Burris,+Jessica

I am a college student at the University of North Texas. I have been judging and assist-coaching all forms of debate for four years now.

Simply put, I will vote based upon your voters.... so you need to give them! But don't give me six or seven, you should be able to pull the top 2 or 3 voters and make good, well-rounded and substantiated arguments for each. As for the body of the debate, I am looking to hear substantive debate on the topic and not just excessive framework, theory, etc. Evidence adds credibility and warrant to your claims and is greatly weighted in contribution to the debate. However, make the link very clearly and avoid being empirical with the data. I won't cross apply, extend or flow any arguments that you do not tell me to, that's your job as a persuasive debater. Again, voters and calculated explanations are important. Also, CX is your greatest opportunity to gain the upper hand and the better debater will likely emerge as superior in CX... so make the best of your CX time!

As for speaker points, try to make yourself like-able in the round. You can most easily commit to this by being respectful to your fellow debaters and appreciative of your judge's time. There is a fine line between appropriate sarcasm and being rude, so be careful there. A fast rate of speech is fine with me, but not at the expense of clarity and enunciation. If I can't understand what you're saying, or if I develop a headache straining to hear what you are saying, it's not being considered and your speaker points will reflect that.