Critical thinking is often a desired competency for graduates of a technology program. Organizational members have uttered concern about students' inability to think critically. Although traditional pedagogical techniques, such as lectures and examinations, center on knowledge acquisition, debates in the technology classroom can effectively…

When students encounter opposing beliefs in college classrooms, they can opt to remain apathetic, change perspectives, or defend their position. The process of integrating theories with personal beliefs is important to students' application of theories to their lives, and an involved instructor guides students in such applications. Communication…

The best way to develop a unique identity for the National Education Debate Association (NEDA) is to debate propositions distinct from National Debate Tournament (NDT) and the Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA). A neglected area of debate includes propositions temporally framed in the past. Yet, the present propositional categories of…

Current practice in competitive public-address events limits the value of the student's educational experience in several ways. The most frequently observed and easily addressed problem with contemporary practice is that event rules/descriptions do not indicate what judges expect to observe in those events. Unclear rules/descriptions are of little…

National Debate Tournament (NDT) policy debate is in a state of crisis, suffering a steady and precipitous drop in participation. This decline is due not to external factors, but rather to problems and abuses unique to NDT policy debate. Its demise reflects a much broader problem, the abrogation of intellectual leadership in the activity. Coaches…

"Debates in History Teaching" explores the major issues all history teachers encounter in their daily professional lives. It encourages critical reflection and aims to stimulate both novice and experienced teachers to think more deeply about their practice, and link research and evidence to what they have observed in schools. Written by a range of…

This paper discusses the history, format, implementation, and effectiveness of Student Congress, a legislative session where students debate state, national, or international issues. The first part of the paper discusses the history of the Student Congress in the United States, noting that as it has grown as a national event, its importance as a…

A study examined the beliefs and attitudes of students, coaches, and judges on the use of manuscripts at the college level in oral interpretation events (prose, drama, program oral interpretation, dramatic duo, and poetry). Survey data were collected from students, coach-judges, and hired judges participating in a Midwestern forensics tournament…

A survey of all 38 current members of the (newly formed) National Educational Debate Association investigated why these directors opted to drop their Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA) programs. Responses were received from 20 directors. The use of excessive speed in CEDA debate was mentioned as a reason for leaving CEDA by more of the…

It is possible for any forensics organization or other body to center its activity upon public debates. Academic institutions have done so and will continue to do so on the basis that audience debates constitute an appropriate training for citizenship in a democracy and for participation in the economic world. The public debate before real…

In recent years a new event called "Interpretation Analysis" has appeared at certain forensic events. The objective is for the student, through analysis and performance, to study a piece of literature and to communicate his or her understanding of that literature to a specific audience. Perhaps there is room within the established…

In the past decade, contest persuasive speaking has become a product that student competitors produce and perform. A perversion of the contest formula has removed the element of persuasion from the formula. Competition rules suggest that a student's purposes in participating in forensics events should include inspiring, reinforcing, or changing…

A study was conducted to develop a taxonomy of decision criteria employed by Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA) debate critics. Four hypothesis characteristics were tested: (1) audience-centered critics would have a higher proportion of presentational remarks than analytic-centered critics; (2) audience-centered critics would devote a…

A study investigated the use of source citations and evidence in the final round of Informative Speaking at the 1998 American Forensic Association-National Individual Events Tournament (AFA-NIET). The "AFA Code of Forensics Program and Forensics Tournament Standards for College and Universities" was the framework for the analysis.…

Digital Forensics is not just the recovery of data or information from computer systems and their networks. It is not a procedure that can be accomplished by software alone, and most important, it is not something that can be accomplished by other than a trained IT forensic professional. Digital Forensics is an emerging science and was developed…