• Judging experience : 2 years

• Judging preferences: speak slowly so I can understand you

Hello all, I am a parent judge and I have been judging LD, PF, and other individual events for the last 3-4 years.

DECISION:My decision evaluates all scopes of the debate: framework, arguments, reasoning, evidence, links, etc. However, telling me why your IMPACTS are important and how you better achieve them than your opponent is key for you to win this debate. I do not care about what kind of impacts you give me, but it would be good if you start out with specifics and then at the end you summarize with broad ones so I know where you are deriving your impacts from.

FLOWING: I will flow a line-by-line analysis, however, I prefer OVERVIEWS (not only in your 2ars or 2nrs) because they clear things up for me and make the ballot easier too.

OTHER PREFERENCES: For speaking, please speak clearly and speak to the point. In terms of speed, please do NOT SPREAD . If you speak marginally fast or faster than conversational, it is okay as long as you slow down at the impactful parts, tags, numbers you want me to flow, etc. Do NOT RUN THEORY because I will probably not understand it or flow it. By chance if I do flow part of your theory argument , it will not be a major evaluation in the debate and I will probably just ignore it.

HAVE FUN DEBATING ;)

I am a parent judge who likes clear and concise arguments that help the flow of the round

Lay judge, no spreading. I have judged Congress to oi to policy. I will always write long form notes on in round speeches, but I may not set up my flow like conventional debaters.

sai.ankireddi@gmail.com

I am a lay judge.

For debate :
1) You can expect me to know something about the topic at hand. I look for clarity of thought, logic in your arguments and how you link the evidence.
2) Please speak at a reasonable pace, do not spread.
3) Please stay respectful at all times.

For speech :
1) I look for effectiveness of your speech - be it through listener engagement, clarity of idea, or variety of examples (depending on event type).
2) If you can convey your ideas to me, convince me of authenticity, you will have my attention.

I am a beginner judge of speech and debate tournaments.

For speech tournaments, the guiding principles that I use to judge participants include the following:

1. Was the speech compelling? Was it well delivered with maturity, poise, and a demonstrated understanding of the topic?
2. Was the logic in the speech sound?
3. How well did the speaker present? Did they use effective gestures and facial queues? Did they speak fluently? Were there nervous ticks or unnecessary adds such as the use of "like" or "just" repeatedly throughout the presentation?

For debate tournaments, I look for the following:

1. Is the logic used in the debate sound? Are there inconsistencies or logic leaps that make the argument difficult or impossible to follow?
2. Did the AF team effectively present a plan that I could understand?
3. Did the Neg team present an alternative or effectively refute the plan presented?
4. Was evidence used effectively?
5. Were ideas communicated in a way that was understandable?
6. Which team made the most compelling arguments/which team was able to respond most effectively to key points of the opponent to make or refute a case?

I do my best to remove any bias based on prior knowledge or a topic and/or presenter characteristics.

Hey guys this is Austin, Joel's son here to tell you a little bit about my dad. He is a LAY judge. NO SPREADING. you will lose if you do this. Don't run medium arguments and use jargon like internal link. It will not work well for you. My dad has been working in cyber for 20 years so he knows stuff about cyber but will listen to evidence.

I am a lay judge who has three years of experience in judging PF.

Please speak on the slow side; I will not vote for you if I cannot understand your arguments.

I vote off of clearly explained link chains and impacts. Make your case and narrative the easiest to understand, and you will get my ballot. Make my job easier and explain why I should vote for your team.

I will drop you for racist, sexist, or xenophobic comments/attitude.

Have fun!

I'm a parent judge with minimal experience. Clarity in communciation/articulating the info will help me digest the info better.

I am a lay judge, i have been judging for 3 years. My preferences:

1) Speak clearly and slowly to build and argue your contentions

2) Prefer No Theory or Ks

Be courteous in your questioning and speaking.

I have done policy debate, LD and Congress, competing at State (CA) and Nationals when I was in high school.

I am truth over technical putting a premium on understanding your argument and on the logic both teams use to explain why the evidence and the expert is relevant to the argument. Bad evidence loses to good logic and common sense. Good evidence plus logic wins. Stated another way, in making your arguments around impacts, I listen carefully for logical fallacies -- while I won't vote against you if I hear a slippery slope, or a correlation/ causation fallacy, I will keenly listen to see how your opponent responds. I share this because as you develop your speaking skills for life (amazing by the way), your goal will be to persuade whether in business, law, medicine, science or politics -- few things undermine one's credibiilty more than arguments that tend to extremes based on unsubstantiated logical or reasoning errors, so it's good to start to learn and practive now how to build structurally and logical sound arguments, relying on evidence, early in your journey.

Debate is about testing logic and evidence to communicate a Point of View that can be understood and is compelling, so expect me to be a critical judge who will weight what each team tells me about the arguments presented; I vote for the argument I find most persuasive. I will look to frame my assessment against the main stock issues, unless you convince me another standard should be used. Also, if I can't understand the argument, I can't very well score it in your favor.

Beyond my debate experience, my perspective on policy is shaped by being involved in lobbying the Federal Government for Procter and Gamble and time at a leading think tank, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). I worked as a management consult for Booz Allen & Hamilton, where I created business facts and strategies for the Mayo Clinic and NYH Cornell. I have an undergraduate degree in History and a MBA degree, so I feel very comfortable listening to arguments that weight and test the quality of the expert as well as the merits of the evidence; I will even accept your use of common sense or logic to call out logical fallacies, and to sanity test or refute a piece of evidence that just doesn’t make sense.

Finally, effective persuasion includes respectful disagreement, so I will notice rude, sarcastic or condesending behavior and that will detract heavily from the weight I attribute to your argument or position. Please enjoy a spirited discussion and I will do my best to flow and follow.

I am a parent judge and this is my fourth year judging in policy, PF, and LD events. Please do not spread or speak super fast: If I cannot understand you and follow your flow, I will not be able to judge you.

I am a scientist by training so I am mostly looking for the logic connecting the evidence with the statement, and if the opposing side was able to identify the conflict of evidence either existing in assumption and study methodology. I do not judge the credibility of the evidence by its author or organization but more on what the opposing team picks up to clash and answers to.

I am a parent judge with two years of judging experience

General Preferences:

Don't speak too fast

Be concise

Time yourself

Emphasize important points with pauses!

PF:

I care about how you speak

Make your contention names clear when reading your case

Make your opponent's contention names clear when you are refuting them, and be specific as to what you are refuting.

Make sure all arguments are responded to

For Debaters:

Hello,

I am judging for the first time and where I know about the flow of the debate , I am technically not familiar with counterplans and so on, please explain them thoroughly.

I prefer moderate to slower speed of speech of the given argument.

I always emphasize on clarity of speaking which will always make me take your side.

I am particularly against to emotional expression of arguments as I prefer more of a convincing content with necessary evidences.

Before the round ends a look at the case sheet of both the parties can always be a better help.

To end up with, I am totally against to the interruption in the flow of one's speech either by their team or the opposing team.

All the best !

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For Speech :

Hello ,

As a person judging for speech I expect a combination of answers to the question (merely the topic of the speech) and your composition of words, statements and texts which should be a selling point to convince me , where I don't mind the way you try to emphasize the ways your view point is true or fair.

In most of the cases, I like to have some sort of factual info added in your speeches. to add with, a little bit of Humor, Sarcasm (if applicable) will always be plus.

To end with, I expect an effective speech (in the time boundaries given) which is an attractive one whether its a story telling or interpreting something or putting out your view point it should be able to make an impact .

All the best!

I am a parent judge and this is my fourth year of judging debate. I strongly prefer that you speak slowly and clearly and emphasize the important arguments in the round.

I debated L&D when I was in HS in the last millennium and now am enjoying judging. I am most comfortable with LD but enjoy public forum, policy and parli as well.

- I appreciate good speaking ability- the oral presentation should enhance the message, and not be just reading your speech.

- I prefer to see sound logic and critical analysis over a rush of minimal responses. If you can't respond reasonably to everything, prioritize and defend the top priorities that should decide the debate. I will decide the debate based on weighing, and that critical things are responded to, and in how the weighing ties into the value criterion. I'd prefer to see a win on good logic vs technicalities.

- LD: Whether you win or lose the value debate, I expect you to successfully defend how you meet the value criterion or debate goal in your weighing.

- Signpost and make sure you take the time to properly and clearly represent evidence - clearly tag it and make clear what is the quoted evidence versus your own argument.

- Finally, be kind, civil, and professional. Disagree with your opponent but refrain from disparaging.

Thank you for engaging in this important activity and I look forward to hearing your case!

Hello,

This is my second year as a parent judge. While many "k affs" are cleverly conceived, I value and adjudicate in favor of those debaters who focus on the core issues of the assigned topic and can most clearly and logically lay out their case.

I prefer slow and clear speaking in debate -- If I can't understand what you're saying, I might miss a key point in your argument, so please enunciate and emphasize the points you want me to take away! I believe that all of the techniques related to speech (vocal inflection, facial expression, and emotion) are a fundamental part of debate and should be utilized. Be assertive but still respectful of your opponents! And have fun!

Veritas et brevitas.

When judging, I look for powerful delivery, slow measured speech, body language, insightful analysis and love contestants they enjoy their time under the spotlight. Go You!

I am a parent judge and judging for past two and half year.

I prefer if both teams would reference their evidence and make their arguments concise and easy to understand.

I am a lay/parent judge. If you are going to use any technical terms from the debating vocabulary, please don't assume I would be familiar with them. Please speak at a comfortable conversational pace so that I can understand and follow your arguments. I judge rounds based on the logic of the argument and the evidence used to support it. Help write my ballot for me - tell me which arguments you won and why. I do appreciate a vigorous debate but please don't be rude to your opponents.

I look for consistency in the arguments throughout the debate

Judgement is limited only to the arguments presented and contested in the debate

Parent judge in 5th year of judging. Has judged almost entirely LD, with a 1-2 PF and Policy rounds as well.

Argumentation:

Truth > tech. I prefer realistic, well-warranted impacts over blippy extinction link chains. If I don't buy it, I won't vote on it. Avoid Ks, T, and all other "circuit" debate argumentation, I will not know how to evaluate them.

Logical responses are also important to me - if something your opponent says is simply illogical or contradictory, call them out on this, even if their argument is warranted. It shows that you are able to think critically and not just regurgitate evidence.

Evidence quality is very important to me. Please provide full author citations. Smith 19 doesn't tell me anything - Smith could be your neighbour for all I know. I love to see comparison and indicting of evidence as it shows me that you are well prepared and know the topic literature.

Speaking/round etiquette:

Please do not speak too fast and sign post clearly. I am flowing and will evaluate on argumentation, but if I cannot understand what you are saying I cannot flow or vote on it.

Please be respectful in round. It makes for a good debate experience for both the debaters and the judge. Speaks WILL be docked for rudeness.

English is my second language, please keep your track of your speaking times and be respectful to your opponent(s). Thank you.

I am a parent judge, and vote on debate events based on clarity of the argument supported by evidence, examples. Quality wins over quantity. Be respectful to the other speakers. I judge speech events based on good structure identifying the problem and solution with examples and conviction on both. Additionally looking at impact of the speech with poise, vocal variety and strong delivery with effective body movement.

Truth > Tech

First and foremost, I am a lay parent judge. Please be patient and explain arguments thoroughly at a reasonable pace. I will not be familiar with the topic you are debating, and make sure to extend the argument throughout the entire debate. Also, be sure to provide an off-time road map and I also want to hear top-level reasons why you win today's debate. Racism, homophobia, sexism, or any other -ism will not be tolerated. Thank you!

I am a parent judge and this is my 4th year judging debate and speech tournaments.

For debate-

My vote is based on the following three principles:

1. Clarity and evidence: Debaters should deliver their arguments clearly and concisely, with supporting evidence from credible sources. Take your time to explain your reasoning to the judges, and don't assume that they will understand your points without a thorough explanation.
2. Rebuttal: Debaters should challenge their opponents' arguments during cross-examination and rebuttal. This shows that you have listened carefully to your opponents and that you have thought critically about their arguments. Be sure to provide evidence to support your own arguments and to refute your opponents' claims.
3. Pace: Debaters should speak at a moderate pace. Speaking too quickly can make it difficult for the judges to follow your arguments, while speaking too slowly can be boring and ineffective.

In addition to these three principles, I also appreciate it when debaters are respectful of their opponents and the judges.

For speech-

I am looking for presentations, not just readings. I appreciate speakers who use nonverbal communication skills such as varying their volume and speed, using hand gestures and facial expressions, and moving around the stage to engage the audience and emphasize key messages.

PS. Please avoid mumbling your words even if that could be funny to get certain effect.

I wish all people good luck and can enjoy the game.

I am a lay judge but I have 8 years experience judging League debates.

General Stuff:

Just speak at conversational pace and tone and use all your time.

Only go for topicality if its a glaring violation

Try to avoid using terminology-heavy debates.

If aff, focus on defending your policies and answer all of the negs points effectively and clearly

If neg, focus on finding gaps in the policy proposal and carry only the most contested and strongest negative stock issues into the 2NR.

Cross ex is the most important focus area for me in the debate.This is the only part of debate where neg/aff actively clash with each other. I look for teams to use the that time effectively.Don't cut off responses, unless they are stretching the time limit.

Don't give up in round, I keep an open mind throughout the debate, even the last speech.

I am a parent judge. I've judged mainly lay Policy for the last 3 1/2 years. I prefer usage of stock issues. Please do not spread or read Ks with me.

The following will be the rules/key principles I will use to judge. Please read them all, but for online tournaments be sure to read number 4.

If the speech calls for it then the following rules may be adjusted if required by the speech. For example, if your speech requires a few moments of yelling or mumbling, I will know that it is to add effect to speech. Do not talk too fast, or too slow. I will recognize it if you are stalling for time.

1. Modulation. If you speak quietly or without confidence do not expect to get a good rank. At the same time, if you yell or talk too loud it is equally unacceptable. Do not talk too fast, or too slow. I will recognize it if you are stalling for time.

2. Enunciation. Make sure to enunciate all of your words. If I do not understand what you say it is likely you will be given a lower rank and speaker points will be deducted.

3. Emphasis. The right amount of emphasis in the right places can make your speech stand out. This goes hand in hand with modulation and good emphasis will always increase your speaker points. Do not overdo the emphasis. Stressing every word will only serve to make me annoyed rather than convincing me to give you a better rank. Just like all the other rules - moderation.

4. Online Tournament Specifics. I understand if you have tech issues. Being late because of tech will not affect your rank or speaker points in any way. Try your best to get a space to present with a good amount of room and good lighting, but if you are unable to I will understand, and will only take off points in the most extreme circumstances. For example, if you have very little room but still make an effort with hand gestures and doing what space allows, then do not worry about it. But if you stand perfectly still without any motion and it is clear that there is little effort being put, then I will still mark you down. Make sure your camera works before coming to the tournament. I can't judge you if your video is off. If your video/audio lags or freezes for a couple of moments then don't worry about it. Don't worry if there is unavoidable background noise. Only if it becomes extremely hard to judge will I take points off. All in all, just try your best to get optimal presenting conditions, and if you can't, then don't sweat it and try your best anyway.

5. Please no excessive gratitude or the like. If you keep saying thank you or things like that it will serve no purpose except getting me annoyed and wasting time. That being said, please be polite, just make sure not to overdo it.

6. I will not take off too many points for time. NSDA rules say that if you miss the time limit by more than 30 seconds you cannot get first. That being said, if you hit all the other points missing the grace period will not hurt your speaker points that much. Please try to adhere to the time limit because if there are others who spoke just as well as you, they will be ranked above you, whereas if you had stuck to the time limit it would have been much closer and may have gone in other ways. Also, note that other judges may not appreciate shorter/longer speeches and they may rank you below anyone else who had a speech of the correct time.

7. Be confident and have fun with it!

I'm a parent judge, and I have been judging PF, LD, and INTERP for more than 2 years.

I lived in United States since late 1990s, so you can consider me as a native English speaker.

I usually judge the debates based on 3 aspects, the content and logic, the presentation skill, and the techniques during the cross.

Debaters: Use conversational talking speed or I'll miss what you have to say. And try to avoid (or at least explain) debate jargon.

I am a parent judge and have judged LD for the 2 years and PF for 2 years. I have recently started to judge Speech events too.

Speech and decorum: Effectively communicate your position. Keep to the topic and please do not spread since the it’s hard to follow. The use of evidence and logic to support your contentions is important. Please track your time as my attention is on the content.

Argument preference: I prefer debaters present their arguments and explain how it is superior. An argument must have a claim and support data with the source and full citation available if requested. I considered both the probability and the magnitude of the arguments.

In the end the person that effectively supports their initial position and also offers competent clash with the opponents arguments will likely win.

Hello Debaters,

I am a parent judge and this is my second year judging debate tournaments. Please speak slowly and clearly. Please don't run too many technical arguments and keep track of your time. You should also assume that I have no prior knowledge of the topic or context for the discussion. I appreciate clear analysis of why you should win in the final rebuttals.

Good Luck to all the teams.

Cheers!

-Amit

I am a lay parent judge who has judged PF, LD, and various speech events in the past two years. Please do not spread or speak at very fast speeds, speak clearly and slowly so I can catch everything. I can't evaluate any advanced argumentation/theory/Ks, so please avoid it.

Be respectful and have fun!

I am a parent who has judged for 5 years. Please be civil and respectful in round. Speak at a reasonable speed, and make sure to have organization in your speech.

Add me to the email chain: mails.narendra@gmail.com

I'm a lay judge, here are my preferences:

• Contentions: I prefer clarity above all else. Explicitly reason out your argument. Run reasonable things, don't link random things to extinction.
• Crossfire: Always be respectful. Give the opposing team a chance to speak; speaks will be docked if this isn't followed.
• Speak clearly, do not spread.
• Having credible evidence is always best, this has weightage in my ballot.
• Time yourselves and let me know if your opponents go over time.

Please speak coherently. I will be looking for the most significant arguments and then logical responses. I look for good and thoughtful delivery.

I’ve judged a few tournaments in the last two years, and I would consider myself to be a lay judge. I’m open to listening to any arguments that you want to run as long as they are clear, well warranted, and delivered clearly. I do flow in the round and do my best to vote off of the arguments that remain at the end of the round. I typically give high speaker points as long as you are clear and explain yourself well.

At the end of the day, debate is supposed to be fun and a learning experience, so please try to have fun in the round and be respectful of your opponents in the round.

I am a parent judge who have judged quite a number of rounds in speech and debate events by now. But, please don't assume I know acronyms when you use it the first time. Please email your speeches to csl5148@gmail.com and cards exchanged, particularly if you are a fast debater. Thank you and good luck.

I am a parent judge.

I am a parent judge and this is my first year judging speech and debate. I have judged OA, Policy and Parli and I have reviewed all the other speech and debate formats to become familiar with them. Please send me your evidence and include me on the email chain at markedwardlewis@gmail.com

I would like to see that you have an understanding of the issue(s) and the arguments and that you provide credible evidence that supports your case. If you want me to evaluate something then warrant it, don’t rely on the existence of evidence to explain your argument. Please avoid using jargon and explain your arguments in a way that is easy to understand – you are very familiar with what you are talking about but I am not so make sure that I will be able to understand your points.

On those same lines, if you spread then be clear so that I can understand you, remember this is my first year so I want to be able to flow. In my opinion, debate is about making a point and if you fail to do that just by speaking fast and expecting that to all get across it won’t work for me.

I don’t like when teams run arguments just to throw off their opponents or when they attempt any stunts thinking that will help their case. Stay on topic, don’t misrepresent evidence, debate fairly be professional and respectful.

Good luck

Hello Everyone,

I have been volunteering as a parent judge in S&D tournaments for the last 5 years. My personal beliefs border on moderate philosophy. I am very open to listening to arguments on either side of the spectrum and I especially like the ones that are logical and convincing. I don't like it when people speak too fast since most of them are trying to scram in a bunch of arguments at the same time which otherwise don't stand on their own.

I also like the flow of the speeches, a simple and easy to understand structure, and, the ones that follow the time requirements.

Parent judge. Speak slowly and explain arguments simply and clearly.

Hello, I am a parent judge that has judged in several tournaments in the past.

When speaking:

I look for the speaker to be confident, but not condescending in any way. Please do not spread, I will not accept jargon. If I can't understand what you are saying, I will not be able to take notes. Please be respectful to your opponents at all times.

Argumentation:

I will evaluate arguments based on how clear and effective they are. I will not be persuaded by arguments that are not clearly backed up. I will be voting for the team with stronger arguments and impacts.

Theory:

Please do not introduce theory!

Plans:

Don't introduce any if you are a Public Forum Debater

Best of luck to everyone!

lay

I am a parent judge but have judged for multiple years since 2016. I mostly judged PF but I also judged Congress and Parliamentary.

I am flay, meaning I take notes, but not in a flow style.

I like to focus on direct clashes and rebuttals of your opponent's arguments. Points need to be extended in every speech, and if one team brings up a point that is not extended, I will not consider it. It is also up to the opponent team to bring this to my attention.

I will always weigh impacts. I primarily weigh on the magnitude, but I will also consider timeframe and probability.

Do not spread. I want every speaker to give their speeches in a clear, systematic way and emphasize the main points they want to resonate with me.

Hi, I am a parent judge and this is my first year judging! I am currently getting familiar with speech and debate terms/procedures so please give off-time roadmaps in the beginning of your speeches and signal posting throughout. Please no circuit arguments or spreading.

I founded Able2Shine, a public speaking company. And I have only judged a few debates this year but love the activity. And I want a clear communication round with no speed.

This is my 2nd year judging. I am comfortable with both slow (lay) debate and medium fast debate. I understand different affirmative advantages as well as disadvantages, counter plans and topicality. I do not know how to judge theory or kritiks and I am unfamiliar with them in general. I like it when teams are clear and tell me for what to vote on.

If you would like to spread, please add me to the email chain at gayatri.naha@live.com . However, if you are going at lay speeds, it is up to you if you want to include me on the email chain. If you have included me, please let me know so I can check my inbox. However, spread at your own risk, as the faster you get, the harder it will be for me to understand your argument. I am a parent judge after all, and I tend to like slower rounds more. If you decide to speed up, be cautious at how fast you are reading your arguments.

Most importantly, remember to respect each other and have fun in debate.

I am a parent judge who has had experience for the past 3 years. Please don't spread.

Policy:

I would prefer it if you debate using stock issues (harms, solvency, DA, etc). Please make substantive arguments that can win you the debate.

LD: 

I am looking for clarity of thought, structured and substantive arguments (where you keep track of and rebut your opponent's argument), and effective cross-examination.  

Please explain why the reasons you have won at the end of the debate. 

Good luck to all competitors.

Email:

andresmdebate@gmail.com

Cal Debate

For the most part I decide the debate through tech over truth. The baseline for speaker points is 28.5. Please don’t say anything racism, sexist, homophobic, ect…

Kaffs: I tend to think that having a strong link to the topic is better and more persuasive. If you want to run a kaff that doesn’t have a link then it would be best to give me reason for why that is important. Especially for the theory of power it is important to me that you explain the warrants behind the claims that you make.

Framework: You should definitely run it and I tend to think that whoever has a better articulation of their impacts tends to win the framework debate. Giving examples when it comes to debating limits and grounds is especially key for me and for my evaluation if the aff does explode limits. You should spend time and flush out your arguments beyond light extensions of the 1nc.

T: I tend to default to which interpretation creates better resolutional debates however can be convinced otherwise. An important note here is that a lot of teams should spend more time comparing impacts and giving me reasons why their model of debate is better than only focusing on standards.

DA/CP: Having great evidence is cool but you should spend more time impacting out why it matters. Oftentimes I think that there should be more work done on the internal links of your scenarios or explaining the process of the CP.

LD: I don't really know much about tricks, Phil,and other stuff

Have fun and do what you do best! :)

I am a parent judge. Please explain arguments thoroughly and clearly at a reasonable pace.

I am looking forward to an engaging debate which has the following elements:

1. Clarity and energy. State your arguments clearly, to the point and confidently. Stick the main point you are trying to convey, and avoid irrelevant jargons.
2. Analytical mindset. Have a depth and breadth in your analysis backed with research and data.
3. Open and respectful. Be open to constructive criticism and respectful to fellow debaters.

Good luck and see you all soon!

I am a lay judge, I have never participated in any kind of debate myself.

Please speak slowly so that I can understand what you are saying and sign post very clearly so I know what you are talking about.

That's all: good luck on your round!

I am a parent judge who prefers debating by the five stock issues (but not a must).

This includes inherency, significance and harms, solvency, topicality and the disadvantage. (and counter-plan)

As long as you speak clearly, stay on topic, be more convincing than your opponents, handle yourself well during cross-X, I'll vote for you.

Cheers!!

I am a parent judge. I have been judging various speeches and debates for about 5 years now. Clarity and strength of your arguments, cross-examine of opponent's arguments and a good summary will help me choose the winner for debates.

Benjamin M.

I take on my role as judge from an impartial view to whichever side of the topic a team has been assigned to but rather observant to how each team have embraced their side of the argument and the delivering of such in a clear, concise and convincing fashion.

I assimilate with much more ease facts and true figures rather than personal opinions or unprovable references. I also value beside s the delivery of the main argument the physical performance itself as connecting to audience, gestures, stance, speech speed, eye contact.

As tribute to the effort put in their preparation for the event, I dedicate my total and undivided attention to the speaker in order to absorb the performance in its entirety in order to make a fair and unbiased decision of the outcome.

As a debate judge, I am not worried about your presentational/speaking skills.

Hello there. My name is Brian Nguyen and this is my judging paradigm. I have no preference on how fast you go nor do I mind the various arguments that you may have. I have debate experience, but that should not matter as I will only judge the quality of your debate with respect to your current opponent.

Good luck and have fun!

I am a parent judge and this is my second year judging. Please speak slowly and clearly and do not use debate jargon.

Please be respectful to your opponents during the round.

I will vote for the team that has the most convincing argument and evidence to back it up, so do not run any illogical arguments.

Debate:

I am a parent judge who doesn't have any experience in judging circuit/fast debate; please refrain from spreading or some of the jargon used in those faster styles.

For Policy Debate specifically, I evaluate the round based on evidence and stock issues; I will take your framing into account, but I will vote for a more credible, logical, and understandable case most of the times. If you bring up any other technical arguments outside the stock issues, please be clear and specific for me to follow.

No Kritik please!

For LD:Please state your value and criterion clearly and don't rush through them!

I'm a parent judge and I like to listen to clear and concise proposals and rebuttals. I may not be familiar all the details of the policy judging will be purely based on details presented in the plan and counterplans. I look forward to being educated in policy details.

Speech is always about clarity and messaging. The ability to captivate the audience and present the topic well is a plus.

Relatively new judge. Have judged a few tournaments of Public Form, Lincoln-Douglas, and Policy, as well as various speech events.

Prefer medium to slower pace, but not too slow.

I will expect participants to track their time themselves unless that's not possible for some reason.

I do not have a speech and debate background. For debate, I therefore strongly recommend you avoid acronyms and short hand ("DA", "T", etc.) because I likely won't know what you're talking about.

Hi!

I am a lay parent judge. Please explain arguments thoroughly at a reasonable pace. My son has done PF for 2 years, so I am reasonably familiar with the round structure.

Parent judge, please try to go slower and err on the side of overexplaining jargon on the topic. Warrant out and impact all of your arguments. Good reasoning and explaining of your side will win you the round.

I am a parent judge. I look for the data and and evidence supported arguments during the debates. 

From San Jose CA. My son is active in debate and I've judged speech and debate competitions for ~5 years.

Speed- I prefer elucidation and clarity to speed.

I like fewer more well developed points versus lots of varied but weaker arguments.

I dislike rude behavior, verbal or through gestures.

I really enjoy the creativity that teams bring to their debate topics and the diligence they bring to the preparation.

I am a parent judge, do not spread. Present yourself confidently and be organized. Don't interrupt each other in cross-examination.

Hello! Please speak loud and clearly. Make sure not to bring up new points in your second speech and focus on the impacts on your last speech. Make sure to have good evidence and warrants to back up your points. Finally, don’t be rude to your opponents or talk over them aggressively!

I am a volunteer parent judge and have only judged a few LD Debates. I will do my best to follow, but appreciate no flooding.

Please include me in information that is exchanged: juliesavage444@gmail.com

Hi Everyone. I am an experienced parent judge, and know how to take general notes and as long as you send a doc, that is well formatted, you can probably get away with talking a little faster. As for my general preferences.

1. YOU ARE IN A LAY ROUND! Thus I expect you to utilize delivery and external persuasive techniques. The winner isn't who can win the most arguments, its the one who wins the most impactful argument and can present it in a way that shows its impact. Thus not only explaining what the voters are, but why those must be the voter is very important.

2. CX is very important. This is the only time in the debate round where you can directly engage with you opponent, so use it. This is the time you show me how your opponent doesn't know what they are talking about, by asking strategic questions and replying strategically. Considering all this, it is never okay to be rude to your opponent or to make your opponent feel uncomfortable.

3. Delivery. Like I said you can go slightly faster (not spreading), as long as you are clear. Clarity is key. This is reflected not only in whether you stutter or not, but also word choice and being able to explain a concept in a way that is easy to understand.

These are my general preference, and should give you an idea of how you want to structure your speeches. Note I am taking notes, not flowing, thus it would be great if you guys could adapt to these criterions, cause otherwise the lense at which you look the round from may be different than how I look at the round.

I am a parent judge who has judged for about two years. I won't understand super fast talking of any kind, so I advise you to speak at a normal pace.

I will only vote based off what is said in the round, and will not make any assumptions myself. This means that you should assume that I know nothing about the topic, which is probably true. If you want me to consider an argument, I suggest you bring it up in the final speeches of the debate. This is mainly where I will make my decision, so I think clearly stating your reasons on why you won here is important.

Other than that, have fun.

I am a lay parent judge.

Speak slowly and have coherent arguments, no spreading.

If I can not flow it, I will not vote on it.

Do not be disrespectful, competitors will be dropped for disrespecting their opponent or the judge.

Please speak slow and be clear in analysis. 2nd year parent judge

This is the first time that I've judged this type of debate. Please keep your delivery slow and clear. Thank you.

I am very new to the world of debate. I would like to see clear argumentation with great delivery. Please don’t speak too fast while debating, as it becomes hard for us parent judges to understand. Extra points for strong rhetoric and good summaries of key arguments at the end. Be persuasive, but be respectful to your opponent. Please speak clearly. Best of luck to everyone!

Parent Judge.

Rude or repugnant argumentation/behavior = the last rank.

Technology issues are not your fault. We'll work out whatever the issue is in the round.

Time yourself in all events even if I'm providing time signals.

JUDGING PHILOSOPHY: I am a noninterventionist; I will not reject or accept any substantive argument based on my own knowledge or values. In the absence of well supported voting criteria from either team, I will vote on the stock issues. I firmly believe in supporting assertions with evidence, even in parliamentary debate. Examples and hard data will go a long way toward persuading me.

My preference is that the speakers should have a moderate pace in their speeches so that the judge could fully understand them and specifically when they are speaking about their contentions.

Be polite and respectful through the debate.

I request that both the parties could time each other while speaking and warn/alert if they are exceeding the given time limit

A new parent judge that hopes to entertain civil debates.

I am a parent judge. I have judged parliamentary debate before so I am aware of the format.

Arguments

Please be clear and read your arguments slowly so that I can understand. If you read them fast (spread), I will not be able to flow properly. Try not to use extremely technical terms that are not very obvious and even if you have to, please explain it clearly.

I prefer traditional on case debate. I'm fine with counterplans but please explain it clearly.

I am not familiar with Ks (kritiks) and theory so please refrain from running those arguments UNLESS there is actual abuse of rules present. If that is the case, please explain the abuse VERY clearly. Please don't run theory just for the sake of running theory.

Other

Use the last speech to explain exactly why you should win the round. Weigh out the impacts of both sides.

You will be awarded high speaker points for speaking clearly, having a good presentation, and being respectful to your opponents.

I have judged parli debate since 2016, and public forum later on as a parent judge. As a software engineer, I'd like to judge simply and mainly based on the core of the delivered speech, in other words, its logic quality, clearness, tightness and creativity of the argument itself rather than any superficial words of politeness or mediocre prologue...(but it does not mean that speaker can totally disregard of the basic manners when speaking or listening).

How speaker is clear, straight, detailed, well-organized, strong, creative and rich in their contentions and in proving opponent's flaw and weakness in their arguments is what I'd like to judge on.

So debaters should be relaxed, respectful and stay focus on your speech as well as listening well and carefully to the other side to create a strong, creative debate to win the round.

For each of young debaters today, gradually building good debate skill either from winning or losing a round is building for yourself a precious asset for your success in the future. Like other judges, I hope to contribute somehow to this process of your development.

Have fun and enjoy debate!

Hiep Tran

I am a parent judge, and will ignore theory during debate.

I am a parent judge. This is my second year judging.

Roadmaps and signposting are very helpful so I can have an understanding of where you are going with the speech.

Speak at a moderate pace. Define important terms when it comes to the debate resolution; don't assume I will understand what something is. Clearly state your case and provide sufficient evidence and logic.

Be nice to each other during the debate; do not be rude. Do not interrupt when the opposing team is speaking unless it is for a valid reason.

I am a parent judge.

I am a PF lay judge. Few notes:

-State your points clearly and concisely with researched backup arguments, avoid jargon

-Make sure to cite your evidence

-Please be respectful of your opponents

-Make sure to time yourself

-Will provide written feedback after the round, no verbal feedback

All the best!

While I am not new to the Bay Area Speech and Debate scene with CFL, this is my second year judging Public Forum.

I look for thoughtfully reasoned ideas, the logical flow of the arguments, and the augmenting evidence presented to support the team's position. I also think a good use of time (running down the clock to take advantage of the allocated time) demonstrates a higher level of preparedness and comfort in dealing with the topic.

Hi I'm Jannat/Leo (they/them). I want to be on the email chain: vermajannat04@gmail.com

General

Don't be offensive in round. This means that I won't tolerate anything racist, sexist, antisemitic or anti-queer in round. If you do decide to be offensive I'll give you a L20. Bullying novices with spreading, Ks or other prog args is not cool. I won't give you the L but I will doc speaks. Spreading is fine but slow down on analytics. If your analytics are typed then I do think you should email them out. If I can't flow your analytics because you were going to0 fast then thats on you. Disclosure is good.

Defaults

Tech>truth

Comparative worlds

Debate is a game

Competing interps

No RVIs

Accessibility>fairness

Ratings (idk what this is called)

Policy - 1

K - 2

Theory - 2/3

Phil/Trix - 4/5 (a bit more flexible with this now)

Policy

I have no problem with policy. I can evaluate disads & cp debates, just make sure to weigh. Overviews/summaries of the disad story and cp are appreciated and highly encouraged. Politics disads are wacky so if you plan to read them make sure you have a spec link to the aff and that your ev is recent and up to date. For cps, I'll err neg on conditionality, but if you are reading more than 2 then it starts getting sus. CPs should have solvency advocates, if they don't then I assign them less legitimacy in their ability to solve than the aff. Sufficiency framing on cps is *chefs kiss*. International fiat, 50 state fiat and individual actor fiat are sus, so if you read them be prepared to deal with the theory debate that usually accompanies these arguments. PICs are good and theory arguments that say that they are abusive are usually not properly warranted. Have a solvency advocate for your PICs and for the love of god explain why its mutually exclusive form the aff. 

On the aff, if they read T and you no link out of every disad then that does supercharge the T shell. PLEASE DON'T DOUBLE TURN YOURSELF. Weighing against disads is cool and greatly appreciated. Impact turning disads or straight turning them is even cooler. Reading ev against disads is prolly better than just analytics unless you're extending stuff from your case. On cps, if you're going for the perm then please explain what the perm looks like instead of just saying "perm do both" or some variation of that. An extension of the solvency deficit when going for the perm makes the cp debate so much easier to evaluate as well.

Kritiks

Ks are cool and I love seeing them in debates, but don't assume I know your lit base. Running more than 1 k in the round is 1) sus and 2) messy. Links should be carefully articulated and their impacts in the context of the aff should be explained. Topic spec links>>>>gen links. Your alt should resolve your links, if it does not then I'll prolly give the aff more leeway with the perm. You should be able to explain your theory of power and alt solvency during cross. If you can't then that's not v good. Reps Ks are fine, just explain the implication of the link in the round. Also, if you're going for reps links then please do a lot of work on f/w so I know how to evaluate the round. I really don't want to be in the a spot where I am having to weigh reps v. extinction by myself. Floating PIKs are fine. I usually default fairness is good but am willing to be swayed - just be clear about what material harm fairness in debate causes.

On the aff, if its a reps k then plz do work on the f/w flow. Impacting turning Ks is cool and v fun. If you are going for the perm then please explain what the world of the perm looks like and how the aff fits into it. Just saying "perm" won't get you anywhere. Going just for the perm is going to make it very difficult for you to gain the ballot. Go for more than one out, so if you're going for the perm then also ext and alt cant solve claim. Just remember FPOSTAL and you should be good. 

K affs are good. Just have some relation to the topic otherwise winning the T debate is going to be a lot harder. While K v. K debates can be really fun, they also tend to get very messy so just sign post well and explicitly articulate your links and offense. To be honest, I really love when people run critical disads v. Ks because those debates are incredibly fun and at times easier to evaluate. But at the end of the day, run your strat and I will evaluate it to the best of my abilities. 

Theory

My thoughts on this have actually changed a lot. I still really love theory and want to see more of it in debate.

I will evaluate frivolous theory if it is warranted correctly - blips are sus for multiple reasons and they also make the theory extensions so much more difficult to evaluate. Please please please flesh out your theory shells. Theory debates are best when they have arguments about model setting because they make the debate so much easier to weigh. In theory v. theory debates, I tend to default to competing worlds - truth testing is cool but I am not very good at it so you're going to have to flesh out the argument a lot more. Explain it to me like you would a 2 year old. 

Disclosure is good, but I have a hard time buying it when it's a big school reading it against a small school. 

Phil/Trix

I'm not the best with phil, so you'll prolly have to explain your lit base p in-depth. I default util, and give it a lot of leeway in phil debates. I appreciate phil debates that are very theory dependent because I think they are fun and easier to evaluate than just a dense phil. Again explain phil to me like you would a 2 year old.

Trix are for kids, but seriously. I don't like trix because they tend to be very underdeveloped and make the debate more complicated than it needs to be. If you are going to read trix then just be prepared to flesh them out a lot so I can actually evaluate them. I will evaluate fairness args v. trix because I do think they hold up some truth. For the love of god, be strategic in how you answer trix. LbLing every blip is not worth it and is such a waste of time. Group your arguments.

Misc

Debate is already a very exclusionary practice and I think speaks make it more inaccessible for people that might have speech problems, public speaking anxiety, people that might be immigrants etc etc. Because of this I don't believe in ranking people through speaks. I will give everyone in the round 30 speaks unless you're bigoted or participate in exclusionary practices in debates (this includs bullying novices, spreading infront of people that told you they can't deal with that, not disclosing etc etc). Feel free to ask me about this in the round if you have any questions. 

Use people's pronouns and don't misgender people in the round. It's problematic and an act of violence in the round. Obviously, mistakes happen but don't try to do stuff like that on purpose. 

If you feel unsafe at any point in the round then please let me know. Your safety comes before arbitrary wins or losses. 

Don't post round me - Like I won't get mad, but it most probably will not change my mind. If I didn't catch something then it was probably because (1) it wasn't extended properly and (2) its impacts weren't fleshed out. I promise I am thinking these decisions out and making the best decision possible.  

Don't call me judge. I am fresh out of high school and that is lowk awk. You can call me Leo or not refer to me at all i dont care. 

Sit, stand, walk, jump do whatever you need to do to feel comfortable during the round. Just don't intrude on your opponent's space and obviously be respectful. You don't have to be formal in the round - professionalization of people and language in debate is net bad. 

Im a college student so if you need any papers or evidence then email me and I will try to get them to you. For that email me here - jverma8643@scrippscollege.edu 

Have fun and do your thing!

I am a parent judge.

My decision was based on logic argument with the support of relevant and verifiable evidences.

To avoid implicit error, such as speech order, I give scores to each categories (depending on events) and calculate the waited sum. Then I normalize the score through linear transformation to obtain speaker points.

I am a parent judge. hungfw@yahoo.com

Please don't speak too fast and don't have any complicated debate jargon that is not explained.

Good luck!

I have been judging speech events since 2017 and have coached students who focus in Original Oratory, Informative, and Impromptu. Prior to my U.S. high school speech judging experiences, I was professionally trained in pubic speaking in my native language; my career involves a high amount of marketing content development, corporate/executive communications, and public relations.

In speech writing, I look for a clear roadmap, strong arguments backed by research (I don't need to agree with your statistical findings or your conclusion, but your findings should fully support your viewpoints), and pragmatic solutions for issues you identified.

For interpretation events, especially those that compose of multiple literature works, I hope to not feel that the selections are pieced together. In other words, the structure should be logical, cohesive, and seamless.

For speech delivery, I look for genuine emotions that help me relate to the urgency of your topic: why is it important now and why your viewpoints, research, and life experiences are the right ones to help your audience understand it holistically. I also appreciate speakers who are able to present with their unique styles, even if there are parts where further polishing is needed.

Over the years I've heard a good number of strong speakers who sound just like Haris Hosseini or JJ Kapur in one of their NSDA speeches. While I admire these students' technical excellence, I also feel that their speeches inevitably become less personal and less distinctive in my ears. It's a fine balancing act between finding inspiration from great speakers/speeches and developing your unique voice.

Zita Wang

I am a parent judge. I judged speech and debate in different tournments in the past three years.

Take your pace, provide framework, and love to hear your summary about why you should win.

Be confident, run your flow, respect your competitors, and have fun!

I am a parent judge with some experience in judging but not with fast debate. Please avoid using terms that novice parents do not understand.

For Policy Debate specifically, I evaluate the round based on the clarity of your point, evidence, and ability to handle cross-examination of issues. I will consider your framing but will vote for a more credible, logical, and understandable case most of the time. I also prefer summarizing your argument and points at the end of the debate.

~~~~General~~~~

I am a first time parent judge--please speak slowly.

Remember to have fun!

~~~~Speech~~~~

I will not give you time signals (although I can if you ask)

I am a parent judge.

I don't believe I can give advices on how you can better improve your skills; however, being very logical, I strive to give my best decision. I appreciate

• well-arranged and logical arguments
• how one team really listens to another and find flaws in their arguments
• respectful exchanges

Personally I don't like

• excessive repeating of points already spoken
• excessing questioning the other team's evidence without a follow-up agenda

Welcome to my angry rant!....I mean, my paradigm!

(don’t worry, I am nicer in my RFD).

I have 5 years experience in World Schools and Public Forum Debate. Flay for policy.

I hold debaters accountable for Public Forum’s original purpose- which is to communicate to the public*. I am not a lay judge, but if a layman couldn't at least understand you, you are defeating the purpose of public forum and you should be in policy instead.

tabula rasa, but don't overdo it. You don't need to define "the" for me :P.

I love kritiks when used sincerely, but not when they are used frivolously.

Substance over theory, forever and always. I despise theory (except topicality). If you use theory, you better have a GOOD reason and address a REAL issue, because it will not impress me as a default strategy. Theory was designed to keep debate fair...so don't be like rain on your wedding day (ironic...Alanis Morissette...no one?) and use it abusively.

There is nothing I hate more than a petty theory debate with no substance....but spreading is a close second. If a teacher assigned you a 2 page paper and you used 1pt font to get as much info in as possible while also hoping the teacher didn't catch your mistakes, you wouldn't get away with it. Spreading is no different. The assignment is to convey your message to the public as persuasively as you can in 4 minutes. I consider spreading to be like using 1pt font: cheating. Not to mention that spreading is SUPER elitist to ESL debaters.

Truth over tech, sorry not sorry. It’s not because I am lay, its because I am allergic to kool-aid and won’t drink it. I still hold you accountable to technical aspects of debate, but not if tech isn't supporting truth. I don't care if you memorize more jargon than your opponent, I care if you have better arguments. Impressive impacts with strong links win.

Framework should not be neglected!!!!

---------------Advice for my victims....I mean, competitors--------------------------------------------

I have a tendency to favor global impacts over domestic, and I am a sucker for strong logic based on economics. Please remember- the United States is NOT the world, and the values of the United States are NOT universal. If your opponents make assumptions, point them out to me.

Don't assume I am a liberal- if you want to argue that republicans are inherently bad, you need to prove it.

Don't collapse on a good argument for the sake of collapsing. It might take 5 seconds out of your summary speech to keep a contention in play that could save your whole round.

Don't focus on niche issues when your opponents' impact effects the whole world.

Real world impacts are more impressive to me than theoretical ones. Don't tell me something is going to lead to nuclear war unless you really can prove it. -_- Links or its fake.

If you are going to use climate change as your impact, you better be able to prove uniqueness.

I have a pet peeve for arguments that falsely equate correlation with causation. If your opponent calls you out on this correctly....-_-

Don't give me a false dilemma. Don't strawman. Don't be dumb. Don't be tricky. Just do your research.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, WEIGH YOUR IMPACTS.