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What is Forensics?

What is forensics? The term "forensics" literally translates to "the study of evidence".  Because Speech and Debate competitors' speeches are comprised of and/supported by a variety of different resources, the Speech and Debate community often calls this activity "forensics". The students and coaches of Speech and Debate/Forensics Teams travel to an array of college campuses and participate in tournaments where all of these speeches are performed. Forensics is a challenging and demanding extra-curricular activity that provides students with the opportunities to compete in several different speech categories including, public address, debate, and oral interpretation (See Event Descriptions).  

There are several reasons why students would and do compete for Speech and Debate Teams. First, a number of our students are interested in and applying for law schools within their academic careers. Speech and Debate assists our students in developing exceptional writing, critical thinking, and performing techiques that only enhance the quality of their school work, their resumes, and ultimately their success in law-related fields. Second, students interested in applying for acting programs learn how to better hone their performance skills by learning how to adapt to audiences and learning how to engage their audiences by making the best out of a 10 minute monologue. Additionally, they enhance their resume by adding to their repertiore of performance engagements. Third, students across disciplines learn to improve in their critical and analytical thinking abilities, their research and organizational skills, and their oral communication skills.  This is accomplished through individual and team competition and the enhancement of interpersonal skills and teamwork. After competing for this team, students often find an improvement in their GPA and the overall quality of their work.  

Finally, it is in our best interest to fully support all of our students in their endeavors to become better at achieving their academin goals. We feel that if a student joins the Forensics team, a life long pursuit of excellence will be established. The fundamental reason for the existence of the Saddleback forensics program is to provide students with advanced speaking opportunities beyond those traditionally available in a classroom setting.  Intercollegiate speech competition serves as a motivating force in educational development of students, leading to improvements in several helpful skills that will help them both in the work force or within their everyday lives.