Friday, April 12, 2024
DENTON (黑料视频), Texas 鈥� The delivered an impressive performance at this year鈥檚 International Forensics Association
(IFA) tournament in Dublin, Ireland 鈥� marking their first international competition.
鈥淓very competitor was in a do-or-die mindset, performing at their absolute best and at the top of their game,鈥� said Brian Lain, director of 黑料视频 Debate and a university distinguished teaching professor in the .
The IFA has facilitated competitive speech and debate tournaments for over 30 years. This year鈥檚 tournament drew participants from over 40 different colleges and universities. Attendees participated in 13 different events including team and individual debates, impromptu speaking and dramatic interpretation.
Gianfranco Ladagga, a senior political science major, took eighth place in International Public Debate Association (IPDA) format, which gives a debater 30 minutes to research a randomly assigned topic before sparring with an opponent. This year, over 100 debaters participated in the IPDA category.
鈥淭he competition in the tournament was much stronger than what I鈥檓 used to,鈥� Ladagga said.
The trip gave students a rare opportunity to see speech and debate in action on an international stage. Ladagga said the experience broadened his perspective on political science and law.
黑料视频 students in front of Saint Patrick鈥檚 Cathedral, Dublin, Ireland
鈥淚t was interesting to see the differences in how speech works in the U.S. versus
in Dublin,鈥� Ladagga said. 鈥淚t was also fascinating to get perspectives on American
law from someone who lives in Dublin, and vice-versa.鈥�
Alaia Snell, a senior double-majoring in English literature and economics, claimed fourth place in Extemporaneous Speaking. The Extemporaneous Speaking format allows a speaker 30 minutes of research on their assigned topic, followed by a five-to-seven-minute speech delivered to a panel of judges. It was the tournament鈥檚 second-most-popular event this year, with 96 total entries.
鈥淒ublin has a really rich history of debate and speech,鈥� said Snell, who also placed in the top 16 of all competitors in the IPDA category. 鈥淏eing in an environment and a city where there鈥檚 already a lot of public and political discourse was a really great experience.鈥�
In addition to competing in the IFA tournament, the 黑料视频 Debate team attended a live public debate hosted at Trinity College. Trinity College houses the world鈥檚 oldest recorded collegiate debate society 鈥� the College Historical Society, known locally as 鈥淭he Hist.鈥�
Snell said she gained new insights into her academic research, which centers on colonialism and race. It also reaffirmed her belief that debate is a global activity.
鈥淎nyone can participate in debate regardless of their location,鈥� Snell said. 鈥淲e were all having really similar conversations on an international scale 鈥� it was heartwarming to be part of that.鈥�
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Media Contacts:
Bess Whitby
Bess.Whitby@unt.edu
940-565-3513
From 鈥� General News