Linscheid Library Blog

Student Spotlight: Ruth Herman

Main take-away: Debate combines research, reasoning and speaking skills that are applicable to many career options!

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Student Spotlight- Ruth Herman. Ruth is a double major in Services to the Deaf and Political Science. She is a member of Tiger Speech & Debate and recently placed in 3 debate tournaments, including 1st place speaker in the Oklahoma Interstate Forensics Association Tournament.

There are many different types of debate that vary on:

• Team or individual
• Allowance of interruptions and questions
• Time to prepare
• Emphasis on evidence or logic

Ruth recently competed in IPDA (International Public Debate Association) style, which only gives 30 minutes to prepare a case on a given topic. 

A topic may be about any current event or other idea. After receiving a topic, Ruth prepares by defining terms, determining arguments (economics, morality, human rights, etc.), avoiding restrictive language like "only" or "always", and prioritizing 1-4 points to argue. Between competitions, Ruth prepares by writing practice cases, improving her public speaking skills, learning different philosophies, and keeping up with current events. She says knowledge of different philosophies and how to research is a must!

Ruth will compete at the IPDA National Tournament in Louisiana in April. She plans to help grow the Tiger Speech and Debate student organization. She says, "We want to invest in students regardless of whether they compete because debate is a skills. And it's fun!" She is considering law school and plans to use her speaking skills to impact change regardless of her career. 

To learn more about Tiger Speech & Debate, contact Donna Graves at dgraves@ecok.edu (opens a new tab). Whether you debate or not, become an informed citizen with library resources! Visit library.ecok.edu (opens a new tab).