How much weekly time will my student spend preparing for speech and/or debate?
The answer to this question varies. For Speech Class – see above. For Speech Tournaments – depending on what IE categories the students are participating in, they will need to spend time locating selections and/or writing their speeches and memorizing them. On the average, this can take anywhere from 5-10 hours in the beginning. Once selections are found, written, and prepared for presentation, preparation time drops. Often the same selection(s) is used for several tournaments throughout the year, as the student continues to work on presentation style and the strengthening of content. Participating in practice tournaments can serve to encourage and sharpen the writing/speaking skills of the student. It is a great format for practicing the skills they learn in the club. For Debate – The resolution for the NCFCA league comes out sometime in early summer. Most students will begin reading and researching the topic to build their understanding of it. Optimally, they could spend about 5-6 ho
