Speech team gets ready for event

The Cal State Long Beach speech and debate team is preparing for its biggest event of the semester, the Regional Fall Championship Tournament Dec. 7 at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut.

The event, hosted by the Pacific Southwest Collegiate Forensic Association, attracts as many as 45 competing colleges.

CSULB has hosted the event for the past three years and took third place overall in the 1995 tournament.

The team is preparing for the tournament by practicing at other tournaments.

CSULB members performing in individual events have brought home many first, second and third-place trophies, according to team member Angela Aguayo.

Aguayo said the benefits she has gained since joining the team have been overwhelming. Her former B average is now an A she said.

She attributed the grade change to the speech and debate team and said it has helped her with critical thinking in other classes.

"Debate picked me up where my undergraduate education left off," she said.

"The team has challenged my fundamental belief system because it forces me to engage both sides of the argument," she said. "I can come to some sort of consensus on issues with other people."

While the team prepares for its big event, team members are learning what teamwork is all about, said CSULB professor and Forensics Director Matt Taylor.

Depending on the amount of units taken, debating can be hard work and required dedication. But it's also a fun way to acquire educational skills such as reading writing and critical thinking, Taylor said.

Another benefit includes a social element, as members are able to travel and meet as many as 400 college students, at their tournaments, Taylor said.

The CSULB team is involved with two activities. The individual events make up the speech portion and involve exercises like extemporaneous or dramatic speaking.

The debate team uses argumentation and cross-examination for or against an issue or current event. Many of the events are pre-written and rehearsed throughout the semester.

According to Taylor, the team's success is evident. He measures its success by the increase in numbers of graduate students in the speech department.

"We have shown that we can provide students an opportunity to go out and do something with their education in a competitive, academic environment," he said.

Current members come from a wide variety of majors and help make the team diverse, although speech and speech- communication majors make up most of the team.

The team may appeal to students who need to learn how to give speeches or speak in front of an audience.

Others may appreciate the opportunity to sharpen their acquired speech or debate skills.

"About 80 percent of the members in Congress, most CEOs, and huge numbers of attorneys and college professors were involved in speech and debate in high school or college," Taylor said.

Any CSULB student interested in the speech and debate team may call Taylor at the forensics department at (310) 985-4340.