Oh come, all ye debaters, eager and competitive, to the 15th
Annual Golden Gnome Debate Tournament...
The focus of the Gnome this year will be on the cheer and goodwill of Christmas,
both serious and silly. Topics may revolve around consumerism or candy canes, but will
assuredly be seasonal.
As well as the customary rounds of debate Saturday (Jr. Cross X in the morning
and national style in the afternoon and Sr. national all day), there will be a new event
introduced to this year’s Gnome.
For those schools who can make it here for Friday evening we will be hosting a
mini speech tournament. Starting at 6 pm we will host and judge a single round of either
after dinner speeches or persuasive speeches at the school. The rules and timing to follow
– but will run using the same guidelines as the end of year speech competitions many of
us are familiar with. After we have tabulated the results – while you munch on a cookie
or two – we will all be heading to the Oak Bay Rec center (right behind the school) where
the top two juniors and seniors from each of these categories will redo their speeches for
all of us, as well as parents, friends and neighbors who might drop in. It is here that we
will determine – by ballots who the mini gnome winners will be. Following the speeches,
there will be an opportunity for everyone to have a free skate (although skates rented will
not be paid for). At 9:15 the skate will end. We hope that this might provide an
opportunity for some of you to meet with each other, test some new skills, and even have
a bit of fun.
As always the morning rounds will be loosely seated – from coaches assessments
– re novice, new, experienced, and the afternoon more seriously seated for the seniors
who will be in a tournament format to determine who will be in the final show debate
where the winners of the ultimate golden prize will de declared by a popular standing
vote.
Because we will be hosting the Friday event, we will be skipping the impromptu
speaking this year, which hopefully will also allow for an earlier exit for our ferry bound
teams.
In the hopes of making the day easier for our volunteer judges, a judging package
and timing sheets will be coming by the end of the week. This package must be provided
to your school’s judges at least one week before the tournament. Not only will this help
the judges feel prepared for their task, it will also make the day’s events easier for our
organizers.
Please provide approximate numbers to Tim Bradshaw at tbradshaw@sd61.bc.ca
by November 19th. Our expectation is that you will provide one judge per every two
debaters (exceptions made for out of town clubs, where one judge per four debaters will
be accepted). We would prefer to limit the number of Debaters per school to 12 (any mix
of Jr/Sr). If however, you are able to provide extra judges, we will take up to a maximum
of 18. If you are bringing more than 12 Debaters and are from Victoria, you will need to
provide an additional judge per every additional debater. Out of town clubs will need to
provide an extra judge for every 2 additional debaters.
Example:
Debaters (In Town)
12
14
18
Judges
6
8
12
Debaters (Out of Town)
12
14
18
Judges
3
4
8
Registration Deadline is November 26, after which point the clubs are
responsible for paying the full registration fee ($20.00/debater) for debaters who do not
show (Catering Costs are set and are too much for the Oak Bay Debate Club to cover
without Tournament Fees).
We anticipate this year’s Gnome will be an enjoyable and festive experience, and
look forward to having you with us.
Finally, all Saturday rounds will be impromptu with there being one morning and one
afternoon resolution – with the exception of a few senior teams (because of the
tournament format) – it is expected that you will be proposition once and opposition
once.
Thank you,
Looking forward to seeing all of you again,
Oak Bay Speech and Debate Club