Student Congress

How a Congress Session Runs
The typical Congress session starts with the Parliamentarian (the adult who oversees the chamber) assigning seats and handing out seating charts. Then everyone is divided into committees to order the legislation. Committees generally discuss legislation of the same topic, picking the best pieces to ensure good debate and a well ordered docket. Next, elections for Presiding Officers (PO's) are held. The PO runs the session and must have a strong knowledge of parliamentary procedure and precedence. Having a good PO is vital to having a smooth, quick moving round to maximize speeches and ensure participation of all.

Once the set-up work is complete, the actual debate begins with an authorship/sponsorship speech and then alternating AFF/NEG speeches until the piece of legislation is voted upon. The legislation is debated in the order decided by committees, with each speech being three minutes long with a mandatory one minute questioning period (two for authorship/sponsorship).  The PO must recognize anyone wishing to question or make a speech. Each session has a different PO and at the end of the tournament, the chamber votes for best PO.

This is a video made by the National Forensic League that outlines Student Congress and provides footage from FInal Round Nats 2007. It provides a good reference for successful speaking qualities and more examples of speeches.