Course Syllabus

Instructor:  Gina Lozano

Email: Gina.Lozano@hayscisd.net Website: www.haysspeechanddebate.com

School Phone: 512-268-2911 X46353 Cell Phone: 512-213-7795

About the Classes

Regardless of post-secondary education plans and career path, the ability to clearly, articulately and tactfully communicate with others is the most essential skill set anyone can develop.  The verbal communication cluster at Hays HIgh School includes the mandatory Professional Communications class as well as advanced competition classes in Debate, Public Speaking and Oral Interpretation.

Competitive Speech and Debate

Students who wish to further develop their communication skills by participating in Hays High School's nationally competitive speech and debate program are enrolled in one of three classes: Debate, Public Speaking or Oral Interpretation. Competitive classes are designed to advance student’s written and verbal communication skills far beyond the Professional Communications level, making them intellectually competitive with students from the most prestigious private and public institutions in Texas.  All three of the competitive speech and debate classes are taught by Gina Lozano, who also serves as the Director of Speech and Debate at Hays High School.

Students in Debate I will be exposed to a wide array of instructional units based loosely upon competitive speech and debate events.  The curriculum is designed to gradually develop writing ability, promote persuasive communication skills and enhance students’ skill at constructing logical, rhetorical and emotional appeals:

• Congressional Debate

• Extemporaneous Speaking

• World Schools Debate

• Public Forum Debate

• Informative Speaking

• Original Oratory

• Lincoln Douglas Debate

• Oral Interpretation

Students who continue on to Debate II and III will focus on Lincoln Douglas, Public Forum or World Schools Debate, while those who choose to focus on Extemporaneous Speaking or Student Congress will continue on to the Public Speaking class next.  All of these classes will count toward the Business and Industry endorsement.  Students who wish to focus on Informative Speaking, Oral Interpretation or Original Oratory will take the Oral Interpretation class next.

Assignments

Most of the assignments for this course are of a performative nature, and will be given in-person and completed during class time.  Students may choose to conduct research, read, watch performances online and write speeches at home to hone their skills and improve their readiness for competitions, but with judicious use of in-class time Debate I students should rarely have homework.  Students who will miss class for an extended time should talk with me ahead of time and I will provide them with alternative assignments to the performance-based in-class ones being completed by their classmates. 

Tournament participation is mandatory for students in Debate II and III, Oral Interpretation I, II and III and Public Speaking I, II and III.  Tournaments count as major grades; Debate I students are strongly encouraged to compete in tournaments but may opt to complete an alternate assignment if tournament participation is not feasible. Information about team competitions and travel can be found on the Hays Speech and Debate website:  www.haysspeechanddebate.com

Grading Policy

Because of the interactive nature of communication classes, one student's tardiness on assignments can put the whole class behind.  As such, we will adhere strictly to the Hays CISD grading guidelines.  Please take a few minutes to review the UPDATED DISTRICT GRADING POLICY.

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to maintain high standards of academic integrity by making honest, rigorous, and ethical decisions about their research and work, not only in speech and debate classes - in ALL of their classes.  Students are expected to adhere to the highest standards of academic integrity where their classwork is concerned.  Copying of another student’s work, discussing specific questions on quizzes or tests or producing writing assignments or projects that are not a student’s original work are all demonstrative of poor academic integrity, and none of these behaviors will be tolerated.

Technology

Speech and debate students will spend a considerable amount of time using technological resources at home as well as at school.  It is imperative that students bring their personal or district-furnished laptops, fully charged, to class every day.  Cell phones may not be used during instructional time unless they are being used for an assignment at the direction of the teacher.  As per district policy, cell phones seen outside of a student's backpack will be collected and sent to the office.  Parents can pick up the cell phone at the end of the day for a $10 fee.  Students who cannot use technology in a responsible manner will the assignment with a pencil and paper.  If the problem persists, parental and/or administrative involvement will be merited.

Tournament Participation

Tournament participation is mandatory for students in Debate II and III, Oral Interpretation I, II and III and Public Speaking I, II and III.  Tournaments count as major grades; Debate I students are strongly encouraged to compete in tournaments but may opt to complete an alternate assignment if tournament participation is not feasible. Participating in tournaments enriches the student’s learning experience and unlocks a world of opportunity to them. Most students who compete in speech and debate at Hays High School will graduate in the top ten percent, and receive numerous scholarship opportunities.  In addition, competitions encourage the student to develop confidence, self-discipline, independence, accountability for their choices and an ability to thrive under pressure.  Tournament schedules can be accessed on www.haysspeechanddebate.com.  Regular season tournament participation is free to students at Hays High School.  The only costs associated with the activity are the purchase of competition clothing (see the Handbook for more specific information) and meal money (typically $20 per weekend, although packing a lunch can defray costs.)  

Supply Lists

(Links are provided in some instances to give examples of what students need - they don't necessarily need the exact product in the link.)  SUPPLIES WILL BE TAKEN FOR A GRADE ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 24TH/THURSDAY, AUGUST 25th.