First, a little about me. I have been judging public forum debate for about 10 years (does that seem possible). I am pretty straightforward in terms of what I look for in judging a pf round. Do you clearly state what your contentions are? Are the contentions directly related to the question that is being debated (this sounds elemental but I can remember a number of times that teams tried to bring up arguments with no direct link to the resolution.) I am judging public forum (not policy) so you don't have to try and impress me with how fast you can talk. As a matter of fact, excessive speed will work against you on my ballot.

Do you provide good blocks to your opponent's contentions or did you ignore or drop them? Do you make good use of the time you have available or do you leave time "sitting on the table." I do not do the elaborate flows that some judges do. My theory is that the more time you spend writing the less time you spend listening.

All contentions must be backed by evidence. You should always be able to produce your evidence for your opponent or me if it is requested in a reasonable amount of time. Inability to locate evidence will lower your chance of winning the round. Falsifying or misstating evidence will lose you the round.

I listen VERY closely to cross fire rounds. This is really the only unscripted part of the debate and I have seen many a close debate that was won - or lost - due to crossfire.

Finally, be professional in how you handle your round and treat your opponent. Facial expressions while your opponent is debating, rolling of the eyes, arrogance, being condescending etc. do not sit well with me.

UPDATED: Nov. 2021

I am an assistant coach at Bettendorf High School in Bettendorf, IA. I am now in my 6th year as a coach at BHS. I coach primarily speech.

1. When it comes to judging debate, I am looking for a speed level slightly above conversation speed. I do not care for fast speakers since competitors are supposed to be convincing the judge and not outspeaking the competition.

2. For the delivery of the case, I am looking for competitors to clearly lay out their case by stating what are their contentions and subpoints.

3. While debating, I am looking for clear connections to the impacts of your evidence and case.

4. Also, while debating I am looking for competitors to be civil and allow each other to ask questions and not cut each other off.

-speed will not lose you the round (unless I literally can't understand you) but could lose you speaker points.

-I will try to award the win purely based on the flow.

-give a comparitive impact analysis or some way to weigh your arguments, and a framework for the debate.

-Try not to waste time on semantics. I'd prefer if definions to be sorted out in cross unless there's real conflict. As far as framework goes, I prefer basic cost benefit analysis, but will accept whatever framing is argued the best.

-I won't drop a team for abusive framework or offensive/abusive arguments unless the opposing team gives me reasons to.

-I will call for evidence if it's sketchy, and the evidence and team may be dropped if there's any misrepresentation.

-Just ask the first question if you spoke first.