Judge Training

Cultural Competence

The NSDA also highly recommends that all judges complete the NFHS Course “Protecting Students from Abuse.” Abusive behaviors and misconduct do not belong within athletic and activity programs. To assist in creating an enjoyable and safe environment for students, the U.S. Center for SafeSport, in collaboration with the NFHS, has developed “Protecting Students from Abuse.” The course presents definitions of several types of abusive behaviors and misconduct, the signs and symptoms of abuse, and the ways in which someone can report these behaviors. The course also includes some DOs and DON’Ts for making a report. 

How to Judge

A judge is somebody who has volunteered or been hired by the tournament to evaluate rounds of competition. Typically, tournaments hire judges for the duration of the tournament, which means you will be eligible to judge more than one round.

While there are definitely similarities between judging different speech and debate events, there are also many differences. Read on to find out more about the ins and outs of judging all of our types of events! These guides are meant to ease any concerns new judges may have about their ability to successfully adjudicate.

In order to adequately explain the process of judging a tournament, there are five distinct types of speech and debate we will cover:

1. Speech Events (HI, DI, DUO, POI, EXT, OO, INF)
2. Debate Events (LD, PF, Policy)
3. Congressional Debate
4. World Schools Debate
5. Big Questions Debate

Judges are typically hired by tournaments to judge in one of these areas, so there’s no need to be an expert in all four before you judge a tournament. Instead, try and familiarize yourself with the type of judging you have been hired for.

The judge will meet the students in the assigned room and watch the entirety of the round, which usually lasts for one hour. During each speech, the judge will make notes on the ballot, keep the contestant’s time, and ensure the round runs smoothly.

Students will occasionally ask for time signals, it is up to you whether or not you would like to honor that request. Time signals are a simple system that let competitors know how much time they have used throughout the speech. The most common time signals are to alert the student when they have two minutes remaining by holding two of your fingers in the air, like a peace sign, and to alert them when they have one minute remaining by holding one finger in the air.

In speech, it is common for competitors to enter in more than one event for the tournament, this is called being cross-entered. Student’s who are cross-entered should be allowed to speak earlier in the round if they have another event to go to, and should be excused for entering the round late if they were competing in a different event in the same round.

At the end of the round, the judge will evaluate the speakers and rate them on a scale from one to six, with the best performance receiving the one ranking. Depending on the tournament, you may be asked to assign competitors speaker points, typically on a scale from 90-100, with 100 being outstanding. After the rankings are complete, judges should return their ballots to the tournament organizer.

During preliminary rounds of the tournament, there is usually only one judge per round. However, when student’s begin competing in elimination rounds, rounds will have more than one judge. This is called a panel.

There are two sides to every debate, one side supports the resolution being debated, the other side negates the resolution. In Policy Debate and Lincoln-Douglas Debate, the sides will have been decided before the round. In Public Forum Debate sides are determined by a coin flip at the beginning of the round.

All debate events have a unique order to the round, divided into three parts: speeches, cross-examination, and prep time. Speeches are where the bulk of the debating is done, with each team presenting and reinforcing their arguments while refuting their opponents. It is common for judges to flow a debate, which means the judges will take notes about the speeches in order to keep track of the debate.

Cross-Examination is a period of time where debater’s can ask each other questions. There are some differences between kinds of debate, but, the purpose of cross-examination remains the same; asking questions that will allow the debater to make stronger arguments. It is up to you whether or not to flow this part. Typically, this is not a time for debaters to be making arguments, instead, it is to clarify their opponents position’s.

Each event gives debaters a set amount of prep time, where competitors can take a moment to prepare for the next part of the debate. Competitors can take prep time between speeches and should notify the judges when they begin and end prep.

The judge will watch the entirety of the debate and then decide which side won. Depending on the tournament, judges can give an oral critique or disclose the results of the round. An oral critique is when the judge provides the debaters with immediate feedback by talking with both sides after the debate. Similarly, a disclosure is when the judge reveals which side won the debate right after the round.  Neither of these are necessary, and, be sure to check with the tournament organizer before giving oral critiques or disclosing. When filling out the ballot, you may be asked to assign competitors speaker points, typically on a scale from 20-30, with 30 being outstanding. After the decision has been made, judges should return their ballots to the tournament organizer.

During preliminary rounds of the tournament, there is usually only one judge per round. However, when student’s begin competing in elimination rounds, rounds will have more than one judge. This is called a panel.