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20120322_oru_student_wins_tournament

ORU freshman finishes strong in tournament

By Ally Powell ('13)

Oral Roberts University student Joseph Jackson recently finished in fifth place among 27 entrants in the "Sweetheart Swing" extemporaneous speaking tournament at the University of Oklahoma. Jackson is a freshman at ORU studying communications and government.

"I was shocked that I broke in this event," Jackson says. "I had never competed in extemporaneous tournament." Extemporaneous speech is similar to debate except instead of arguing about a topic, you present an argument with convincing evidence. Each participant is given a list of three topics to choose from that deal with various policy issues. Participants only receive a half- hour to research, write their stance on the topic and practice the speech.

"I spend about 15 or 20 minutes researching and preparing," Jackson says. "All remaining time is used to practice and polish the speech."

Jackson's final topic dealt with whether or not social media was harmful to society.

"I was really surprised that I placed fifth my finals topic," he says.

Jackson now feels more encouraged to compete in more extemporaneous tournaments after his success.

 

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