The Berlin High School Speech team, formerly known as Forensics, competed in their sub-districts competition on Feb. 9, in which all members reached the scores required to move on to the district competition.
“We actually don’t call it Forensics anymore because people think that it’s like a CSI-type thing. We just call it Speech. But you can give speeches that you’ve written, you can perform memorized monologues, or small group acts, or you can do interpretive reading,” Head Coach Dr. Angela Femali said.
Because there are many categories to compete in, the preparation required for the event looks different for members. Sophomore Eva Vang, who performed in the Moments in History section, focused on Catherine the Great and spent her preparation time gathering information.
“I went online and then researched as much as I could about her (Catherine the Great). Then, I went through a document, and I just put down as many notes as I could about what stuck out, and the important things about what I think should be in my speech,” Vang said.
When competing in this category, it takes days if not weeks of preparation to be ready to perform.
“It took me, maybe a month or two on top of other school work that I have to do. So it’s a bit spread out,” Vang said.
Although, some competitors are not given time to prepare. Those who perform in the impromptu category have to speak on the fly.
“I can’t really prepare, unfortunately. I can’t practice my speeches and stuff because I have to write them within a five minute timeframe,” sophomore Ewan Steffan said.
There are many reasons to join a club. For some it is simply because they enjoy the concept.
“I joined it (Speech) because I was interested in doing public speaking in front of people, getting confidence, talking about subjects, and memorizing things in front of an audience,” Vang said.
For others, the idea of what it can do for their future is more enticing.
“I thought that it would look good on college applications and things like that. It’s overall just a good skill to have,” Steffan said.
The expectations of the participating students are similar to other clubs and sports.
“I expect them to have fun, to put in some practice, and to be prepared. I expect them to do their best,” Femali said.
Public speaking can appear at any point in a person’s life, as those on the Speech team have come to understand.
“A lot of people don’t realize how much speaking they are actually going to do. It gives you confidence in it. If nothing else, it builds character,” Femali said.
