By: Pete Falk, Northeastern University 2016 On APDA, “winning the room” means getting the judge and other people watching the round to think you are winning, or support you, whether or not you are actually winning the arguments in the round. This usually only applies in elimination rounds when other debaters and teammates watch. Having […]
By: Pete Falk, Northeastern University 2016 In order to win a debate round, you need to show why what you’re saying is important, and why it is more important than what the other team is saying. This achieved through a technique called “weighing”. The process of weighing is especially important in member speeches, which is […]
By Sean Leonard, Rutgers University 2016 Compared to every type of speech you may give in your debate career, the PMR will probably take the most time to master. Opposition has given about 13 minutes of argumentation, and it’s going to be difficult to swing the momentum of the round back into Government territory. However, […]
By: Michael Norton, Brandeis University 2016 Introduction In parliamentary debate, the Point of Information (POI) is a chance to offer a question or statement to the opposing team while they present one of their constructive speeches. Each team will typically take only 2-4 over the course of a debate, making each POI crucially valuable. As […]
By: Young Seol, Brown University 2014 “On balance, people should not run cases that end with ‘preferable to the status quo.’ Caveat: Opp cannot countercase, tight call, or win.” — Robert Colonel, 1st Team of the Year, 3rd Speaker of the Year, Yale ‘13 There is one word that every debater should know when it […]
By: Russell Leibowitz, Brandeis University 2014 Being able to get good speaks against an undertime speech is a valuable skill on APDA. It enables you to move higher in the bracket and avoid hitting stronger teams until later in the tournament and helps boost your chances of getting speaker awards and breaking high. Below are […]
By Russell Leibowitz, Brandeis University 2014 One of the most undervalued debate skills is being able to work well with a partner. Unfortunately, it’s not something that can be easily taught or explained, but rather is something that develops from doing consistent practice with another debater. There are however some ways you can work to […]
By: Adele Zhang, Barnard College 2015 Counter-cased rounds can sometimes get a bit messy and confusing. The main thing to do is to think hard about the counter-case and ask any questions that you may have. It is important that you understand the counter-case fully, what exactly it does and how it differs from your […]
By: Jodie Goodman, Swarthmore College 2016 When I’m PM’ing, I like to start working on crystalizing the round as early as the Member of the Opposition’s speech. That’s when I have a feel for the story of the round and how both sides contribute to it. Even while outlining the last speech, however, it’s important […]
By: Michael Norton, Brandeis 2016 Introduction: The MG position is one that is highly flow dependent. Not only is the MG speech one that is delivered almost directly off the flow, meaning that the MG must keep a meticulous flow, but the MG has an obligation to maintain a flow for their partner, who is […]
