Last Updated: January 14, 2025

What should I expect while judging a speech round?

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League Policies

  1. We try to run a tight schedule!

    • Speakers will arrive precisely at their designated time, so please be in the room and ready before the first scheduled speaker.
    • The Head Judge will keep the round moving.

    You’ll want to take notes.

    • You will be able to make notes for each competitor in the electronic ballot between speeches and/or take notes on paper.
    • Students love your feedback, so please use the comments sections to write notes on your thoughts for each competitor.

    There are a few things to know about completing ballots.

    • Competitors will announce their speech times, and you will need to record the time and mark the Timer Issue box if instructed to do so by the Head Judge.
    • If your ballots have a checkbox to indicate that a student used a script, you will want to check it if they used one.
    • You will want to rank students according to your preference. You can find more information how to rank competitors here.
    • At the end of the round, you will want to confirm your ranking (placings) for students.
    • Submitted rankings are final, and the rankings (not category scores) determine placing in the tournament.