Over the course of the Spring Term, pupils have gathered in their Houses to compete in this year’s Inter-House Debates. The contests took place over four instalments – Lower School, Year 9, Year 10, and Year 11 – and have been hosted by Head of History, Mr Joseph Player.
Heated discussions have taken place in the Lecture Theatre as representatives from each House battled it out for the trophy and for House glory. In each round, pupils had 60 seconds to argue for or against different topics, before moving to an open debate. A group of Sixth Form pupils judged the rounds, looking at the clarity of arguments, use of details and facts, and the debaters’ powers of persuasion.
Lower School
The first motion debated was that 'Britain is the best country in the world', with the Spartans and Titans both acting as proposition teams. H Cox pointed to the many great British inventions such as the camera, electricity, telephones and the world wide web, and N Wong talked about the far-reaching impact of the English language and British influences around the world. Meanwhile the Olympians opposed the motion and argued that "Britain is a whole load of rubbish", citing the high taxes, roads littered with potholes, the poor weather and multiple Prime Ministers in recent years. During open discussion, the benefits and downsides of a free national health service were heavily used.
The second motion put forward was that 'Schools should do away with homework completely', which drew a spontaneous round of applause from the Lower School audience! L Waldegrave, speaking on behalf of an absent George Ault from the Olympians, proposed that schools "should not do away with homework as it helps prepare for tests, practise what you've learned in lessons and improves achievement. It also helps time management, independent learning and other skills that are required at university and in employment. It also helps parents be involved in their child's education and check progress." Pupils representing the Spartans and the Titans both opposed the motion, with H Cox citing how it would significantly reduce stress and positively improve wellbeing, allowing for more family time. He also noted how "it would also reduce pressure on our amazing teachers and let them spend more time with their own families and give them more time to think about creative ways to teach". James Martin added that it is proven that mindfulness and relaxation improve creativity and productivity and that much like computers, brains also need a rest and a reboot at the end of the day. A lively open discussion ensued with Oscar Owens making reference to the College's long day, particularly those with long bus journeys, whilst Liam Ellison highlighted how there is time within the day to complete prep at school so that there is no need to do homework at home.
The final motion debated was that 'Super strength is better than super intelligence'. Opening as the proposition team, Titans proclaimed that "knowledge is not power" and that figures such as Mr Incredible were very influential. In contrast, Liam Ellison quoted Amit Kalantri who said that "Intelligence is more important than strength, that is why earth is ruled by men and not by animals" and Albert Einstein's “The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.” Finally, the Spartans argued that strength was superior to intelligence with a persuasive example that if someone was stuck under a heavy block that strength would save them and not the ability to solve a maths equation!
Congratulations to Ethan Price and H Cox of the Spartans who were judged to be the winners of this year’s Lower School Inter-House Debate contest!
Year 9
The first topic to be debated was whether or not Britain is the best country in the world. This led to a fiery with those in favour of the statement citing Britain’s free healthcare, its long history, its industrial revolution and imaginative innovations, and its stunning natural beauty. On the other side however, some of these points were used as evidence to argue against the statement. Regarding Britain’s healthcare, the state of the NHS and the current strikes were referred to, in addition to the further strikes in the rail, education and mail industry. Those against the statement also made reference to the current cost of living crisis, and the recent political turmoil.
The second statement that was whether or not schools should abolish detentions. A topical subject for discussion, this statement has already made many appearances during the College’s Question Times. However, this time it was the turn of the pupils to have their say! Those against the idea of detentions made points such as its impact on mental health, its effectiveness as often, it is the same pupils who are in detention. However, those in favour of keeping detentions pointed to its help with self-discipline and the opportunity detentions provide to catch up with work. One thing for sure is that this is a topic that we have not heard the last of!
After much deliberation, the judges awarded Burr with the win. Congratulations to James Middlehurst and T Cockings who were the House’s representatives!
Year 10
The first statement that was debated was whether or not Britain is the best country in the world. Everett, Skipwith and Burr were the Houses arguing for the statement and made points on its position as a powerful country on the world stage, the quality of its education with universities such as Cambridge, Oxford, and Imperial often in the top 10 world rankings, and also its diversity in culture. Welsh and Orchard, arguing against the statement, referred to the current cost of living crisis, the current political limbo (where a lettuce has outlasted a recent PM), and how there are countries with happier people. This last point led to a heated discussion on how one would measure ‘happiness’.
The second statement was much closer to home in which pupils debated whether or not schools should do away with homework. Burr, Everett, and Skipwith, arguing in favour of doing away with homework, pointed towards the increase in stress that homework causes and how it restricts pupils’ freedom and downtime away from school. On the other hand, Welsh and Orchard suggested that homework promotes useful skills needed for later life such as independence, organisation and time management.
In the end, the judges declared Everett as the winners; congratulations to Kit Marsh and Ben Parrott!
Year 11
The first statement up for discussion was if we should be proud to be British. Arguing in favour were Orchard, Burr and Welsh, and points made included our freedom and history of democracy, our economy (which is the 5th largest in the world), and our presence on the world stage on a political and military level. However, Everett and Skipwith who were arguing against, cited Britain’s history as a reason to not be proud, in addition to the current system in place asylum seekers. A reference was made to England’s recent performances in football and how the country has not won a major trophy since 1966 – this point was instantly refuted when it was pointed out the Lionesses had recently lifted the EUROs trophy.
The second statement saw the Houses debate whether or not technology makes teachers obsolete. Skipwith and Everett, arguing against the statement and in favour of keeping teachers, pointed out that teachers can understand pupils’ emotions and needs far better than any piece of technology will ever do. They also referred to the adaptability that a teacher has in order to cater to all types of lessons and pupils. Welsh, Orchard and Burr, arguing in favour of the statement, suggested that everything can be learned from the internet and that today, there are AI programs that now write essays for pupils. They also pointed out the rise of technology in education – laptops have replaced paper and books, PowerPoints have replaced whiteboards, in addition to the recent transition to Microsoft and the TEAMs structure.
In the Year 11 debate, it proved to be another victory for legendary debating duo, James Lucking and Jonathon Kowal, who continued their winning streak for Skipwith House!
Well done to everyone for representing their Houses and thank you to Mr Player for hosting the competitions. Thank you also to the Sixth Form judges in each round.
