Introduction

Welcome

Welcome to the new and improved Montville Forensics website from 2009-2010. 

Updates 

Congrats Montville, Wonderful Job!

 

Congrats Everyone, and Let's work hard towards Harvard!

 

Forensics? That's like that TV show, CSI!

Sorry, no. Forensics is an extracurricular activity based on public speaking. Tournaments are held almost every Saturday throughout the school year, and students can compete in a variety of categories. The categories that individuals can compete in are separated into "speech" categories and "debate" categories. Speech categories are much more performance oriented, whilst debate categories are based on argumentation and discourse. Competitors do not have to be confined to either one however, and can compete in both speech and debate, and any of their subsequent categories.

So, who should I talk to?

If you have any questions, feel free to come to the meetings held every Thursday throughout the school year in room 301 during lunch.

Schedule

Last updated: November 22, 2009.

NJFL/Northeastern Regional/National tournament schedule
*Please note the schedule is now divided by League

New Jersey Forensic League Tournaments

Date	Location	Events	Notes
31 Oct 2009	Hanover Park I - NJFL	Speech, LD, PF
14 Nov 2009	Randolph NJFL	Speech, LD, PF
21 Nov 2009	Montville NJFL	Speech, Novice LD, PF
11 - 12 Dec 2009	The Ridge Debates	V/N LD; V/N CX; PF; Congress
12 Dec 2009	Bridgewater-Raritan NJFL	Speech, PF, Congress
19 Dec 2009	Phillipsburg NJFL	Speech, LD, PF
8 - 9 Jan 2010	Crossroads of the Revolution II @ ALJ	V/N LD; V/N PF; V/N CX; Congress
9 Jan 2010	Hanover Park II NJFL	Speech, LD, PF
16 Jan 2010	Freehold Twp. HS NJFL	Speech, LD, PF
29 - 30 Jan 2010	Newark (Pending)	LD/CX
30 Jan 2010	Ridge Invitational NJFL	Speech, LD, PF
5 - 6 Feb 2010	Newark Science	CX/LD
6 Feb 2010	ALJ NJFL	All exc. CX
20 Feb 2010	Morristown NJFL (and District Congress)	Speech, LD, PF
27 Feb 2010	Borelli @ Central HS, Newark NJFL	Speech, LD, PF
5 - 6 Mar 2010	NJFL State Championships @ Ridge	All
13 Mar 2010	NJFL Novice State Championships @ Montville	LD, PF, Speech	SAT
26 - 27 Mar 2010	NJ District Tournament/NFL @ Summit	NFL Events exc. Congress
13 - 19 Jun 2010	NFL Nationals in Kansas City, MO	All

Northeastern Regional Tournaments

Date	Location	Events	Notes
9 - 10 Oct 2009	Monticello	V/N LD; V/JV CX; PF	Col. Day; SAT
16 - 18 Oct 2009	New York City Invitational @ Bronx Science	VLD, VCX, VPF, Congress
13 - 14 Nov 2009	Bump Memorial at Hen Hud, Montrose, NY	V/N LD; PF
20 - 22 Nov 2009	Villager at St. Joseph's, Philadelphia	Speech, LD, PF, Congress
5 - 6 Feb 2010	Scarsdale	V/N LD
26 - 27 Feb 2010	Lakeland	LD/CX/PF
12 - 13 Mar 2010	Byram Hills	LD/PF/CX	SAT
16 - 17 or 23 - 24 Apr 2010	Northeastern Championships @ TBD	LD/CX/PF

New Jersey Catholic Forensic League Tournaments

Date	Location	Events	Notes
24 Oct 2009	CFL 1 @ Union Catholic	All exc. CX
14 Nov 2009	CFL 2 @ Montville	All exc. CX
19 Dec 2009	CFL 3 @ TBA	All exc. CX
16 Jan 2010	CFL 4 @ Montville	All exc. CX
27 Feb 2010	CFL 5 @ Ridge	All exc. CX
20 Mar 2010	CFL 6 @ Union Catholic	All exc. CX
28 - 30 May 2010	CFL Grand Nationals in Omaha, NE	All exc. CX

NFL National Circuit

Date	Location	Events	Notes
11 - 13 Sept 2009	Wake Forest University	All
2 - 4 Oct 2009	Yale University	All
30 - 31 Oct 2009	Manchester, MA	V/N LD; CX; PF
6 - 8 Nov 2009	Minneapple, Apple Valley, MN	V/JV/N LD	NJEA, SAT
20 - 23 Nov 2009	Glenbrooks	All
4 - 6 Dec 2009	Princeton University -- New Jersey plan offered for IE on Saturday	V/N LD; PF; NFL Speech; Congress	SAT
4 - 6 Dec 2009	George Mason University, Fairfax, VA	Speech/PF/Congress
18 - 20 Dec 2009	The Blake School, MN	CX/LD/PF
15 - 17 Jan 2010	Lexington, MA	V/N LD; CX; PF
22 - 24 Jan 2010	Columbia University	All	SAT
29 - 31 Jan 2010	Emory	LD/CX/PF: some speech
12 - 14 Feb 2010	U. Penn	All exc. CX
12 - 15 Feb 2010	Harvard University	All
30 Apr - 3 May 2010	TOC in Lexington, KY	CX/PF/LD/Congress
13 - 19 Jun 2010	NFL Nationals in Kansas City, MO	All

Debate

Here you'll find a descrption of the various debate categories one can participate in.

Lincoln Douglas Debate

LD debate is a individual debate where competitors debate over a resolution arguing either the affirmative or negative position. Case constructive typically include factual as well as hypothetical evidence dealing with philosophical as well as ethical/moral dilemmas. The resolution changes every two months, requiring new cases to be written.

Round breakdown: Your total prep time is generally three (3) minutes per person, but is tournament-dependant.

Affirmative Constructive (AC)	6 minutes
Negative cross-examination (CX)	3 minutes
Negative Constructive (NC)	7 minutes
Affirmative CX	3 minutes
Affirmative first rebuttal (1AR)	4 minutes
Negative first rebuttal (NR)	6 minutes
Affirmative second rebuttal (2AR)	3 minutes

Public Forum Debate

Public Forum Debate is a recently created event that is very similar to the TV show "crossfire". Teams of two people use evidence and effective communication to persuade everyday people on current event issues. The topic is a current event issue which is changed every month.

Congress

Numerous students gather to participate in parliamentary debate. Legislation is prepared by the students in advance in the areas of Domestic, Economic, and Foreign Affairs. Students then debate and vote on the merits of the legislation presented.

Speech

Here you will find a description of the various speech categories one can participate in.

Original Oratory

This is the category for you writers out there! This is much like Dec, except you are writing your own speech! The subject matter is whatever you feel passionate about; something that you believe strongly in. It can be a personal issue, a worldly issue, a societal concern, anything you think you can make a case out of! Generally oratories begin with personal anecdotes, where the writer relates the subject matter to a personal experience. The piece should be the standard five paragraphs, with an opening, body, and closing. You should have three distinct points in the body of your piece that support your argument, including veritable facts and statistics. It should be 7-10 minutes in length, memorized. Oratories are judged on written content, as well as your delivery of the speech (articulation, gestures, eye contact, etc). There is a great deal of work that goes into writing an oratory, but if done correctly the rewards can be immense!

Poetry

Poetry reading is a category that many start out with. In this category you hold your piece(s) in front of you in a small, black, binder. No memorization is required, aside from a short introduction explaining your piece. You can either choose 5-10 minutes� worth of poems from the same author, or chose poems based on a constant theme. As with prose, this is not simply reading, there is a great deal of performing involved. This category can be as fun as you want it to be, just use your creativity and imagination!

Prose

Prose reading is a category that most start out with. In this category you hold your piece in front of you, in a small, black binder. No memorization is required, aside from a short introduction explaining the piece. The piece should be 5-10 minutes in length. Performers, do not be fooled, for this is not merely reading. When you �read� your piece, you act it out with motions, voices, and emotions, the same way that you would a monologue. You just don�t have to memorize ten minute�s worth of material!

Impromptu Speaking

This is a very challenging category for some, but for those who can think on their feet it is a perfect match. Once mastered, it can be a great deal of fun! The best part? It requires NO preparation/practice! For each round you enter a room, with your six other competitors. You will pick three topics (folded up in paper, so you can�t read them) out of the ones the judge offers you. These topics can be quotes, words, random phrases, etc, such as �The pen is blue,� �Smurfs,� �To be or not to be,� and �I hate my sister Maggie.� You will have seven minutes, which you can either split between four minutes of prep, three minutes of speech, or three minutes of prep, four minutes of speech. An organized such as that of an SAT Writing approach is strongly encouraged. During prep you can brainstorm either a scene, speech, etc, in which the phrase you have been given is clearly used. (You MUST say it in your speech/scene at least once) The key is to be as creative as possible, and have as little �dead air� as you can. When your prep time is up you will be asked to perform your skit/scene.

Humorous Interpretation

Humorous interpretation is just that- an interpretation of a humorous piece. Generally, forensics members chose scenes from plays, or books, with more than one character, though some people do perform the traditional one-character monologue. The piece should be 7-10 minutes, memorized. This is one of the most difficult categories, because of all the character �pops� that are involved (switching from one character to another), but once mastered it is a lot of fun. It is most closely related to...

Dramatic Interpretation

This category is just what it says it is- the interpretation of a dramatic piece, or monologue. It should be 7-10 minutes in length, memorized. The actor may perform either a monologue or dialogue, acting as one or more characters. The piece may be from a play or from a book. The subject matter is generally serious, making its name DI not very coincidental. This category is most closely related to Humorous Interpretation (see above).

Extemporaneous Speaking

Participants draw three topics on current issues; chooses one and have thirty minutes to prepare a speech of a maximum length of seven minutes. Any periodical or other published material is permitted in the preparation room.

Duo Interpretation

This is the only speech category, (aside from public forum, which is technically a speech category) that involves partners. This is much like HI/DI except you're not facing a group of people by yourself, but with another member! There are many types of duos out there; some where each partner is playing a variety of characters, others where each represents only one character. You can do a lot with this category in terms of choreography and movements. What you do with it depends on how much time and effort you are willing to give! The pieces are generally from plays, though they can be from books, and range from 7-10 minutes, memorized. *A special note: for CFL tournaments, each partner in duo may only play ONE character - making two characters total. Multiple character duos are not allowed.

Declamation Speaking

This is a good category for beginners, especially for those of you who want to participate in OO. In this category you are asked to perform a speech that has been previously given and published. You are asked to memorize the speech, which should be 7-10 minutes long. Generally you are judged on your articulation, gestures, and understanding of the piece. You should be able to connect with the subject matter, and demonstrate your understanding to the audience. It is good to find something that you yourself feel emotionally passionate about, because the more you believe in what you are saying, the more your audience will want to believe you!

Contact information

 

Click a name to e-mail that person.

Mary Gormley - Coach
Andrew Prescott - President
Dan Brenner - Vice President of Debate
Katherine Haugh - Vice President of Debate
Ruby Liu - Vice President of Speech
Anthony Giambra - Vice President of Outreach (Speech)
Demetra Sherwood - Vice President of Outreach (Debate)
Jennifer Bennett - Treasurer
Aakash Kapur - Secretary
Jade Scangarello - Historian
Kaitlyn Fitton - Public Relations
Sarah Weinflash - Freshman Mentor (Speech)
Eileen Ceconi - Freshmen Mentor (Debate)
Bryan Kayne - Webmaster

Edited by Bryan Kayne in Montville Forensics; � 2009.