Rules
Townsend
Debate Rules
Updated 2007
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Participants
- All participants must be full-time, College of Agriculture students and be in good standing with the University.
- All participants must be undergraduates; graduate students may help advise, sponsor or coach a team.
- Each team will consist of three team members (exceptions can be made for teams of two if a student cannot to participate due to illness or family emergency.) No teams of one can participate.
- If a participant has decided not to take part in the debate, he or she must come see the debate coordinator (in person) to discuss additional options.
- This is out of respect for the coordinator who might have to rearrange debates and judges.
Debate Workshops
- Debate workshops will be held during the course of the fall semester. Teams and/or individuals from a team are encouraged to attend to learn more about the Townsend debate, research, resources, structure of the debate and much more.
- If participants cannot attend all or a select few of the workshops, they can access handouts online at www.ydae.purdue.edu or contact the debate coordinator with any questions or concerns.
- Even if you do not attend any of the workshops, teams are responsible for understanding the debate structure, procedures and rules.
Sponsors
- Each team needs to have a sponsor or coach that can help with questions, campus and community resources and provide leadership and direction to the team.
- Sponsors do not have to be present at the debate.
- Graduate students, faculty and staff can be a sponsor.
- It is up to the team how much they want to consult their sponsor.
- Sponsors cannot serve as debate judges or debate team members.
Evidence in debates (sources)
- Each team must submit a copy of their sources (using APA or MLA) to the judges and the opposing team prior to the debate.
- Participants should use evidence that is accurately and thoroughly referenced in their speeches.
- All evidence (sources) must be from a published source and available to the general public.
- When using a source (magazine, book, academic journal, etc.) during the debate, the participant must state the author’s name, date of publication and title of the source.
- If sourcing an interview, the participant needs to state the interviewer’s name, professional title, employment, date of interview and method in which the interview was conducted (personal interview, via phone, e-mail, etc.
- Participants must be able to prove that the interview took place by submitting copies of the interview, e-mail, etc. to the judges if asked.
- If sourcing a web site, the participant must state the author of the page/site, the most recent update posted or the date it was created.
Debate procedures
- The first speaker from each team will meet in the front of the room with the debate coordinator to exchange sources and conduct the coin toss.
- For day debates, participants are to dress in business casual and for the final debate, in professional clothing.
- Each team is allowed four minutes during the debate as prep time. The four minutes can be used in one-minute allowances and will be timed. Prep time can only be used between speeches and not during a speech. When a team wants to use their prep time, they must raise their hand and notify the debate coordinator how much time they would like to use. The coordinator will then time the prep time, notifying the teams when they have 30 seconds remaining.
- The coordinator (and/or volunteers) will be keeping time during the debate. Each team member is expected to stay within their allotted time. If a speaker goes over, the coordinator will notify the speaker that their time has ran out.
- Participants are to be polite and respectful to all participants and judges.
- After the debate, participants are to shake hands with the opposing team.
- After the debate has concluded, the judge(s) will address the room and state which team won the debate and why. The judge is allowed to ask debate procedure questions to the coordinator but nothing in regards to the debate content or about individual speaker points. Judges will provide verbal and written feedback to each team.
- Individual speaker points will be awarded throughout the debate rounds (see attached guidelines about speaker points scoring).
- The final debate will be digitally recorded and made available to anyone who would like a DVD copy of the debate.
Speaker points
- Each team member will be individual judged on their speaking abilities.
- For each additional round that the speaker’s team advances, the speakers gain one additional point.
- Speakers will be judged on argumentation, structure, style, delivery and persuasion.
- The winner of the speaker points
will be announced at the final debate and will receive a plaque and $100.