SpeechWire Tournament Services - Forensics Tournament Software

Friends:

The Elgin Community College Forensics Team and the department of Communication Studies are excited to invite you to the “Shadwell Invitational Tournament” to be held on Saturday December 2, 2017. This year, we will also be hosting an “LPL-Style” Debate Tournament on Friday December 1, 2017.

For those that aren’t aware, Gail Shadwell was a Speech faculty member at Elgin Community College for almost fifty years, and was instrumental in creating many student centered activities, including ECC’s Speech Team.

Please note that this IE tournament will be a novice tournament. A “novice” will be defined as any student with less than 2 years (four semesters) of intercollegiate competitive experience. To keep in spirit of LPL, for debate: competitors in debate must be undergraduate students at the entering college or university who have met the necessary requirements for competition as imposed by that institution. NOTE: This includes students in their third or fourth year of competition which is true only for debate.

Our IE tournament will have two rounds of preliminary competition, and finals in all events (providing that size of the event allows for such). Please also note the special approaches that we will be utilizing for prelim rounds of CA and Extemp. Enclosed in this packet you will find information regarding logistics (registration, parking, food, etc.) and tournament fees for all events. Should any question arise, feel free to contact me.

As an FYI: this tournament will utilize SpeechWire for registration of all events and tabbing, so keep that in mind when it is time to register.

We hope to see you on December 1 and 2, 2017!

Sincerely,

Tim Anderson on behalf of the ECC Speech Team and ECC Communication Studies Department

INDIVIDUAL EVENTS TOURNAMENT INFO

Students may enter up to three events per flight pattern.

Flight A

Flight B

STE

POI

Impromptu

Persuasion

Extemp

Poetry

Prose

Duo

Info

Each school is limited to six entries for each individual event. With the exception of Communication Analysis and Extemp (please review the event description below) all events will follow Phi Rho Pi rules, accessible at www.phirhopi.org

SPECIAL EVENT RULES FOR COMMUNICATION ANALYSIS AND EXTEMP

The events of Communication Analysis and Extemp will have an educational twist for this tournament. At the end of each speech, a brief amount of time will be allotted (an additional 2-3 minutes) for the judge to ask the speaker a critical question (or questions, should time allow) about the analysis performed. It should be noted that the purpose of this approach is not for the judge to ask the speaker to repeat/rephrase information, nor is it to "trick" a speaker into contradicting their analysis. Further, the purpose is to extend the educational aspect of the event, and also to promote the deeper level of critical thinking that is unique for these events. To the best of our ability, the tournament staff will format the number of students in each preliminary section to accommodate for this approach. Please note that should a final round of either event be needed, they will follow standard final round protocol and no extra time will be given for questions from the judging panel.

AWARDS

Trophies will be awarded to the top six entrants in each individual event. Further, the top five speakers in Individual Sweeps will be recognized. In order to qualify for Individual Sweepstakes, a student must be entered in a minimum of four events (one must be an Interp event, and one must be a PA/LP).

Team Sweepstakes awards will also be given to the five schools accumulating the most sweepstakes points. NOTE: Sweeps points will be based on IE accumulations ONLY.

QUALITY TEAM SWEEPSTAKES

The Shadwell Tournament will also award Quality Sweepstakes for the top five schools. Quality sweepstakes will be determined by calculating the total number of team sweeps points divided by number of slots entered in the tournament.

PARLI DEBATE TOURNAMENT INFO

Competitors must be undergraduate students at the entering college or university who have met the necessary requirements for competition as imposed by that institution. NOTE: This includes students in their third or fourth year of competition which is true only for debate.

Whenever possible, each team must consist of two people. Each team must be prepared to debate either the Government or the Opposition. The Gail Shadwell tournament allows and encourages the use of hybrid teams to maximize student involvement in the tournament. Schools have the option of either: (a) communicating with each other and forming hybrid teams before submitting their entries (and then submitting these hybrid team entries) OR (b) submitting a maximum of one individual “maverick” per school to the tournament. In cases where individual mavericks are submitted, the tournament director will randomly partner ‘mavericks’ into hybrid teams until there is a maximum of one ‘maverick’ entered in the tournament.

SPEAKING FORMAT

Prime Minister (Government)........ 7 minute Constructive

Leader of the Opposition…............ 8 minute Constructive

Member of the Government........... 8 minute Constructive

Member of the Opposition..…....... 8 minute Constructive

Leader of the Opposition......…..... 4 minute Rebuttal

Prime Minister............………....... 5 minute Rebuttal

There is no preparation time allowed between the speeches for either team.

Oppositions may not utilize the “no split” option.

TOPIC SELECTION AND PREP TIME

Three topics will be used in all rounds. Resolutions will vary between policy, value, and fact and may be written in both literal and figurative forms. Tournament staff will make every effort to administer topics fairly and equally, but will have sole discretion to determine the topics for each round. For topic selection within a round, the judge will have one list of the three topic choices. The judge will first give the list to the Opposition who will then have one minute to read and strike one of the three topics. Immediately following, the judge will give the list to the Government who will then have one minute to read and strike one of the two remaining topics. The remaining topic will be debated in that round. The debate proposition will be restated by the judge in the room prior to preparation time, which will begin immediately. Tournament staff reserves the right to strike for a team who is not presented in the room at the scheduled start of the round (consideration will be given to delays caused by tournament operation).

Each team shall be allotted fifteen (15) minutes total preparation time for the debate. The preparation time shall begin after the judge has announced the topic in the room. Either team may leave the room during the preparation period. If one or both teams remain, it is preferable that the judge leaves the room. Preparation time for a team may be reduced if a team is not presented in the room at the scheduled start of the round (consideration will be given to delays caused by tournament operation).

If after strike and prep time a team is still not present in the room, the tournament staff may, at its sole discretion, declare a forfeit in the round.

No coaching by any coach, team member or other person, is allowed during the preparation period. Teams must prepare for rounds on their own.

The only resource a team may consult during the preparation period is a hard copy dictionary.

OBSERVATION

People not involved in the specific debate round may take notes as long as the note taker has the permission of all the contestants. Participating teams may use audio or video recording equipment to record the round, if they have the expressed permission of the other team.

DISCUSSION AND DISCLOSURE

In order to encourage speakers to concentrate on future and not past performance, and to discourage judges from taking records into account in their decisions, there will be no “warm room” (running results posting).

The tournament is scheduled to provide some time for judges and debaters to discuss rounds. In order to keep tournaments on schedule, these discussion should occur at those scheduled times, not immediately after the round.

Judges should not disclose their decision to anyone other than a member of the tournament staff.

DIVISIONS

As long as tournament entry and size allows, the Gail Shadwell tournament will recognize three divisions: Rookie (students in their first semester of competition in any kind of debate at any level and who have not competed in any NPDA eligible elimination round in any division at any parliamentary debate tournament or earned a medal at any LPDL tournament); Junior (students in their first or second semester of college competition, who are not eligible for the Rookie Division); and Open (all other teams). For the purpose of determining eligibility in the Rookie division, any competition in any type of debate prior to the current semester will disqualify a student from that division. For the purpose of determining eligibility in the Rookie or Junior Division, NPDA guidelines for semesters of eligibility will apply, even if such guidelines would not normally apply to such debate experience (i.e. high school debate). Results of the Rookie Division will be reported to NPDA as “Novice” results.

JUDGES

Consistent with our overall philosophy, The Shadwell Tournament may use lay judges. We will also consider using undergraduate students with at least three years debate experience (at least two of which were at the college level) and who are not competing at the tournament, in the rookie division.

PRELIM ROUNDS, ELIM ROUNDS AND AWARDS

Depending on entries, tournament staff will schedule 4-6 preliminary rounds, as they deemed most appropriate.

If entry size and team/school distribution is appropriate, there will be four prelim rounds and one or two final rounds. In that case, based on preliminary results, tabbed using standard tabulation procedures, elimination Rounds will be scheduled, based on one of the following methods:

If fifteen or less teams compete in the first round of the tournament (or a single division within the tournament).

All scores will be tabulated at the end of the preliminary rounds (using first W-L record, then total speaker points, then total ranks, then total speaker points with highs-lows dropped, then total ranks with highs-lows dropped). The top 6 seeds will be determined, and paired into the following rounds:

Debate A: Seed 1 vs Seed 2

Debate B: Seed 3 vs Seed 4

Debate C: Seed 5 vs Seed 6

Based on the judges’ (or coach’s, as brackets will not be broken) decisions these 6 teams will be awarded places, based on the following:

Winner of Debate A: First Place

Loser of Debate A: Second Place

Winner of Debate B: Third Place

Loser of Debate B: Fourth Place

Winner of Debate C: Fifth Place

Loser of Debate C: Sixth Place

Any additional teams who won more preliminary rounds than they lost will be recognized with awards of excellence.

If sixteen or more teams compete in the first round of the tournament (or a single division within the tournament).

In a Semi-Final Round, the following debates will occur:

Debate A: Seed 1 vs. Seed 8

Debate B: Seed 4 vs Seed 5

Debate C: Seed 2 vs Seed 7

Debate D: Seed 3 vs Seed 6

Note: Postings, written or oral, will announce these debates in random order without the A, B, C, D designation.

Based on the judges’ (or coach’s, as brackets will not be broken) decisions, the losers of these Semi-Finals will all be recognized as Fifth Place finisher (no attempt will be made to preference one team over another)

The winners of the Semi-Final rounds will advance to a final round, with the following debates occurring:

Debate E: The winner of Debate A vs the winner of Debate B

Debate F: The winner of Debate C vs the winner of Debate D

Based on the judges’ (or coach’s, as brackets will not be broken) decisions, the winners of these rounds will be declared First Place Teams (no attempt will be made to preference one team over another) The losers of these rounds will be declared Third Place Teams (no attempt will be made to preference one team over another)

Any additional teams who won more preliminary rounds than they lost will be recognized with awards of excellence.

The tournament staff may determine that a more educational experience can be provided for all debaters by holding more preliminary rounds and no elimination rounds. In that case, tournament staff will schedule at least four and up to six preliminary rounds, as deemed appropriate. In this case, final placement will be determined by preliminary round results (using first W-L record, then total speaker points, then total ranks, then total speaker points with highs-lows dropped, then total ranks with highs-lows dropped). Awards will be given to up to six teams, but not to more than half the total field.

Individual speaker awards will be presented to the top three speakers in each division, if there are less than ten teams in that division. Otherwise, five speaker awards will be given.

DISPUTES

Any matters of dispute will be settled at the sole discretion of the tournament staff.

TOURNAMENT FEES AND ENTRY DEADLINES

The entry fee is $8.00 for each IE slot; and an additional $10.00 per uncovered slot. Schools are required to provide one judge for every six slots.

The entry fee is $10.00 for each debate team; and an additional $40.00 per uncovered team. Schools are required to provide one judge for every two teams.

We want your judges, not your money!

The more judges we can use, the more efficiently we can run the tournament. If you know of anyone that would be willing/able to serve as a hired judge, please let Tim Anderson (tanderson@elgin.edu) or Jim Dittus (jdittus@elgin.edu) know as soon as possible (along with contact info for the person…preferably email).

Entry Deadline for all events is 5 PM, Wednesday Nov 29 through SpeechWire. The following schedule will be used for changes/drops:

Changes after deadline, until 12 PM on Thursday Nov 30: No charges.

Drops Thursday Nov 30 until 5PM: $10/per slot or debate team

Drops after Nov 30 at 5 PM, but prior to debate registration: $20/team

Drops by Noon Friday Dec 1: $15/per slot

Drops at registration: $25/per slot or debate team

Judge drop: $60

PLEASE HELP US GIVE BACK!!

Forensics is more than friendly competition: forensics cares! So that our speech community can help those less fortunate this time of year, we are requesting that each school bring one item per student registered to donate to ECC’s Spartan Food Pantry. Please keep in mind that this is only a request, and no student/school will be turned away if they do not have a donation to the pantry.

The goal of SFP is to help benefit the roughly one-third of ECC students who are economically disadvantaged. As a Phi Theta Kappa officer put it, “The food pantry is a key resource for financially struggling students. It allows them to attend class, pay for books and not have to worry about where their next meal is coming from.”

Here is a list of items of which the pantry is in most need:

- Fruits (snack cups or cans)

- Starches (rice, pasta, instant potatoes)

- Canned veggies (not green beans - we have unlimited amounts of green beans and tuna!)

- Deodorant

- Toothpaste

Again, please keep in mind that this donation is not a requirement, only a request. No student/school will be turned away if they do not have a donation to the pantry

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Friday, Dec. 1, Debate

11:00 Registration for Debate Teams outside F-124

12:00 PM Round 1

1:10 PM Round 2

2:20 PM Round 3

3:30 PM Round 4

4:45 Dinner and Discussion Break

5:15 First Elim Round or Round 5

6:30 Second Elim Round, if needed or Round 6

Awards will be held as soon as possible after the last round of competition.

Saturday, Dec. 2, Individual Events

7.30 - 8.15 - Registration outside F-124

8.15 - Round 1-A

9.45 - Round 2-A

10.45 - 12 PM - Lunch

11.45 - Extemp Prep

12.00 - Round 1-B

1.15 - Extemp Prep

1.30 - Round 2-B

Flight A and B Finals and Awards: ASAP

LODGING

Holiday Inn and Suites

495 Airport Road, Elgin, IL

(847) 488-900

Hampton Inn Chicago/Elgin

405 Airport Road, Elgin, IL

(847) 931-1940

Quality Inn

500 Tollgate Road, Elgin, IL

(847) 608-7300

Super 8

435 Airport Rd., Elgin, IL 60123

(847) 888-0088

Marriott TownPlace Suites

2185 Marriott Dr. West Dundee, IL 60118

(847) 608-6320

Courtyard by Marriott

2175 Marriott Dr., West Dundee, IL 60118

(847) 429-0300

Comfort Suites

2480 Bushwood Drive, Elgin, IL

(847) 836-9500

Country Inn and Suites

2270 Point Boulevard, Elgin, IL

(847) 426-6400

You can find information about the ECC campus at:

http://elgin.edu/maps.aspx

Registration will be held in the Building F Foyer, and you can freely park in the F Lot.

Our Cafeteria will be closed on the day of the event. Therefore, we suggest going off-campus for lunch.

When choosing locations for lunch, there are many convenient options within a couple miles of campus, some which offer delivery. We will supply a listing of restaurants at registration.