F.A.Q.
How is Congress scored? What do judges look for?
How can I speak like a Congress speaker?
I am about to go to my first tournament. Do you have any words of advice?
What is a bill? What is a resolution?
How can I learn more about the Congress tournament scene?
Student Congress is effectively a "mock congress," where speakers play the roles of congressional representatives. As such, they write legislation, propose it in a chamber, debate it, and vote on it, just like authentic statesmen. Also like those real-life politicians, student congress speakers follow parliamentary rules of procedure.
This event is a bit of a cross-breed between speech and debate. Speakers give speeches, rather than debating directly against an opponent. Those speeches, though, play a role in a greater debate over a single piece of legislation. Like speech, speakers are judged based on the quality of their speeches. Like debate, judges focus on logic and research in addition to effective speaking skills when scoring.
Would you like to learn more? Then watch this video from the NFL.
Congress speakers write, research, and speak. To prepare for a tournament, the team will collaborate on writing legislation to submit to the docket. This writing process follows high school writing development. Also, the team will brainstorm and research arguments for and against the legislation the tournament has announced. Finally, speakers practice speeches on legislation they want to address and outline speeches for others. On the day of the tournament, speakers participate in voting and making motions in the chamber, volunteer to speak when they would like, and ask questions after other speakers' speeches.
Congress speakers can work very, very hard or little at all. The congress session allows speakers to involve themselves at their own comfort level. Seasoned and dedicated speakers will want to take part in the session actively by speaking, questioning, and making motions often. Novice, or unsure speakers may sit and basically watch, choosing occasions to speak when they feel comfortable.
How is Congress scored? What do the judges look for?
Each
judge gives every speech a score between one and eight. The score will
include answers to questions as well as the actual speech. Most judges
look for two key aspects in someone's performance, delivery and
uniqueness/quality of ideas. The NFL has a sample ballot online that
can be viewed here. Further elaboration regarding each category can be found
here.
How can I speak like a congress speaker?
Here's
a list of commonly used Congress terms with definitions.
I am about to go to my first tournament. Do you have any words of advice?
Did you just ask a speech and debate coach if he has any words? Ha! Check out this document.
What is a bill? What is a resolution?
· A bill is basically the wording for a law or piece of legislation. This legislation would force action. A resolution is a generalized statement expressing a conviction or sentiment. It does not force action. It only expresses an opinion.
How do you keep precedence?
There are two types of precedence, question and speaking precedence, each which is figured out through a different method.
Question Precedence
Question
precedence is rather simple, as long as there is a seating chart.
Whenever someone asks a question, put a mark in the square with that
persons name on it. The person with the least number of questions has
precedence. If two (or more) congresspeople have the same number of
questions geography is used to determine who asks the first question.
Speaker Precedence
Speaking
precedence is more complicated, but basically the PO has to recognize
speakers who have spoken least, or not at all. Most PO's also use
recency, which means they recognize speakers based on who has spoken
least recently. The best way to do this is using a piece of paper
divided into vertical columns, with each column numbered from one to
four (or as many as needed). Then write the name of anyone who speaks
in the column. When a person speaks an additional time, cross of their
name and add them in the appropriate column. The "earliest" person,
according to the sheet, has precedence. Some PO's also use longest
standing to supplement precedence, which recognizes and rewards who has
stood longest to speak by marking attempts.
What is the base system?
A
common concern of most congresspeople is staying on base, yet the
concept of base is very confusing. The NFL base table is on page 14 of
the
Student Congress Manual.
Base is used to ensure people are not just trying to speak as many
times as possible, but that the speeches are quality. That way, someone
with three superior speeches may receive more points than someone with
five or six poor speeches. To find the base of a round, use the chart
in the manual, making sure the number of participating students, not
just seated students, is used. Often times, the PO and/or
parliamentarian will announce the base. It is best to stay on base, and
never refuse to give a good speech for fear of being over base. Try
never to get below base, because it is nearly impossible to place.
Mainly, base affects the tab room, because that is how the scores are
actually tabulated. Judges give scores for each speech and then the
scores are all added together and divided by the number of speeches
that individual has given. This average is then multiplied by the base
of the round and those scores are used to determine ranks.
How can I learn more about the Congress tournament scene?
Check out
Student
Congress Debate.