Five Rules to Follow

Plan and practice.

Before you begin a debate, you should know which of your arguments you will extend to the Second Half. You develop a plan given the strengths and weaknesses of your in-case arguments, your Framework, and possible competing arguments. Your best arguments should be highlighted in the Second Half. Planning, however, does not mean you write out your Summary or Final Focus speech before the round. A pre-written speech would not reflect the actual debate, only what you expected to occur. Rather, your plan should be an outline of ideas you want to address. This plan should be adapted if your arguments do not work out as planned.

What you can practice and plan is the structure of these speeches. Models will be discussed in the following section. These are the best way to structure Summary and Final Focus. You can also practice explaining your arguments in the big picture and comparing them to opposing arguments. Practice in practice debates. Practice with made up opposing arguments. No excellent Summary or Final Focus is wholly impromptu. Excellent Second Half speeches rely on pre-debate preparation and adaptation during the round.

Use repetitive language.

The Second Half should build off of the first half, not just in ideas, but in the language you use. Continue to use words, phrases, images, and examples you presented in the First Half. This provides continuity in your argumentation, but moreover, is more persuasive than bringing in new rhetoric. This is not to say you should not use new rhetoric. Your Second Half should build off of, not repeat, the First Half.

Summary and Final Focus should use similar structures, rhetoric, and analysis. Think of the two puzzle pieces that fit together to make a larger image.  The judge should receive a cohesive and persuasive message from the two speeches. All too often the Final Focus presents an entirely new perspective on the debate; this is too late in the round to be successful.  Continue to bring each speech into the preexisting debate rather than framing a new take on the round.

Briefly refer to evidence.

Sparingly introduce new evidence into the Summary sparingly and never enter the Final Focus. These speeches should never center on evidence. Even if there has been a contested debate about a key study or source, the big picture of the debate and the judge’s vote most likely will not rest on this one issue. Briefly refer to any evidence. Do not re-explain evidence unless it has been muddied up by your opponents or is crucial to winning a central argument. Always mention evidence and then explain its importance to the resolution and round overall.

Be highly organized.

Organization requires signposting, transitional language, labeling arguments, and keeping the judge on track. The Second Half requires a high level of organization because it is not simply a reiteration of what has been heard. Summary and Final Focus strategically structure the debate to present the judge voting issues.

In general, you want to refer to arguments by their tagline at this point of the debate, not their number. We are pulling away from line-by-line analysis and therefore should be discussing the ideas and not the “points”. The judge needs to be reminded of the substance of the arguments, not their order in the case. You also want to make sure the first and last thing you discuss are your case. This primes the judge to see your arguments more prominently. This means you must discuss and emphasize your arguments in the Second Half. Word economy is also crucial. Cut out weighty phrases like “My opponents say.” Don’t refer to every evolution of an argument. Summarize what has been said. Be direct, absolute, and unwavering in your rhetoric and tone.

Framework should be front and center

in the Second Half. These speeches are all about perspective, therefore your perspective on the resolution. Focusing on the impacts and consequences of your arguments and not the claims. Any arguments that involved turns should also be emphasized; because turns are introduced in Rebuttal, you should solidify these arguments in Summary.