January 2024
The Navigator
Fall 2023 Edition
By The Students, For The Students
Mr. Vincent Selected as USA Debate Coach By Andrew Brandt ‘25 As of the 2023 school year, Newman’s Director of Speech and Debate—Mr. Vincent—is now the head coach of the USA Debate team, taken over eleven years ago by the National Speech and Debate Association to bring together the United States’ best debaters. The USA team and international community uses the World Schools Debate format, where teams of five people debate both prepared and impromptu motions (topics), which can range from international policy to school sports. Mr. Vincent highlights that “World Schools Debate is different to most American debate formats because it highly emphasizes the importance of being a global citizen and truly mastering the art of persuasion.” The team is composed of twelve debaters from seven states, all of which have been highly successful in Speech and Debate at the national level. Mr. Vincent emphasizes that “there is something really unique about the opportunity to bring together twelve students from across the country and create a cohesive team.” The USA team has already achieved success as they championed the Greenhill Classic. The team resources and the support they receive from dedicated parents contributes to a competitive yet inviting atmosphere. Mr. Vincent describes the team as a “family unit” who all support each other in the pursuit of success. This December, the team is heading to Croatia to compete against multiple other international teams, so please wish Mr. Vincent luck!
By Alisa Houghtaling ‘23
Should All Standardized Tests be Timed? Why some colleges and universities are moving away from requiring students to submit standardized test scores. By Lauren Klebba ‘24 I’ve always been the student who runs out of time on assessments and, for a while, I thought that meant I wasn’t as smart as the other students. After years of degrading self talk, I realized that speed was not equivalent to intelligence, even though standardized tests often reward speed with higher scores. I recently came across an article in the New York Times talking about time-tests and how they tend to reward students with more confidence and speed. In his opinion piece, Adam Grant notes: “Although it pays to be quick, it also pays to be determined, disciplined and dependable” (Grant). This idea really resonates with me as I am getting ready to apply to colleges this fall. Although most of the schools I will apply to are test-optional or do not require me to submit scores, I have still taken the SAT and ACT multiple
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times. Each time, I have run out of time on at least one of the sections. It just felt like there was not enough time to finish even though I was working as fast as I could. When my scores came back, I felt like they didn’t represent me as a student because my strengths tend to be my attention to detail, perseverance, and thinking deeply about more complex topics. I felt like the tests did not give me the opportunity to demonstrate these strengths in the same way that the grades I earn throughout a school year give more of a comprehensive view of me as a student. No matter if I decide to submit my scores or not, I’m happy lots of colleges are recognizing that standardized test scores may not be the best measure of a students ability to succeed at their institution.