The moderator should start when she feels most of the audience has had ample time to arrive. She should ask students to sit near the front to leave room in the back for late comers.
The moderator should start by saying, “This debate is now called to order...” in a clear, firm voice. This will quiet the room. In some situations, moderators may need to explain the debate procedure to the audience. It is particularly important to explain the procedure if there are many new JSAers present. Spending just a couple of minutes reviewing the format and rules at the beginning of the debate avoids confusion later and saves time.
2. Moderator reads the resolution The moderator will read the resolution clear, loud voice. It is imperative that everyone …show more content…
Moderator introduces the main speakers As mentioned earlier, the moderator should already be sure of the pronunciations by this point. After introducing herself, the moderator can simply state, “(name) is speaking for the affirmative and (name) is speaking for the negative.” Variations of this are acceptable.
4. Moderator appoints a timekeeper The moderator will pick two timekeepers (or just one if it is a traditional debate), preferably people from the front of the audience. It is important that the timekeeper knows the rules of timing, so the moderator may have to explain it to them (those rules can be found on the next page of this handbook).
5. Affirmative speaker gives opening speech
6. Negative Speaker gives opening speech In a traditional debate, the affirmative speaker will speak for six minutes, followed by the negative speaker. The affirmative main speaker always goes first. To introduce the speaker, the moderator can say something along the lines of “The affirmative/negative speaker is recognized for six minutes” or “Affirmative/negative speaker, you may begin when you’re …show more content…
Option one is to simply state “I yield the remainder of my time to the chair.” The speaker in that situation is giving up their time, and the moderator will say “the chair absorbs the remainder of the speaker’s time.” The result is the same as if the speaker had run out of time. A speaker can also yield their time to the chair after previously yielding time to questions.
Option two is to state “I yield the remainder of my time to questions.” In this case, the audience may ask questions of the speaker. The moderator calls on people with their hands raised, not the speaker. The moderator should not call on the opposing main speaker unless no one in the audience has questions. The question may not be longer than 15 seconds, but the time spent asking the question is not deducted from the speaker’s time. The speaker’s answer IS timed. In other words, if an audience member asked a 10 second question and the speaker spent 10 seconds to respond, their time should have decreased by only 10 seconds, not 20. An audience member may not ask a follow-up question unless they are called upon again or they preceded their initial question with, “Will the speaker yield to a two-part question?” The questions should be just that—questions. Question time is not a time for audience members to make points or
The moderator should start by saying, “This debate is now called to order...” in a clear, firm voice. This will quiet the room. In some situations, moderators may need to explain the debate procedure to the audience. It is particularly important to explain the procedure if there are many new JSAers present. Spending just a couple of minutes reviewing the format and rules at the beginning of the debate avoids confusion later and saves time.
2. Moderator reads the resolution The moderator will read the resolution clear, loud voice. It is imperative that everyone …show more content…
Moderator introduces the main speakers As mentioned earlier, the moderator should already be sure of the pronunciations by this point. After introducing herself, the moderator can simply state, “(name) is speaking for the affirmative and (name) is speaking for the negative.” Variations of this are acceptable.
4. Moderator appoints a timekeeper The moderator will pick two timekeepers (or just one if it is a traditional debate), preferably people from the front of the audience. It is important that the timekeeper knows the rules of timing, so the moderator may have to explain it to them (those rules can be found on the next page of this handbook).
5. Affirmative speaker gives opening speech
6. Negative Speaker gives opening speech In a traditional debate, the affirmative speaker will speak for six minutes, followed by the negative speaker. The affirmative main speaker always goes first. To introduce the speaker, the moderator can say something along the lines of “The affirmative/negative speaker is recognized for six minutes” or “Affirmative/negative speaker, you may begin when you’re …show more content…
Option one is to simply state “I yield the remainder of my time to the chair.” The speaker in that situation is giving up their time, and the moderator will say “the chair absorbs the remainder of the speaker’s time.” The result is the same as if the speaker had run out of time. A speaker can also yield their time to the chair after previously yielding time to questions.
Option two is to state “I yield the remainder of my time to questions.” In this case, the audience may ask questions of the speaker. The moderator calls on people with their hands raised, not the speaker. The moderator should not call on the opposing main speaker unless no one in the audience has questions. The question may not be longer than 15 seconds, but the time spent asking the question is not deducted from the speaker’s time. The speaker’s answer IS timed. In other words, if an audience member asked a 10 second question and the speaker spent 10 seconds to respond, their time should have decreased by only 10 seconds, not 20. An audience member may not ask a follow-up question unless they are called upon again or they preceded their initial question with, “Will the speaker yield to a two-part question?” The questions should be just that—questions. Question time is not a time for audience members to make points or