in making a decision. If an argument is to be evaluated it should be cleanly extended through the debate. I hate voting on arguments that were not well developed. The debate should not be about blindly reading cards without understanding them. I'm unlikely to vote on theory unless there's an actual violation in the round. Contextual analysis is always good.

Please speak clearly, concisely, and slow enough that I can understand. Supporting your claims with factual evidence is a must. Be prepared on the topic, it is apparent when you are not. Have passion which will sway my vote. Attack the other competitor's claims with reason and evidence. Tell me what arguments you have refuted and why you win the argument. Christina.Cazzola@cobbk12.org

• Feel free to time yourselves and your opponents but my time is the official time. (If you are timing your opponents, make sure your timer does not make a noise while they are speaking)

• No off-time roadmaps please, either include your roadmap in your speech or formulate your speech in a way where your intentions are clear.

• I don't flow cross, if there is a concession made or something important brought up during cross, bring it up in a speech

• Summaries should be composed of voters, at that point I need to see weighing, what the round has come down to, and why you won at each point.

• Make it a point to extend your arguments. If your opponents fail to attack a point, but you fail to talk about it after the first speech until the final focus, no one wins that point.

• Arguments introduced in summary/final focus will not be considered.

• I can handle speed but spreading is not okay, if I can not understand you, I can not flow your arguments.

• No need to be rude. Your speaker points will be docked significantly.

I have been coaching and judging Public Forum debate for three years now. My preferences are as follows:

Timing:

I'm a stickler for time. I do not allow off-time road maps. Everything you say needs to be in your time. You need to ensure that you are timing yourself, your team mates, and your opponents. If any member goes beyond time (except for closing statements -- "and for this reason, you must ballot aff" and etc.) I consider this a failing in timing for all members, and can affect speaker points. For prep time, tell me what you've used after you've used it. Do not tell me what you intend to use. For a cross fire, if you ask a question at the end of the time, you will not receive an answer.

Argumentation:

I do flow each contention for each round. Each contention should be extended through the summary speech. Failure to extend an argument will be considered conceded to your opponent. If your opponent notices your failure to extend a contention, and also mentions it, that can sink your debate for me. The exception to this is your final focus. Your final focus needs to be exactly as it is titled -- focused. You need to consider where your single strongest contention is and explain why you win on that basis. In the process, be sure to bring back your evidence and reasoning to support your impacts for that contention. Essentially, give me your voters only.

Evidence:

I'm not a stickler for evidence, as some judges are. When prompted for evidence or a source, you should be able to provide it quickly. I hate when a debate is mired with searching through cards to find particular quotations or links. If you cannot quickly find a source, I will assume it does not exist. You should not ask for evidence unless: 1. You know your opponent is making unsubstantiated claims, 2. Your opponent has evidence directly contrasting your own evidence and claim, or 3. You believe your opponent is misrepresenting or falsifying evidence. In any of these cases, as you ask for the evidence, be clear to provide your reasoning. If you believe the evidence is false or misrepresented, I will look at it as well. Otherwise, I never ask for evidence.

Crossfires:

I don't generally note or flow crossfires unless an important development or concession is made. Respect during a crossfire is paramount. I understand and support passionate exchanges, but not at the expense of civility and respect for your opponents.

Speaking:

I can understand and follow spreading, but I generally discourage it. I think your ability to vary your tone, adding vocal emphasis to your important points, and to sound interested and passionate in your topic, are far more important than loading your speech with the most evidence possible. I award points on this basis. I have no preferences for sitting or standing at any point in a debate, and I don't care at whom you look during speeches or crossfires.

Determining Winners:

As stated, I judge each contention independently. I will award a "point" to the side who best argues each contention for each case. At the end of the round, the win will go to the side with the most points (that is, the better arguments for the greatest number of individual contentions). I don't generally weigh frameworks unless both teams provide and debate frameworks, or there is a tie in points and the framework affects the weight/scope of the arguments.

* Quality of argumentation

* I don't like people getting angry, personal, or condescending during debate