The Atlanta Urban Debate League is committed to providing excellent debate education programs, services, and opportunities to diverse students, educators, and members of the community!
AUDL Judging - Frequently Asked Questions
I’ve never debated or judged before. Am I qualified to do this?
Anyone who is able to read, write, and listen can be a great judge at an AUDL tournament.
Why am I being asked to judge?
Every school competing at a tournament has an obligation to bring judges based on the number of teams registered to debate. The number of judges a school is expected to bring is based on the minimum number of judges required to allow all registered teams to debate. By giving your time as a judge, you help your student(s) and their debate program be eligible to participate.
Many other speech and debate tournaments charge fees for registration and to hire experienced judges if the school does not bring enough. We do not require judges to have debate experience or charge per-tournament fees to keep our programming accessible to as many programs as possible. Having schools bring parents, alumni, and other volunteer judges helps us keep costs down for everyone.
How long is the commitment? How many rounds will I have to judge?
The judging commitment is for the duration of the one-day tournament (up to 2 rounds for elementary tournaments; up to 4 rounds for middle and high school tournaments). You should plan to stay until at least 12:30 PM for elementary tournaments and 3:30 PM for middle and high school tournaments.
While the judging commitment is for the entirety of the tournament, everyone in the judge pool will not necessarily have to judge during every round. How much people will have to judge depends on factors such as how many judges are available and which rounds someone is eligible to judge based on school affiliation and experience level. The more available judges there are, the more likely it is that people will have rounds off.
Will I be the only judge in the room? What will happen if I mess something up?
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One team said the other is breaking the rules or making arguments that aren’t allowed. What should I do?
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Am I supposed to tell the debaters who won at the end of the round?
How much feedback do I have to give on the ballot?
How are people chosen to judge each round?
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Am I allowed to watch debates if I’m judging for the day?
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Can I have rounds off to watch my student(s) or shadow another judge?
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The schedule says the next round won’t happen for a while. Why am I being asked to start sooner than that?
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What should I do if I have other questions?
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