Welcome to the South Elementary After-School Tournament (SEAST) #2

at Western High School on Thursday, November 20^th, 2025

 

Elementary tournaments are for elementary competitors only. Observers are prohibited. Judges are not allowed to bring non-competitors/young children with them.

 

LOCATION:

Western High School, 1200 SW 136th Avenue, Davie, FL  33325 (new location from last year).

 

PARKING: (very limited)

Please ensure your participants do not park on St. Bonaventure Catholic Church property. Parking on the east side of SW 136^th Ave (as long as it is not marked no parking) is allowed. It is encouraged that all team judges and chaperones ride the bus with their team.

 

IMPORTANT PROCEDURES FOR COACHES:

-Coaches must accompany their students to the tournament or designate a proxy BCPS teacher or coach. Notify district staff prior to the tournament.

-Coaches must have hard copies of the field trip forms with them in case of an emergency. Coaches should not be leaving campus with students without permission forms. Having access to their information online will not work when Wi-Fi is slow or there is no service.

-If there is a student who may need medicine at a tournament, coaches must let district staff know via email prior to the tournament. We need to be aware of who needs medicine and who has it in case there is an emergency.

-Students must wear their IDs at all times!

 

DEADLINES:

• Registration: Opens Friday, November 7^th, 2025
• New Entries: Close on Wednesday, November 12^th, 2025. Entry Edits (drops or name changes) can be made until 12 pm tournament day.
• Waitlist: At that time, we will begin releasing competitors off the waitlist if team judge numbers and room space allow.

***NO LATE ADDS. Do not bring competitors who are not registered to the tournament.***

• Pre-Ordered Pizza: Close on Thursday, November 13^th, 2025
  • Pre-Ordered Pizza: School-Issued Checks or Money Order
  • Pre-order pizza pies for student lunch are 1 pie at $16 per every 4 kids (2 slices and a bottle of water per kid).
  • Add pre-ordered pizza pies by clicking “Tournament home” on the left column, then click “Update your meal order” in the middle of the screen.
  • Print your final invoice to request a check from your school under “Current Invoice” on the left column of Speechwire. Make school checks payable to “Western High School Debate”.
• NO OUTSIDE FOOD DELIVERIES (i.e. DoorDash/UberEats).
• Concessions: Cash only. Prices vary due to the concessions being a fundraiser for the host school’s program. We will not hold the tournament rounds from starting if the concession lines are long.

 

ENTRY CAPS & JUDGE COVERAGE:

• Remember, each school may only initially enter TEN students in all events.  Any entries over that number will go on the waitlist, which will be cleared pending available space at Western High School and sufficient judge numbers. 
• No double or cross entries are allowed.
• Judge Coverage:  1 judge = 2 debate entries and 1 judge = 10 speech/congress entries (any combination). Do not bring students that you do not have judges to cover.

 

BUSES:

Bus assignments will be sent in an email confirmation closer to tournament date for BCPS schools who requested a bus. 

DO NOT leave without your Bus Buddy!

 

ARRIVAL/TOURNAMENT DAY PROCEDURES:

COACHES:

Check-In & Arrival/Supervision

• Team Check-In: Coaches must check in their team at the Check-In Table by reviewing and returning the Entry Confirmation Sheet. Inform Debate Broward staff of any drops at check-in. No other changes should be made. DO NOT BRING STUDENTS WHO ARE NOT REGISTERED.

• Upon arrival:
  • Teams will be escorted to the auditorium and then to the cafeteria to their designated tables when available.
  • Judges will be escorted to the media center.
• All students must remain in their designated areas with an adult chaperone at all times.
• Everyone must wear their school IDs.
• Tables in the cafeteria will be labeled by school.
• Pre-ordered pizzas can be picked up; concessions are CASH ONLY.
• Keep your team’s area in the cafeteria clean at all times

Before Rounds Begin

• Everyone must stay in the cafeteria until Western High School opens the event rooms (expected around 3:00 PM).
• During high school dismissal (2:35–2:55 PM):
  • Students must remain seated.
  • Coaches and chaperones should help form a barrier around the cafeteria edges.

Room Assignments/Schematics

• Coaches are responsible for:
  • Checking the Schematic tab in Speechwire. Start with Impromptu (IMP)
  • Telling students their assigned competition rooms.
  • Directing students to those rooms.
• A QR code linking to the schematics will be available on cafeteria tables.
• Refresh Speechwire regularly for updates.

Coaches Who Are Judging

• If a coach is also listed as a judge, they must check in separately at the Judge Table and login to live.speechwire.com in a separate tab.
• Stay with your students in the cafeteria until it’s time to judge.
• Around 2:45 PM, head upstairs for judge instructions. Have a chaperone to stay with your students when you go to the Media Center.
• Make sure you’re logged into live.speechwire.com to check for ballots.
• Dismiss your students to their rounds before heading to your judging assignment.

 

JUDGES:

Check-In & Arrival

• Judges who are not riding the bus should arrive between 1:15 pm and 1:45 pm, no earlier than 1 pm to be able to judge in Round 1. Judges arriving after the start of Round 1 will be Prioritized in Round 2.  Once we have enough judges checked in, we can start. 
• Judges arriving after 1:45 pm: Security may not allow them on campus until after school dismisses between 2:30 pm and 3:00 pm.
• If your judge is not riding on the school bus with you, they should park in the student lot off of 14th street. Please exit the white side gate and walk around the from of the school to check in at the school’s Single Point entry and will need identification. 
• Everyone should be wearing their IDs – Coaches, Judges and Students.  If you have not received your school’s IDs, go to the front office for a temporary pass.  Adults who check in at your school may wear the pass issued there.
• All judges will report to the judges' lounge (Media Center) once they clear security. High School student volunteers will be there to direct you.
• All adult judges should have at a least level one clearance with the district.  Have parents/adults use the link to register as a volunteer - https://apps.raptortech.com/Apply/NDgyMDplbi1VUw==   or go to the Get Involved with BCPS / Volunteer Services website.

E-Ballot Completion

• First-time judge:  You should have received an email from Speechwire to follow and create an account.
• Judged before:  It is important to make sure you have logged into live.speechwire.com and are able to sign in with the same email address you used previously. Once signed in, please make sure the cell number is correct/added to your account.
• In order to have a smoother start to the tournament, it is a huge help for all judges to arrive on time, have checked-in, and have logged into live.speechwire.com prior to coming to the tournament. If for whatever reason you cannot initially log in, click "Forgot Password" but use the same email you entered.
• Electronic Device: All ballots are electronic, so judges will need to bring a working, charged, smart phone, tablet, or laptop (preferably with a keyboard) to complete the eballots.

Judges During Rounds-

• Click "Start Round" after they confirm the correct competitors are in the room with them.
• Type comments while students are speaking, which will expedite the tournament. (Comments are open for editing overnight.) No verbal feedback. Put all comments on the ballot. Do not disclose ranks or who won.
• Once the last competitor speaks, IMMEDIATELY RETURN to the Judge Lounge/Media Center to complete and submit your ballot.
• Save/submit ranks, points, and decisions when the round is finished. ***We cannot move on to the next round or close the tournament until all ballots are submitted. You will have access to edit the comments/feedback, but we need the scores, ranks, and decisions asap.
•  Speechwire Tutorial for Judges: https://youtu.be/9VmiTHH2bJ0
• Judge training videos: https://www.speechanddebate.org/judge-training/

 

EVENTS/TOPICS:

Public Forum (PF):

"Resolved: In the United States, the benefits of the use of generative Artificial Intelligence in education outweigh the harms." 

No live internet is allowed in elementary PF rounds.

 

Congressional Debate (CD):

Congress legislation for the entire first semester was sent in email updates and is posted in the BCPS Coach Corner Canvas course. It is also accessible electronically here in Speechwire under the "Files for Download" section. Per usual, chambers might not debate all 2 bills if time does not allow.

Nov./Dec. Legislation Titles: “A Bill to Ban the Prescription of the GLP-1 and Dual GLP-1/GIP Receptor Agonist Drugs for Weight Loss” and “A Resolution to Amend the Constitution to Remove the Natural Born Citizen Clause”

 

Interpretation (HI, DI, DUO), Declamation (DEC) and Original Oratory (OO):

Once you have updated your entries, go to the left column on Speechwire called “Piece Registration”. For HI, DI, DUO and/or DEC entry, you are required to include the title, the author and the ISBN number. If the ISBN number is not available (movies, plays, etc.) use the URL from the website of the selection. For OO, please enter the title of the piece.

 

Impromptu (IMP): Topic areas are released in round.

 

Please let me know if you have any questions. Good luck and see you at the tournament! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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