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Introduction
Introduction
As you start to wander off into the realm of congressional debate, you will sooner or later understand that the field is extremely competitive. From all 50 states and even other countries/territories, people travel to dominate in tournaments. In many sports/competitions, the range of skill differs in 3 categories: beginner, intermediate, and professional. Debate has a similar outlook: local, state, and national circuits. Each circuit requires a different amount of preparation and they all have a different kick to them. All of these circuits are interconnected, for example, success in the local circuit can qualify you for certain opportunities in the state circuit, which can give you more opportunities in the national circuit. To become one of the top congressional debaters in the country, one must gain experience in all 3 levels.
To learn more about the national competitions, check out our resource page on the NatCir!
Tabroom.com is the NSDA's website for all speech and debate tournaments, across each competition league. It has an option where you can locate all the various circuits:
Local Circuits
Local Circuits
Local circuits are often a student's first experience in speech and debate. These small, regional competitions are meant to introduce novices to the event and be approachable for all audiences. They will usually occur once per month, although they can be more or less frequent depending on the circuit. Local circuits are, after all, local and therefore differ state-to-state, region-to-region, city-to-city.
This circuit will include the lowest level of tournaments, usually with few competitors in local schools. These tournaments are usually extremely affordable and close to your school, making them easy to access. Typically, schools in your county attend and novices choose these tournaments to start their debate career. In many local tournaments dressing in informal clothing is fine.
Examples of Local Circuits:
Local Urban Debate Leagues (i.e. New York City Urban Debate League)
Local Catholic Forensic Leagues (i.e. Palm Beach Catholic Forensics League)
Local tournaments are perfect for congressional debaters to experiment and try out new things, as the harms of failing are much smaller than competitive state or national tournaments. Take these local competitions as places where you can prepare for larger tournaments, or just the perfect opportunity to compete at a low-cost with friends from other schools around you. Local tournaments are perfect for novices. And even if you are a seasoned congressional debater, local tournaments are great for practice and your prestigious collection of NSDA points.
Understand that for many local tournaments, the rules probably deviate from standard NSDA rules, and there is no cohesive rulebook for all local circuits. Be sure to check with your local league to determine what questioning structure, speech timing, and other rule differences that may be present in local competitions. Generally, procedures still follow NSDA rules bar a few exceptions in each circuit.
In the Illinois Congressional Debate Association, authorship speeches are 4 minutes!
When preparing for local tournaments, read through the legislation and understand the bills before your tournament. Padding (writing a speech on a legal pad) out whole speeches before the tournament is usually not ideal in regards to time management if you are a seasoned debater, although it may be needed as a novice competitor. Local circuits are perfect for practicing your round adaptability and how efficiently you can prepare in rounds to give a speech. This skill is essential for more advanced tournaments, as you approach legislation with 20-30+ bills.
Usually, the judges who will attend these tournaments are parents and students who volunteer. Remember congress can get extremely boring for them, and it is important to add humor or something interesting to your rounds. Most of the time in the local circuit, the feedback from the judges is missing or overly genial, making self-evaluation critical at the local level. The local circuit is also a great place for judges to start their journey into debate.
The judging pool in the local circuits tends to be a lay panel, meaning that their ballots are primarily based on how you speak and deliver your speech. The local circuit for Congress is extremely presentation-focused.
Things to attempt and do in local tournaments:
Any speech style or type you want to improve or need practice on
Crystallization speeches
Sponsorship speeches
Mid-round speeches
In-round speechwriting
Extemporaneous speaking
Preside
Try different styles of presentation
iPad
Legal pad
Notecards
Learn Congress fully/perfect your craft, especially as a novice
State Circuits
State Circuits
After participating in the local circuit for quite a while, you may find yourself in the State tournament. As the name says, the state circuit has a good amount of schools from your state and is more formal than the local tournaments. Winning the tournament gets you the state champion title, a prestigious award.
Depending on the state, the qualification for the state championship differs. Usually, qualification is attained in the local circuit. Make sure you figure it out during the start of your regular season!
Examples of State Circuits:
Texas Forensic Association (TFA), which awards qualification based on 'TFA points' provided at each TFA-sponsored local circuit tournament
Pennsylvania High School Speech League (PHSSL), which awards qualification based on a bid system, providing invitations to top-placing competitors at each of local tournament.
Illinois High School Association (IHSA) includes regional and sectional competitions that students must perform well at to advance to the next level. You cannot qualify for IHSA State through local circuit competitions.
Since doing well at these tournaments is a prerequisite to competing at the state championship, they're usually more competitive. State tournaments are much more challenging and competitive than local circuits. This tournament usually happens only once per year.
This tournament requires extensive research and preparation as it is a serious tournament. Time should be spent on preparing your congress speeches beforehand if one wants to experience success. Practicing speeches in advance not only refines the articulation of ideas but also aids in developing a confident speaking style.
The judging pool is usually comprised of alumni, teachers, coaches, and parents who are based in that state. Judges will usually flow your arguments and see how your argument fits in the round. The judges also care about how you present the information. It is important to stay focused throughout the entire tournament.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many Final rounds of State tournaments were recorded. They are a great resource towards learning more about Congressional Debate.
Watch the 2021 Texas Forenics Association (TFA) State Final round debate a bill on immigration quotas.
Watch the entire 2021 Illinois High School Association (IHSA) State Final round.
The National Circuit
The National Circuit
The third and final circuit level in Congressional Debate is the National Circuit (NatCir). Anyone can compete at these tournaments, although they are often incredibly expensive and time-consuming. Most debaters delay competing nationally until they have enough experience to compete well at this level.
There are dozens of these tournaments offered throughout the year, and many debaters are first introduced to the national circuit through the tournament closest to them. These tournaments range from small tournaments at a local high school to large invitationals hosted by Ivy League Universities. So long as anyone can enter the tournament regardless of where they're from (with no geographical restrictions or limitations based on membership in a local circuit) it can be part of the NatCir.
These tournaments are separated based on the number of entries and level of competition. The lowest level is a 't6' tournament, followed by 't16,' then 't60,' and finally 't120' which only applies to the largest tournament of the year: the Harvard Speech and Debate Invitational. These levels correspond with the number of invitations they reward to the University of Kentucky Tournament of Champions, one of three national championship tournaments. A t6 tournament rewards the top 6 debaters (placing finalists), t16 tournaments give 'bids' to the top 16 debaters (all finalists), t60 tournaments give invites to the top 60 (semifinalists), and Harvard gives bids to the top 120 Congressional debaters. Tournaments that are t60 and above are also called "majors."
The UKTOC is one of three national championships, alongside the National Catholic Forensics League (NCFL) Nationals and National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA) Nationals. To learn more about these tournaments and their qualification process, check out our resource page on the national circuit!
Usually, these tournaments are in-person and are expensive after factoring in travel, hotels, entry fees, and other related costs. However, there are a few accessible and online tournaments students can attend:
UK Season Opener
UK Digital Series (#1, #2, and #3)
Stanford Invitational
Since these tournaments are of the highest levels, an extensive amount of preparation is needed. Prepare both the affirmative and negation sides; plan out probable arguments; practice speeches before the tournament. These tournaments are the ones where one should give their best and hardest tries.
The judging pool is as high level as it can get. The judging pool does have parents but usually is composed of former debaters and alumni who have great feedback. These judges look at the congressional debater as a whole (delivery, speech content, and round vision).
To see which NatCir tournaments are close to you, check out our interactive map!
NatCir tournaments usually have final round recordings, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. This document has nearly 300 hours of recorded rounds from the pandemic.
Listen to the 2024 University of Kentucky Tournament of Champions (UKTOC) Final round!
Networking
Networking
One of the most important skills as it relates to the various circuits of Congressional Debate is networking. At the local level, you will often be in the same chambers and rounds as the same people month after month, year after year. Developing friendships here is a way to make these competitions more enjoyable and keep in touch with other schools. At the national circuit, you may be one of only a few people from your region competing, and networking here ensures that you aren't a stranger when you walk around campus, but rather can connect with friends you know.
And networking in Congressional Debate provides many unique benefits in the event. Socializing during the caucusing period is extremely important. It shows that you are an active debater, and you are engaged within the round. Knowing your opponents is also beneficial as it can ease your nerves before delivering a speech. Socialization and understanding are best achieved when you actually know the people you're debating with.
Socializing also increases your likeability. As a result, it can help you gain an advantage during presiding officer (PO) elections and earn you that role. This is particularly important in the national circuit, where PO elections are often quite close.
There are no downsides to networking, and it is important to break out of your comfort zone. Remember, you are competing with these people for the upcoming hours, days, months, and even possibly years.
Equality in Forensics offers a number of resources to help debaters network both locally and on the national circuit.
Our local chapters are groups of debaters that work within a local circuit to expand accessibility of resources in Speech & Debate. Join yours today!
Our New Jersey Chapter ran a table at the New Jersey Speech and Debate League (NJSDL) State Tournament! If your state doesn't have a chapter, reach out to Chapter Director Enan Khan to start one.
Our Discord Server is a collection of over 2000 debaters from across the nation, from novices to national champions. We offer specific discord channels for each major (t60+) tournament. Join it today!
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