Getting Started On Extemp

[4n6cator9393]

My school has never done extemporaneous speaking before, and I wanted to know what kind of things I would need to get new members at my school started. Such as: techniques for prepping 7 min speech, what sources to bring, tips for memorizing sources etc. Any suggestions are welcome.

[Vaeliant]

Extemp essentially requires two elements: analysis through comprehension of current events and speaking ability.

I think the best way to address and teach analysis is by getting your novices to work on tubs. Tubs are essentially boxes of articles and various types of information that can be used to answer the question. I'm not going to list any sources, just because there's a really good list on this forum (I think). I'd recommend splitting up the sources (in whatever way works best), and getting each novice to focus on a set of articles each week. Printing and highlighting works best in my opinion. They'll learn everytime they read an article. Get them to develop a filing system, so they know their tubs.

Speaking wise, I'd say that the best way to teach is to get them to give speeches (don't have to be complete ones at first), maybe in front of congress competitors? They may be the closest to extemp, and the best critiquers. Just giving a speech or two a day with critiques will teach them a lot. Impromptu speeches may also help with speaking style.

I'm not sure if I've been clear, just because I'm sleepy, but I'll check again tomorrow. >_>.

[GTdabaiterrr]

Well,

1) I agree/know that tubs are necessary. Printing articles and highlighting the important parts of them is certainly a tool that can be used. This breeds familiarity with the contents of the articles and therefore also the contents of the tubs. What our team does, which has been effective for the most part (at least with the people who regularly do this), is turn in a bunch of articles on certain areas of the news. For instance, I was given the topic of Africa, and I printed out 30ish articles a week, depending on the news, on the situations in Africa. So, divvying up the topics into subject areas or regions of the world is pretty effective on covering areas. Also, with the tubs, I've noticed that filing the articles goes a long way with breeding more familiarity. Even if you didn't print the article, if you file it, you remember and know you have it. However, I have one point of disagreement with Vaeliant: I don't just let the novices tool the tubs. Not only does that mean that I would have less familiarity with what is in the tubs, but also, there are certain articles that are hard to file, such as articles that touch on several countries at one time, or deal with several political leaders, etc. and therefore filing it requires thought and pragmatic approaches.

2)Practice speeches are a must. To me, I give them to my coach, or another varsity level extemper. I guess that Congress people are good for extemp [so many of them do extemp anyway], but I find that anyone who has experience with extemp format or making logical arguments can adequately tell you what to do on that front, and also help you with presentation. It's fairly obvious that you shouldn't rock your feet, do strange hand motions, etc. and anyone can help you with that. I mean, I do LD, and am perfectly suitable to judge/do extemp. So, just get anyone who is willing/has experience. You certainly won't be getting experienced judges 100% of the time, so you certainly need to learn how to give a good speech for anyone.

3)Preparing speeches isn't hard. What I personally do:
bring a timer (but don't push the buttons a bajillion times. that's a good way to make people angry.) Use the timer to make sure your speech is under seven minutes. But, first, prep your speech. I use about 15-20 minutes writing/prepping the speech and researching points. I use that last 10-15 minutes either rewriting the introduction, or practicing the speech itself. Fluency is key in extemp, so practicing it under your breath (which is all you're allowed in draw) at least gets the words out in an appropriate order. After having found the good intro, i time my speech to ensure that i don't get DQ'd. And usually, draw for me is done after that. You just need to get your points efficiently and effectively done quickly so you have time to practice. Walking around the room is perfectly suitable so long as you aren't disruptive.

4) Sources: there are any number of good sources. And there are EXCELLENT sources out there. If you have the opportunity, research from sources such as Foreign Policy, the Economist, etc. Keep a diverse collection of sources, so that you aren't just going to the same ones. A speech with several diverse but well applied sources does very well for you. Sources such as Times/Newsweek are always good, but make sure you get some more substantive sources, too, such as the aforementioned. I tend to really like the BBC. A lot. I'm not quite sure why though. I do tend to like the Brits.

5) Memorizing sources just takes time and focus. I don't have any short-cuts for that. You just DO. Kind of like Nike. But less athletic.

6) We, as a team, enjoy having what we call extemp round tables before any given tournament. We talk about the major issues/elections going on within the world, each of us presenting some to the team. It briefs everyone and we share about whether or not we have adequate sources in the tubs (if not, GET MORE.) and talk about possible topics of discussion. It's helpful.

So that's what I have. I'm open to any other questions.

[tis4tara]

[QUOTE=GTdabaiterrr;124396]c



4) Sources: there are any number of good sources. And there are EXCELLENT sources out there. If you have the opportunity, research from sources such as Foreign Policy, the Economist, etc. Keep a diverse collection of sources, so that you aren't just going to the same ones. A speech with several diverse but well applied sources does very well for you. Sources such as Times/Newsweek are always good, but make sure you get some more substantive sources, too, such as the aforementioned. I tend to really like the BBC. A lot. I'm not quite sure why though. I do tend to like the Brits.


I agree that you need sources, and anyone would. I disagree on which sources to use. I would never use Time, Newsweek, local newspapers unless there was nothing left . Try to look at newspapers like The Guardian, The New York Times, Washington Post, etc. When i cut- i try to find sources from a myraid of different nations so when i have a topic on russia for example i use some russian sources, and keep everything close. and you should ALWAYS have the economist avaliable.

I also disagree that freshmen should be the only ones to work on the tubs. I have my novices cut- but i check each article and we all file. I do my own cutting before major tournaments as well. It forces you to know what you have - which makes choosing the correct question 10x easier

[SageShadows]

Hey, I had to upstart our team's extemp program, and with minimal help. I think I can offer a few tips.
1) Evidence's important! You can either subscribe to magazines and whatnot, or do what our team does and print straight from the internet.
Some good sources that we use are: Time, Christian Science Monitor, New York Times, Foreign Affairs, Economist, Los Angeles Times, Foreign Times, Newsweek, BBC, USA Today, US News, CNN, and the Washington Post. Since our entire squad does NX, we're heavy on the national news. However, there's a great link with some great sources.
If you plan on printing exclusively, get some cheap ink off of eBay or refill your own cartiliges. Furthermore, remember to print on draft and buy cartons of paper (I go for the 10 reams of paper a purchase).
2) Filing system. Each team does things a bit differently. You could buy hanging files and put in the category, then file it. Personally, our team has an index, and we number our files. That way, we can just refer to the index, figure out what number files we need, and look there. If you want to see a copy, I can send it to you. Just give me a PM.
Furthermore, when you file, do it as well! Don't force novices to do it, because you need to know where things are (and hopefully not misplaced!)
3) Information wise, it's just a lot easier to do a lot of tournaments, because you know what you need. Staying in the loop is easier once you're IN the loop, so that needs a bit of time. You should read your articles. Personally, we don't highlight, but I can see the merits in doing so.
4) Speaking style's a bit more practice, practice, practice. An extemp isn't that hard to write. Just answer the question and have three supporting points like any essay. You should use 6 sources at the minimum (but remember, quality over quantity!) If it's too hard, start off with less (1 per point would work and then work up). Memorizing sources is just something you get used to, and lots of practice speeches work out.

If I repeated anything, sorry about that! XD
And if you need any help, feel free to PM me.
By the way, are you interested in Foreign or National extemp, or does your state combine them?

[GTdabaiterrr]

In response to tis4tara;
I agree. I typically only use Times/Newsweek when I have to. But, my point was that they're easily accessible and can be used for news/background. I agree with the entirety of your sources point. In fact, the use of foreign articles/good articles from the US are far preferable to any Times/Newsweek articles.

[Vaeliant]

This is really late, but I haven't been on FOL in ages.

Just clearing stuff up, I agree with all of you guys in that tubs need to be worked on by everyone. The novices familiarizing themselves with the tubs is paramount imo, at least in the first few months. but just letting them file for you without supervision is going to cause problems. Eg:
Emory:
"OSHT. WHERE'S IRAN? SHIIT. SHIIT. SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT."

If you have the resources though, subscribe to the Economist and Foreign Policy. They're unbelievably helpful / my favorite sources by far.