We were delighted to send a mix of Year 10, 11 and Lower Sixth students to the English Speaking Union (ESU) School’s Mace debating competition on Monday 11th November.
Involving around 300 schools each year, it offers Key Stage 3 to 5 students the opportunity to discuss and debate a wide array of current affairs and subjects, developing their presentation skills, public speaking skills, dialogue and knowledge.
Overall, the ESU debate featured teams of three debating pre-prepared motions with the first and second speakers allowed up to seven minutes for their speeches, followed by questions from the floor and then a five minute summary speech. Our confident Leighton Park team opposed a ban on facial recognition technology.
Particular mention goes to Annabel (Year 10) who kindly stepped up at the last minute with two members from other schools to pull together a stand-in team for a no-show group. With only ten minutes to prepare Annabel persuasively argued that the Green Belt should be built upon. We were proud to witness the school’s Quaker values in Annabel’s actions, if not in her assumed environmental stance required for the debate!
Annabel explained: “Having enjoyed any chance to debate ever since I joined Fryer Debate Club in the Summer term of Year 7, I decided to volunteer because I knew how much effort the other team had put into their preparations. I don’t regret participating and trying my hardest. I think that it’s important to always try new things and stretch myself, from debating in a competition for the first time in Year 8 to helping to run the Fryer club now! Personally, I think that stepping in with only ten minutes to prepare was a brilliant opportunity to learn how to deal with pressure and attempt something you might not do well in for the sake of someone else.”
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