National Forensic League Points
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National Forensic League Points (NFL Points) are employed in the scoring system used by the National Forensic League to rank competitors' lifetime progress, and to determine how many competitors a school may register in an NFL District Tournament.
In debate events, the winner (or both members of the winning team) each earn six points, and the loser earns three. In speaking events, points vary with the speaker's place in the round. Competitors in events that involve creating original material (Foreign Extemp, Domestic Extemp, Original Oratory, LD) earn more points than competitors in events that involve interpreting previously published material (the interpretive events*ndash;DI, HI, OI, etc.). In Student Congress each speech given receives a score of up to six points. Commonly more than one judge scores each speech in Student Congress, so in this case the scores of the judges are averaged and rounded up to calculate the speech score.
| Place in round: | First | Second | Third | Fourth | Fifth | Below Fifth |
| Points for Original Events | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Points for Interp. Events | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
Members can only earn up to 750 points in each of the three areas of competition: debate, speaking events (original oratory, extemp and interp), and Student Congress. Points earned at NFL District Tournaments and the NFL National Tournament are not subject to the 750-point cap. This point cap was raised in 2004 from 500 points.
Members can also earn "service points", which accrue for certain activities outside of speech competition. Delivering speeches before audiences of twenty-five or more adults, for instance, earns a fixed number of service points.
As a member accumulates points, they earn NFL degrees. Each degree corresponds to the jeweling pattern of an NFL pin which the degree-holder is authorized to wear, and to a seal which will be placed on the degree-holder's diploma.
| Degree | Points | Jewels | Seal |
| of Merit | 25 | None | White |
| of Honor | 75 | Emerald | Bronze |
| of Excellence | 150 | Sapphire | Silver |
| of Distinction | 250 | Single Ruby | Gold |
| of Special Distinction | 500 | Double Ruby | Rose |
| of Superior Distinction | 750 | Triple Ruby | Blue |
| of Outstanding Distinction | 1000 | Quad Ruby | Purple |
| of Premier Distinction | 1500 | Quint Ruby | Black |
It should be noted that NFL pins are by no means ubiquitous; some competitors in some areas are more likely to wear them; other competitors in other areas may abstain from them, and even consider them to be mildly pretentious. In some forms of speech competition, advertising one's standing with a pin may also place one at a minor tactical disadvantage.
External links
- NFL Manuals (http://www.nflonline.org/manual.aspx) contain the official rules regarding NFL points