Debating Successes

Published by Concord College on Wednesday 10th of April 2024

Debate teams from Concord have had some wonderful successes this year.

From Form 3 and Form 4 eight students attended the International Competition for Young Debaters, a competition run by Cambridge University. Competing in pairs each took part in three debates. All four pairs achieved at least one first or second place and one pair was only a single point away from reaching the final round.

Mrs Emily McBride organised the debating group and took the students to Cambridge for the competition “They were all really excited about being in Cambridge and would love to go back next year. I was very proud of them and impressed with both their attitudes and performances ”

Concord’s Sixth Formers were also successful recently, with Xiong Ze and Samantha beating around 70 other teams at regional level to secure a place in the finals of the Cambridge Schools debating competition.

Unfortunately, Samantha unable to attend the final, so Emily who is also a member of the Debate Competition Circle for Concord College, took her place.

Across four rounds of intense debate Mrs McBride was pleased to see the resilience that both Xiong Ze and Emily showed. “Their conduct, composure and thoughtful ideas are to be commended. Although we ultimately didn’t manage to make it to the last round, we were happy to head home with our heads held high and a formative experience under our belts.”