My Controversy Questions

The 2002-2003 season is well under way! For first place results from the Greer HS (September 28) and Bob Jones Academy (October 12) tournaments, go to the website and click on "Tournament Results." Please send me your tournament results as we work our way through the yearly schedule.

This letter is also on the website, but I am mailing it to each member school because of the volume of extra information that the national office has asked me to get to you. Please note the many enclosed documents:

Last year coaches really liked the convenience of www.nflonline.org. A record number of new members were added - that's the good news. More than 1/3 were never paid for - that's the bad news. Obviously your League can not survive if members choose not to pay for services they request. So - this year the Council has ruled that no school may compete at any NFL district or National event if it owes the NFL money. Bills past due by 60 days will incur a $25 penalty fee.

When students are added online their membership cards and an invoice for their membership fees are mailed the next day (certificates are mailed later). This invoice for new members must be paid by check, cash, or P.O. within 59 days to avoid the $25 late charge. (NFL will accept credit cards by January 5).

If you believe you will be adding new members right before the district tournament you may send an advance deposit earlier to pay for those members or you will have to pay the district chair at the tournament or your school will not be allowed to compete.

Both I (Jim Copeland) and the Council regret that so many good people are inconvenienced by the thoughtless actions of a few who chose not to pay despite many notices.

The Rostrum (the entire magazine) may be viewed by all NFL members each month online at www.nflonline.org.

The 2002 national interp finals will be available to you soon (as soon as copies come from the national office). Because we have had to sign new release forms, I am going to ask that each school that requests the 2002 videos also fills out new release forms. These tapes include dramatic interp, humorous interp, and duo interp. All other events are available for purchasing from Dale Publishing.

Welcome St. Joseph's High School/coach Jeff Rogers (Greenville) and Estill High School/coach Truman Humbert as new affiliate schools. Please include them in all your tournament mailings! The address information is in the directory on the website.

Let me encourage all school hosting tournaments to include Controversy as an event. SC will include this as a district event. Controversy debuted as an event in the SC and NC circuit at the Bob Jones Academy tournament (October 12). Many coaches gave positive comments concerning the event. The majority agreed that the one-man format is preferred. Brian Slusher of Westside took the time to put on paper his thoughts about Controversy. I include these comments in this letter to give each of us food for thought and to help in coaching our students. I also plan to pass these comments on to the national office since Controversy is still an "evolving" event. Thank you Brian for these comments!

My Controversy Questions (and Answers):

By Brian Slusher, Westside High School

1. Can students bring prepared speeches into the room?

A: No prepared speeches should be allowed, This isn't a "reading" event, in the manner of debate. They should be allowed an outline, if they wish, on the one index card they are allowed to carry. The size of the card should be explicitly specified--a 4" by 6" should do nicely. (I say this because one girl I judged brought in two reeeaaallly BIG pieces of cardboard which could be loosely interpreted as "note cards." If the card size is specified, that shouldn't happen.)

2. Can contestants take notes about what is said?

A: I believe they should as long as any new writing they do is confined to the one note card they brought in with them. This gives them the strategic decision of loading the card with outline/evidence or leaving some room to make notes about the proceedings. It seems a balanced solution. (I could just as easily say NO NOTES to prevent "reading" as well--no notes would promote listening and direct response to the speaker. Try the confined notes first to see if it seriously interrupts the communication process; if it does, no notes.)

3. How should prep time be handled?

A: Make it a rigid :30 before each 3 minute summary and :30 before each 1 minute final remarks. This gives enough time to put something together while maintaining the spontaneity that I believe is the spirit of this new event. If the contestants can take notes during the opponent's remarks, most of their prep will be done.

4. How should the contestants relate to the judge and each other?

A: This should be a conversation between the contestants, with the judge listening in. The judge is merely a moderator, insuring fair distribution of time and speech. The contestants should look at each other, not at the judge, and the contestants should never refer or appeal to the judge in the debate manner, such as "My opponent thinks...."

5. Should this be an individual or team event?

A: I believe we should start it as an individual event, let it grow, then make it a team event. If it does well, you could always go to a two-tier event of individual and team Controversy. In reflecting about the rounds I judged, I decided that the direct exchange of one-on-one allows the student to really utilize his full persuasive arsenal. With a team, you end up with four different speeches, often at cross purposes. There is great value in teaching group cooperation/coordination through a team event, but we don't want to end up in "Cross-X Hell" again, with people spouting insane plans at 1000 miles an hour for what seems like an eternity of exchanges.

After observing and judging Controversy, I believe it has the virtues of both value and policy debate with none of their jargon-filled artificialities of "crystallizations" and "harms." I also believe the ballot should stay strictly narrative, so the judge must mirror the communication process by writing a personal response without lots of little boxes breaking it up.

(Do you have any comment or thoughts on Controversy?

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Tournament information for the November tournaments at USC (November 2) and at Irmo (November 23) are available on the website.