Often, composition teachers present public debate as if it occurs on a rhetorically level playing field, with victory going to the person who argues most logically. Real-world contestants are seldom so equal in power. We can enrich our pedagogy by studying such encounters; example: the 1263 disputation at Barcelona between Rabbi Nachmanides and…

The transition from school to work has been intensely examined by different disciplines. However, this transition has rarely been examined in relation to the experiences acquired by young people in their free time, from a longitudinal perspective. This article analyses the impact of one type of experience, membership in organisations, in the young…

Since the industrial revolution, technological innovation and the application of basic scientific research have transformed society. Increasingly, critical conversations and legislation regarding national and international public policy have sophisticated scientific underpinnings. It is crucial that we prepare scientists and engineers with an…

The author, a high school teacher and forensics coach, describes ways to teach writing--including on-demand essays--that draw on successful practices she developed in coaching. Students learn the importance of using personal conviction and qualified thesis statements to build arguments, as well as learning "The Debater Four-Step," an effective…

This article started as a debate between the two authors. Both authors present a series of propositions about quality standards in education research. Cook's propositions, as might be expected, not only concern the importance of experimental trials for establishing the security of causal evidence, but also include some important practical and…

This report is the final result of a six-year study of America's school finance system, including more than 30 separate studies at a cost of $6 million and involving an interdisciplinary team of more than 40 scholars including many of the country's best known economists, policy analysts, lawyers, and specialists in school finance, instruction,…

In an anecdotal style, this paper offers personal observations on moving from one forensic position to another. It draws on one forensic coach's experiences with five different kinds of programs, discussing in turn the comprehensive Ph.D. university, the graduate teaching assistant administered program, the graduate teaching assistant in a faculty…

This paper focuses on the performance evaluation, a tool extensively treated in the scholarly literature that allows managers and employees to gain shared understanding about workplace behavior. The paper maintains that in the forensic community, the performance evaluation interview can also be an effective forum in which coaches can give…

Intended for the young person who is interested in learning the fine points of debate, this handbook states that debate can influence people, sharpen the mind, and enhance a person's speaking abilities. The handbook covers a range of subjects of interest to the young debater--for example, (1) how debates are judged; (2) how to prepare for a…

A study determined differences in the use of critical listening in constructive and rebuttal speeches during intercollegiate debate tournaments. A self-developed survey instrument was completed by 18 subjects preceding a randomly assigned round at the 15th National Junior Division Debate Tournament. Following completion of the instruments they…

Since there is virtually no legal ground protecting coaches who give help and advice to students, coaches must be willing to weigh the consequences of their actions. Confidentiality is a sticky issue in the university setting because "privileged communication," a formal legal confidentiality applying to priests, lawyers, and physicians,…

The question of what variables affect success in debate has long been an area of interest and concern in the forensic community. For many years, it was thought that traditional performance variables--delivery, reasoning, organization, analysis, refutation and use of evidence--were the key factors influencing evaluations of debaters. Some…

Claiming that discourse has atrophied in a social climate that provides little space for reasoned discussion of vital issues, this paper explores the role the general education course in public speaking has played in the past and the role this course could play in the future in the restoration of public space. Divided into three focused sections,…

This paper addresses the question whether or not forensics is a cult. The paper states that forensics can be compared to the criteria listed on the "Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry Homepage" which says that a cult is a group that is unorthodox, esoteric, and has devotion to a person, object, or new set of ideas. In keeping…

A study investigated the personal and career choices that motivate an educator's departure from active involvement in forensics activities, and what trends, if any, exist concerning what former directors do in place of forensics. The study also investigated how forensics participation as a coach/director impacted on the individual, and what…