Tag: extemp strategy

On August 5, 2009

Logan Scisco’s extemporaneous speaking textbook, Elements of Style for the Modern Extemper, is now available for sale as a printed edition. This is meant to satisfy customers who would prefer a physical copy over a digital copy. The textbook breaks down extemporaneous speaking structure, delivery style, details cross-examination techniques, drills to improve, and much more.

Extempers who prefer a digital copy can buy it for $20. For printed editions, the cost will be $27.50 to take into account standard shipping, binding, and copying charges.

The items are currently available from the SpeechGeek store.

On Developing Style

On June 7, 2009

By: Sebastian Pyrek

Being a speaking event, extemp relies not only on substance but also on style. The process of becoming better at the event is an uphill struggle, with each step becoming more difficult to grasp than the previous, but yet there is something that many extempers will overlook or save for very end that could be developed earlier along with the other facets of the event: style. Observing the final rounds of the higher extemp championships demonstrates the varied styles that each speaker has, and these varied styles reach the final because they work well at uniquely setting the speaker apart in prelims and outrounds. But don’t let yourself think that completely emulating these styles will land you the championship spot at the state or national level. The point behind the event is about finding a way to place yourself into the information, and this is the way that developing a style should be viewed.

NSDA Roundtable

On June 7, 2009

In Strategy, Tournaments

strategy The NFL national tournament is where extemp legends are made. With a format of thirteen rounds, two differentiated forms of extemp, three rounds of cross examination, a final round that takes place in front of hundreds of people, and $6,000 in scholarship money going to the winner, NFL is an experience unlike any other.

To provide a preview for this tournament, Extemp Central has brought together three national finalists to discuss their preparation for the tournament and the work that had to be done in the trenches to get them onto the national final stage.

NSDA National Tournament Psychology

On June 7, 2009

In Strategy, Tournaments

By Omar Qureshi[1]

Nowhere will you find a bunch of 250 extempers more competitive than at the NFL National Tournament. There is not a competition that matches its size, depth, or prestige.

With emotions running high, there is no better piece of advice than to just relax. Regardless of how many people are there, the goal is still very much the same: to give the best extemp speech you can give every round. It is prudent to consider the tournament as something outside of you. It exists outside of your paper, pens, boxes, and the prep room. From the time you pick your topic to the time you give your speech, all that exists is the event. In that zone nothing else matters. It matters not how good the speeches were in your room. It matters only that yours is a dedicated reflection of your ability as an extemper.

Can Do and Don’ts: A Discussion of Canned Intros in Extemp

On May 11, 2009

By OMAR QURESHI[1] & HUNTER KENDRICK[2]

OMAR: First of all, I believe that discussion of introductions in extemp will continue until the end of time. They call on ideological differences in the school of thought on extemp so it will never be easily resolved. That being said I recall a conversation I had with NFL National Champion Spencer Rockwell, where we came to the agreement that it doesn’t matter where and when someone comes up with an introduction so long as it pertains directly to the topic. Whether that be a minute before the round or at home three months before.

HUNTER: Thus far, I agree with my friend. However, once we delve deeper into the issue, he and I come to some serious disagreements about what is kosher and what is not in terms of how far developed the idea should be before a tournament.

OMAR: When it comes to the event of extemp, I believe that everything must be intrinsically rooted to the topic. A good speaker should read a substantial amount of material before tournament time and think about particular areas of analysis from his/her reading. Just like preparation should be used with evidence and analysis I think good preparation includes introductions. This isn’t to say I advocate a “canned” intro. Rather, I am in favor of developing the concept of an intro and perhaps even giving it in the practice speech setting if it has a clear and direct link to the topic at hand. I think it is important I clarify what I mean by a link to the topic. A link to the topic means that the subject of the introduction is explicitly the topic area. For example a funny story about Yulia Tymoshenko that a speaker read about a month before the round and made into an intro could be used perfectly in a Ukraine speech because it is tied directly to the topic. I think that is a mark of a well prepared extemper.

HUNTER: Well, Omar and I got to the disagreements before I estimated we would. As I said earlier, I am not against “coming up with” and intro before a tournament. To me, though, that means something entirely different than what Omar was hinting at.

To me, the development of an intro should stop entirely after the initial brainstorming. Going back to the Tymoshenko example, if a speaker read said article and thought, “Hm… that could be a funny intro…” I have no problem with that. However, if that speaker read the article and then began to plan what they would say/how they would say it and then began to practice it, that is where I would take offense. To me, the practice of the intro, or the development thereof beyond the brainstorming, perverts the event and turns it into more of an oration and less of a limited prep event.

OMAR: Allow me to apologize for not smoothly delving into our disagreements. Hunter is far more subtle than I am, and I feel it is his punishment for allowing me to begin the conversation. I believe that the nature of extemporaneous speaking is dynamic- that is to say it changes with every speech every day- and it requires a dedicated focus of preparation. While I do agree that extemp must be a limited preparation event, I strongly believe that extemp tournaments are won outside of the tournament itself. I think that coming up with an intro beforehand that pertains to a topic actually enhances the event. It places a focus on preparation. Instead of perversing the event, as Hunter noted, I believe it shows the most prepared speakers. Just like quality analysis shows the most prepared speakers in the gathering and reading of evidence. I feel like an introduction is an extension of the preparation before the limited preparation. Despite sounding redundant, I strongly believe that this event is bent upon preparation as I am sure Hunter agrees. I don’t see a problem with fully developing an introduction and practicing it. It will change with every speech and become better. Showing a true mastery of the event itself, not a butchery of it. I mean eventually the introduction will be fully thought out-
why not earlier than later?

Keeping Their Attention: A Judging Analysis

By admin

On November 15, 2008

by Colin West

Every extemper has, at some point, received a ballot after a tournament and wondered “was my judge even listening to my speech?” I know I have. But now that I have moved from the realm of high school competition into the pool of college judges, I can tell you the answer. They weren’t listening. At least, not to all of it.

Of course it is rarely the case that judges are simply tuning out for long passages of your speech. More likely, they are distracted by writing comments on your ballot, by trying to remember what time signal to give next, or because you said something so clever that it caused them to spontaneously recall an article they read in last month’s New Yorker. But the result is the same: a few seemingly random moments from your speech will have a great deal of influence on your final score; the rest is simply background.

What this means for you, as a competitor, is that you need to think more like your teacher does when he or she prepares a lesson plan. After all, it’s not easy to get teenagers to focus on anything for more than 15 seconds, unless “Pimp My Ride” and “Panic! At the Disco” are somehow both simultaneously involved. Applying this strategy starts at the very top of your outline, with the intro. Of course, it’s a well-known fact that the introduction serves as an “attention getter.” But such devices generally serve as just this and nothing more: they grab the judge’s attention momentarily, but relinquish it moments later when the speaker moves on to more substantive (read as: “boring”) issues.

The Shark, The Guppy, and the Jobber

On November 15, 2008

by Hunter Kendrick

People who know me realize that I do not mince words. I say what I am thinking at the moment I think it. For example, I once remarked to my coach in practice that, “So many of the world’s problems could be solved with a handgun and a well-placed café waiter,” (a viewpoint I would not recommend espousing in a round). Sometimes my candidness is good, other times people hate me. But, at least I am honest and upfront. Now and then, the people I express my opinions to are somewhat surprised at the words that flow forth from my mouth. One such incident happened at the 2007 NFL National Tournament.

The conversation occurred sometime between the octafinals rounds and the semifinals postings for US Extemp. The conversation involved me and a good friend of mine, Jack Grennan, from North Alleghany Senior High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Jack had asked me a very simple question. My answer, however, wasn’t as simple.

“Do you think that (name has been omitted for obvious reasons) will do well?”

“Oh yeah, he’s a shark.”

“A shark?”

“Um-hum.”

“Ok, ok… What about (see above parentheses)?”

“Hell no.”

“Why?”

“He’s a guppy.”

“A guppy…”

Impacting – It’s THAT Important

By admin

On October 15, 2008

strategy by Sebastian Pyrek

The typical extemper probably has multiple areas in which he/she needs to improve in to reach ultimate perfection, be it delivery, knowledge base, or anything out of the myriad of qualities that makes the ‘good’ extemper good. One thing that is arguably the most important is analysis, because we are answering a question, and our ranks depend directly on this answer. Also, after a season, having only 7 minutes to speak is a curse – it is difficult to gather a focus and be deliberate in what we want to say. This is where impacting can come in and save the common extemper and add a whole new dimension of organization to a speech.

Strategy: Question Analysis

On September 16, 2008

by Jonathan Carter

Overview

What is the first rule of extemp? Answer the question. In the majority of rounds if you are able to answer the question, you will be one of the top extempers in the round. When I say answer the question, I mean this very specifically. Answer every aspect of the question, don’t just use it as a prompt to talk about what you want to discuss. Because answering the question is so important, this brief is going to explain how to break down a question so that you know exactly what it is asking. Once you know this, you can formulate a speech that is a direct answer. Away we go, into how to answer the question land.

Alternate (Sub)Structure? Yeah Right

On September 15, 2008

strategy By Omar Qureshi

An Extemper’s dilemma

Extemporaneous speaking is perhaps the most demanding of all forensics activities. It requires the research skills of a policy debater, the theory of a Lincoln-Douglas debater, and the speaking of a polished orator. However, there are a few key differences between extemporaneous speaking and the previously mentioned events. The first of which being that in extemporaneous speaking there is no one arguing against the speaker (barring a round with a built in cross examination period), thus a speaker must sufficiently address all arguments in order to have a complete persuasive presentation. The extemporaneous speech is more analytically demanding than an oratory, and its topics change every round. Perhaps, the most vital difference is the fact that an extemporaneous speaker only has seven minutes and just one speech to relay to the judge a message. The speech must include analysis that is as deep-if not more so- than a debate case, while speaking well and engrossing the judge. For unlike a debater an extemporaneous speaker doesn’t have the option to speed up to include all of his/her information. This brings up an overbearing burden on the modern speaker: how to most efficiently include arguments while not increasing the rate of delivery.

The clearest way to resolve this issue is to use substructure. Despite the way that this word strikes fear in the hearts of speakers across the nation, it is actually quite beneficial. Unfortunately, it seems that the world of extemporaneous speaking has been burdened with adherence to the universal two sub point formula. This format is highly unspecific and maybe a hindrance to effectively answering a question. The following paper will seek to resolve this particular quagmire by addressing three specific types of substructure with direct application to extemporaneous speaking.

How IR Theory Can Cure Your IX Problems

By admin

On September 15, 2008

In International Extemp, Strategy

by Hunter Kendrick

What am I Missing?

Let’s face it: there is no such thing as a perfect speech. Competing in an innumerable amount of rounds has taught me one thing – the winner isn’t the immaculate speaker, but the speaker who makes the fewest mistakes. Of course, you can always “cover-up” what mistakes you do make by wowing the judges in other areas. And, perhaps the easiest way to wow your audience is to have complex analysis.

Whether you’re a seasoned champion or someone completely new to the event, it’s clear to all that extemp gets “deep.” What I mean is that a speech is not just a collection of random facts, it is the weaving of those facts together into a cohesive answer to the question. Competitors and audience members are often looking for the “deeper meaning” or the “connection.” Sometimes it is easy to find the connection, other times it takes more effort. But, when discussing international relations, it is actually easier to find that deeper meaning than most people seem to believe at first. And, successfully finding those themes (and incorporating them correctly into a speech) can be the jumpstart a speaker needs to propel them towards success.

The Right Way to File

By admin

On September 15, 2008

In Files, Strategy

by Mark Royce

Many extempers become slaves to their tubs, rather than letting the files serve them.

The file boxes perennially transported by extemporaneous speakers to tournaments across the country perform a variety of functions. The most important, obviously, is the assistance they provide to the competitor’s memory: facts, figures, dates, locations, and other very precise pieces of information are quickly accessible in an organized system, such that no precious prep time need be wasted in their retrieval. Furthermore, most extempers either modify an inherited set of tubs or design their own, which teaches them to organize foreign and domestic issues in meaningful categories. All the countries in sub-Saharan Africa, for instance, would be grouped together, as would intertwined economic issues back home. I might also add in jest that traversing the country with such ponderous luggage as extemp tubs teaches patience and improves physical stamina, while providing a constant reminder of how technologically antiquated the NFL’s procedures are. But there is another role which extemp files frequently play that they certainly should not, and the purpose of this article is to warn of the dangers of relating to the tubs in this manner.

Do not the files often assume a kind of idolatrous affection in the minds of those who maintain them? Do not many extempers, usually of at least intermediate skill, lavish a sort of narcissistic attention on their tubs, taking care to highlight in a favorite color, to ensure that each folder contains a certain number of articles, or to resolve to file for a certain number of hours each day? Granted, such habits may be the honest manifestations of the quest for excellence: order, method, clarity, and daily attention to the headlines are essential; and a committed extemper is by all means entitled to customize the portable library on which he perpetually relies. But extempers, as a whole, devote too much time and attention to the files, striving to meet some self-imposed standard of aesthetic perfection as librarians rather than remaining focused on winning tournaments as public speakers.

Strategy: How to Write An Introduction

On September 9, 2008

by Jonathan Carter

Overview

Before you can really get going on the season, there are a few fundamental that are always worth noting. Many judges will tell you they can get a sense of where a speaker will place in the round within the first minute of the speech. To that end we are going to focus more on theory and strategy. In that vein we are going to start with analysis on how to write a quality introduction. In extemp, a good introduction is supremely important, without one a good speech is impossible. In a good intro you will set up all of the background for the speech and justify why you speech is the most important in the round. Moreover, the better the introduction the less work you have to do in the body of the speech. Follow this formula and your intros will be golden in no time flat.

Strategy: The Rhetorical Point

On June 17, 2008