NSDA CHALLENGE

2021 Online Middle School Speech Challenge Procedures

Please make sure that you and your child understand that for this tournament, they will not be allowed to represent GSA but will have to represent their school. This means you will be required to follow some additional steps BEFORE registering for this tournament. Please read the steps below along with any content you have to download before proceeding with registration. It would be recommended you complete these first steps before registering. Questions? email us at info@tgsastaff.com, nbudiman@tgsastaff.com or vrivasumana@tgsastaff.com.

Download and read email template and instructions. This will be the first steps that must be completed. Please make sure to include the Kline Advocacy letter in your final email to the principal/administration! (If hyperlinks don't work please check email that was sent with attachments).
You will most likely need to have a follow up conversation with the principal/admin to discuss the details of the event. Please make sure when you do that you let them know this happens over summer and that you are just asking to let your child compete under the school name and to make us temporary advisors as the NSDA has requested in order for us to register them. Should you end up running into any objections, let us know and we can try to figure out ways to overcome them but understand some may be unlikely to be persuaded. If they agree, they will need to send an email to the NSDA office using the instruction and information included in the email template.
Once you have received confirmation from the principal that the process has been completed, you are ready to finish registering. If you don't hear back from them, you can also try and follow up with us so we can see if the NSDA has received the information they requested to proceed.
Please proceed with following the rest of the instructions below to register once all steps above have been completed.

Eligibility

Students must have been in the fifth, sixth, seventh, or eighth grade during the 2020-2021 school year.
Entry Release Forms: It is your fundamental responsibility to sign the Entry Release Form for each competitor before May 29th. Failure to produce these forms may result in disqualification from competition.
Please note that electronic signatures are only permitted if all students participating from your school are ages 13 or over.
School Consent: Each coach must have school permission for students to compete, and all students must be registered under the school name of the institution they attend.

Tournament Procedure

The purpose of the Middle School Speech Challenge is to give middle school students a low-stress, enjoyable competition opportunity that can be done from their homes.
The tournament will not feature any live performances or live judging. All middle school events will be held with asynchronous recordings and asynchronous judging. The asynchronous model allows the NSDA to honor achievement while avoiding asking young competitors to solve technology and logistical issues on their own.
Judges will be assigned a series of preliminary rounds to judge at their leisure within a four-day window of time: June 7 - June 10.
Equity is a core value of the National Speech & Debate Association. We understand that many students and judges do not have equal access to the internet and technology. Judges will be instructed not to allow video/sound equipment quality, physical location, or other elements not in control of the individual students to affect their decisions.
Judges must have completed all judging assignments by 11:59 p.m. CT on June 10 to avoid school fines.
Students will not be present while judges are scoring the rounds.
Coaches will have access to judge feedback after the competition is adjudicated.
The top students in each middle school event will be named as National Middle School Showcase Finalists, and their recorded performances will be made available on the NSDA website as a resource and celebration.
The number of student performances showcased per event will depend on the entries in that event.

Participant Security
Participant security is a top priority for the organization. Tabroom.com abides by the NSDA Privacy Policy. Competitors’ recordings will only be accessible by tournament officials and judges assigned to adjudicate their rounds. Recordings will be made public on the NSDA website if a student reaches the showcase finals. We understand that security and privacy concerns are present among parents and school districts. We will do our best to accommodate these issues in some form and will strive to eliminate as many barriers as possible to participation in the Middle School Speech Challenge.

Tabroom.com

All events will use online ballots through Tabroom.com.
Every judge is required to have a linked Tabroom.com account before they are able to be entered as a judge in the tournament.
Judges must be able to log in to Tabroom.com to learn their judging assignments, view the student recordings, and complete their ballot.
Including valid contact information in the Tabroom.com account is important so tournament staff can attempt to reach judges prior to loss of judge bond.
Judges can sign up for text and email alerts from Tabroom.com by clicking “Profile” in the upper right corner of Tabroom and adding their phone number and cell provider. Make sure “Do not send me texts/emails” is NOT selected.

Dates and Deadlines

MAY 14: Registration, including entries, judges, forms, and payment, are due.
MAY 29: Recordings are due at 11.59 pm. Please send to Nadia before the deadline. Failure to do this will result in the tournament dropping you without refund.
JUNE 7: Judges will be assigned a series of preliminary rounds to judge, and all judging must be completed between June 7 and June 10. Judges will go to Tabroom.com, click “Start Round” on one of their round assignments, and watch the linked videos in order. The online ballot will require that judges rank the competitors in order. The ballot will also give judges the option to write a reason for decision (RFD) explaining their ranks, as well as the option to leave individual feedback for the competitors.
JUNE 10: The rounds may be judged at the judge’s leisure any time during the judging window, but they must be completed by June 10 at 11:59 p.m. CT to avoid school fines.
JUNE 13: Middle School Showcase Finalists will be announced

Judging Obligation

There is one speech judge pool. All judges are eligible to judge all events.
High school student judges must have been juniors or seniors in the 2020-2021 academic year. High school students must also have at least 250 Honor Society points to judge. High school students who meet these criteria can fulfill the judging obligation of a school. Rising juniors are not eligible to judge. If a judge does not complete their judging assignments by the deadline, they will lose their $400 judge bond.

Events

The following events will be offered: Declamation, Dramatic Interpretation, Humorous Interpretation, Informative Speaking (no visual aids permitted), Original Oratory, Prepared Mixed Extemporaneous Speaking, Prepared Prompt Speaking (revised Impromptu).
There are no entry limits in the Middle School Speech Challenge; students may enter as many events as they wish.
In Prepared Mixed Extemporaneous Speaking and Prepared Prompt Speaking (revised version of Impromptu), students will receive lists of 10 topics or prompts. They will pick one to speak on; then, they will record and submit their speech on that topic within the typical time limits of those events. Click here to view the prompts: https://www.speechanddebate.org/middle-school-speech-challenge-topics-2021/
Showcase videos from 2020 are available to members on our resource table as a reference point for our newer events.
Everyone in the Middle School Speech Challenge must save the original file of their performance (the file that they upload into a site to generate a link, like a Zoom file). Showcase Finalists will need to upload the original file to a Google form so we can showcase the performance on the NSDA website.

Informative Visual Aids
Visual aids will not be permitted in Informative Speaking at the online Middle School Speech Challenge in order to provide consistent best practices, minimize any technology issues, and standardize expectations across the event.

Speech Recording Rules

Recording links must be sent to Nadia by May 29.
Students may record their performance using any video recording site or software available to them (Zoom, Quicktime, camera or video app on a computer, etc.). Then, they will upload their recording to a site that creates a link to the video (YouTube, Google Drive, Vimeo, etc.).
Coaches will collect links to the students’ video recordings and copy/paste them into the student’s entry in their Nationals Tabroom.com registration.
Coaches and students should be mindful of privacy. These links will be accessible to judges and other students in the tournament. We recommend that coaches create a private team account to submit videos without students’ identifying information. For example, an “XYZ Speech Team” YouTube channel with unlisted videos or a Google drive account under the school’s name.
Coaches should double check that permissions on the video are appropriately set to allow anyone with the link to view it. After coaches paste the link in Tabroom, they should click the blue and white button to confirm that the link works.
Professional equipment enhancements may not be used. Professional equipment includes professional lighting kits, professional grade camera recording and audio devices, and softboxes. Students are welcome to film their recording on their school’s auditorium stage, but the use of stage lighting is not permitted. Lavalier microphones and ring lights are permitted.
Recordings may not be edited using any software; all submissions must be non-stop footage of the entire performance.
Students recording split-screen Duos may not record their performances separately and edit them together.
Students may not trim a recording, even to remove the seconds that they walk to and from the recording device to push start/stop.
The length of the recording must not exceed the time limit with the grace period.
Competitors may not use green screens, virtual backgrounds, or on-screen text.
The camera being used must remain stationary throughout the entire performance, and no zooming or panning is permitted.
The camera must remain on throughout the duration of the performance; a student may not turn off their video at any point during their recording.
The use of lighting tricks like shadow puppets are not permitted.
Students may move closer to and further from the camera to simulate zooming, though the camera must remain stationary.
Students may cover the camera with their hands or body.
Students may move out of frame during the recording.
Other individuals may be present while filming, but audience interaction (laughing, applause, etc.) must not be included in the performance.
Competitors may determine how close or distant the camera is set up in order to maximize both verbal and nonverbal communication.
If possible, it is recommended that students and judges remove items that may be distracting in the background. Backdrops of a solid color with no special markings may be used by competitors and judges.
Best practices for performance spaces and recording strategies can be found at www.speechanddebate.org/online-competition-tips.
Everyone in the Middle School Speech Challenge must save the original file of their performance (the file that they upload into a site to generate a link, like a Zoom file). Showcase Finalists will need to upload the original file to a Google form so we can showcase the performance on the NSDA website.

Participant Recognition
The top students in each event will be named as National Middle School Showcase Finalists, and their recorded performances will be made available as unjudged rounds on our website as a resource and celebration. Be sure to tune in to our live Opening Ceremony on Sunday, June 13 to see us announce middle school showcase finalists!

Coaches and parents can download editable participant certificates to print at home and commemorate the experience!

NSDA MIDDLE SCHOOL SPEECH CHALLENGE

7-12 June 2021

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