Prepared by Adam Jacobi and Jennifer Billman for the National Forensic League.

Scholastic Benefits of Speech & Debate Activities

1. Critical thinking skills. A wide body of research conducted at institutions including Yale University, Truman State University and the National Forensic League has established that students involved in debate and speech consistently display higher levels of critical thinking skills, which correlates to increased problem-solving abilities and overall academic performance.
2. Unique benefits for gifted and at-risk students. Students who need to move at their own page find intellectual stimulation in debate. When engaged, both groups of students act out less, by as much as 50%, according to a 2005 study.
3. Higher performance on standardized tests. Debate students tend to score better on standardized tests including the SAT and ACT, as well state accountability assessments. As high school coach Rusty McCrady notes, “Not only do forensics and debate foster creative and intelligent citizens for the 21st century, they may even help your local school system win the numbers game.”
4. Improved graduation and retention rates. Students who participate in debate and speech are more likely to graduate high school and attend college than their peers. Additionally, Professors Colbert & Biggers noted in the Journal of the American Forensic Association that 90% of debaters go on to earn at least one graduate degree.
5. Improved access to content material. Students who speak and debate form personal connections with material, improving their memory and understanding of the material. As concluded by the journal Argumentation and Advocacy, incorporating oral language skills into instruction enables students to “build links between words and ideas that would otherwise be perceived as separate and as having less meaning” (2000, p. 163).

Put simply, forensics – collectively, debate and speaking activities – is a powerful instructional and assessment tool for advancing many of the goals required by such measures as No Child Left Behind.

Tired of rote methods of teaching to the test? Looking for a proven method of engaging students at the highest levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy with authentic assessment?

Debate harnesses student proficiency in:
•    Research methodology and information literacy
•    Higher-level thinking through application, analysis, synthesis, evaluation and creativity
•    Listening and speaking – two overlooked zones of language literacy

Meeting Cross-Disciplinary Academic Standards

Model academic standards are the currency for justifying the relevance and necessity of any program in a school.  Through fostering intrinsic motivation through contest speaking, students who engage in forensic activities are driven to express themselves and their understanding of issues in the world through research and critical thinking.

English/Language Arts

Participation in forensic activities meets National Council of Teachers of English K-12 standards:

• Read to understand a variety of cultures, periods and genres to build an understanding of the many dimensions of human experience (standards 1 & 2):  To examine historical backgrounds, societal norms and values as they weigh the implications of certain policies, students will draw from a variety of genres. Interpretive performers strive to find literature that gives insight into human values, motivations, relationships and problems.
• Apply strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts, drawing on prior experience, interactions with other readers and writers, knowledge of word meaning and of other texts (standard 3):  To credibly speak or perform, students build a working vocabulary and schemata of information for understanding their chosen topic.
• Adjust use of spoken, written, and visual language to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes (standards 4, 5 & 6):  Students use a formal, sophisticated and rhetorical linguistic register, while understanding the importance of adapting to different audiences, particularly the myriad judges to whom students present. In performing literature, students select the most vivid passages to interpret.
• Conduct research using a variety of technological and informational resources on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. Gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources to communicate discoveries in ways that suit a purpose and audience (standards 7 & 8):  When students write speeches or craft arguments, they must have gathered a wide array of credible sources to support their claims and illustrate their ideas.  Performers select and piece together literature around a central theme to communicate a specific, purposeful message.  The use of technologies and sources to find this information is increasingly decisive in a digital world.
• Use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish students’ own purposes (standard 12): Ultimately, forensic activities are about youth expressing their own thoughts, whether through performance, speaking or arguing.  Often, they must use a variety of media to accomplish this, and become proficient communicators in the process.

SOURCE: http://www.ncte.org/standards

Social Studies

Participation in forensic activities meets National Council for the Social Studies K-12 strands:

1. Culture: weighing opposing perspectives on issues to examine concepts of adaptation and dissonance.
2. Time, Continuity and Change: understanding how cause and effect relate to one another, and analyzing the past to extrapolate the success of future courses of action.
3. People, Places, and Environments: examining geopolitical spheres of influence and how interaction across boundaries for various resources affects certain outcomes.
4. Individual Development and Identity: researching various facets of an issue, analyzing their findings, and synthesizing arguments that provide the best solutions.
5. Individuals, Groups, and Institutions: appreciating value systems that underlie decision-making actors, and applying behavioral sciences and social theories to solutions.
6. Power, Authority, and Governance: analyzing political principles, where decision-making determines both ideal and pragmatic approaches.
7. Production, Distribution, and Consumption: considering how market forces drive lawmaking and trade decisions in a globalized economy.
8. Science, Technology, and Society: investigating implications of technology and how it affects human interaction in an information-centered 21st century world.
9. Global Connections: weighing the interdependence of foreign policies as they relate to peace, human rights, trade and global ecology.
10. Civic Ideals and Practices: examining the political process through discourse, and understanding the importance of engaging issues of societal importance.

SOURCE: http://www.socialstudies.org/standards/strands

Information Technology

Participation in forensic activities meets International Society for Technology in Education K-12 standards.

• Creativity and Innovation: As a tool, technology allows students to devise new methods for solving problems posed in debates or speeches, or to express themselves creatively through visual supporting materials.
• Communication and Collaboration: More schools are using digital media to organize practices and team meetings and to communicate information about forensic contests.  Several online communities and social networks engage forensic students beyond competition.
• Research and Information Fluency: Students search databases, indices and the Web to gather, evaluate, and use resources to prepare arguments and speeches or to construct literary programs for performance.
• Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making: Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources.
• Digital Citizenship: Students are aware of ethical obligations of research, citing sources they find, as well as copyright guidelines. When they engage one another in an online medium, they are respectful and tactful.

SOURCE: http://www.iste.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=NETS

Communication

• Fundamentals of Effective Communication (standards 1-8):  Students in forensics learn the importance of carefully selecting their words to fit a specific meaning to influence thought and making decisions, whether in the selection of literature to communicate a particular thematic message, or in persuasive speaking or debate.  Interpersonal relationships are critical to debating or working with peers and coach-teachers within the social context of building and practicing to present.  Both debate and dramatic dialogue require sensitivity to diversity and conflict resolution. Students are taught to uphold authorial intent in performing literary selections, to cite sources honestly and in context, and that original work must be their own and not plagiarized.
• Speaking (standards 9-12):  Through oral communication, students must be proficient in speaking clearly, adapting to their purpose, situation and audience, as well as acknowledging and overcoming anxiety.
• Listening (standards 13-15):  Through attentive and active listening, students not only observe techniques that allow them to improve their own presentation, but they must be cognizant of barriers to listening to hold the attention of their audiences.
• Media Literacy (standards 16-20):  Whether analyzing current events or bringing cultures alive through performance, students gain awareness for the impact and contexts carried by content from a variety of media, as well as understanding their commercial nature and potential biases.

SOURCE: http://www.natcom.org/nca/files/ccLibraryFiles/FILENAME/000000000119/K12%20Standards.pdf

Science

Participation in forensic activities meets National Science Teachers Association standards for grades 9-12 (area C).

• Multiple ways to organize perceptions of the world and how systems organize: Science is about observing and measuring phenomena and understanding the interactions, constancy and change between different elements.  To apply the Scientific Method to debate and speaking involves using inductive reasoning to help logically and credibly persuade an audience to understand a certain idea in a certain way. Because the environment and use of energy and resources hold deep implications for the future sustainability of human civilization, their prevalence in debate, persuasive speaking and even literary performance cannot be overstated.  To that end, students draw on a number of factors from a variety of the natural sciences to communicate and compel their listeners to a certain course of action.  Finally, for students who have a passion for science, Expository Speaking allows them to share new advances.
• Examination of scientific issues through forensics allows students to meet the following core competencies in the earth and space sciences (C.4.):
  • 1. Characteristics of land, atmosphere, and ocean systems on Earth2. Properties, measurement, and classification of Earth materials
  • 3. Changes in the Earth including land formation and erosion
  • 5. Energy flow and transformation in Earth systems
  • 6. Hydrological features of the Earth
  • 7. Patterns and changes in the atmosphere, weather, and climate
  • 11. Sources and limits of natural resources
  • 12. Applications of Earth and space sciences to environmental quality and to personal and community health and welfare
  • 13. Gradual and catastrophic changes in the Earth
  • 18. Impact of changes in the Earth on the evolution and distribution of living things
  • 19. Issues related to changes in Earth systems such as global climate change
  • 22. Applications of the Earth and space sciences and related technologies in society, business, industry, and health fields
  • 23. Applying concepts of Biology, including evolution, ecology, population dynamics, and the flow of energy
  • 26. Applying concepts of Mathematics, including statistics and probability