Ethics Sit at the Head of the Class

For the 80 Cypress High School students in Lori Brown’s three speech and debate classes, it isn’t just about making speeches; it’s about learning the best way to live their lives.

“It’s more like ‘Life 101,’ ” said Brown.

Brown has taught speech and debate at Cypress High since 1992. She believes that instilling ethics in students is just as important as teaching the best way to deliver a speech.

“To me it’s more important to send a kid out in life with good morals than for them to become great persuasive speakers,” she said. “Hitler was a persuasive speaker, and what kind of person did he become?”

Brown’s approach to teaching the finer points of impromptu, interpretive and oratorical analysis has had a powerful impact on the class, the speech program and Cypress. Before Brown took over, the program was in danger of being dropped from the curriculum, Brown said.

Her efforts, though, started leading to the students winning awards, reflecting the newfound spirit for the program.

Her tough, morally strict teaching method has made such an impression on students that they have dubbed her the “Ethics Queen.”

Brown took 38 speech and debate students to the National Championship during her first year and three students were championship finalists in 1998.

But Brown said there are drawbacks for the students trying to always adhere to an ethical standard higher than others might strive for. While her students don’t have the typical problems most teenagers go through with drugs or alcohol, “their pressures are different.” said Brown. “A lot of it might be cultural, a lot might come from their parents, but for whatever reason, these kids feel the pressure to succeed.

“I’ve got kids in my class who don’t sleep because they’re studying late at night to get an A on a test rather than an A-minus.”

Brown said their challenge is to compete against other students who have a win-at-all-costs attitude, and she suspects that some of her students have lost competitions to other students at other schools who have cheated during competition.

“They know that at times unethical people get the upper hand, but it’s a harsh reality of life that many have learned, or will learn, that at times people with bad intentions win in life.”

To show their appreciation, Brown’s students nominated her for the Crystal Apple Award, a weekly award given by KNBC Channel 4 honoring the exceptional Southern California teachers. She was presented with the award in class Monday.

“I grew up with a terrific value system, but I never thought of using these values as a way of teaching,” said Brown.

Andre Briscoe can be reached at (714) 966-5848.