Thought-provoking Inter-House debates

There was a great deal of excitement at Pipers this week as the girls participated in the annual Inter-House debating competition.  This year the competition was split into a Senior (Year 10 – Upper Sixth) and Junior (Year 7 – 9) event as the speakers vyed for the Debating Shield.

For the Seniors, the first motion was “This House would make organ donation compulsory” (Penn vs. Milton) and the second motion was “This House would allow women to carry weapons for self-defence” (Mandeville vs. Hampden).

The Juniors’ motions were “This House would ban sugary drinks for children” (Milton vs. Penn) and “This House would give young people (over 16 years old) the vote” (Hampden vs. Mandeville). 

The motions were eagerly discussed with the proposition and opposition sides in all the debates demonstrating the large amount of research that had been put in prior to the event and the thought processes behind their arguments for and against the motions. Both events were opened up to the floor to allow the audience and teachers to ask questions and put forward their opinions.

Headmistress Mrs Ness-Gifford had the task of announcing a winner of the Senior debate and Head of RS, Mr McKain, the winner of the Junior debate. The winning teams being the ones who had managed to put forward their arguments in the most persuasive way.

For the Seniors, Penn came out on top as winners with Hampden in second place.  For the Juniors, Hampden came first with Penn in second.

Headmistress, Mrs Ness-Gifford said “The debates were very strong this year and the girls proved they had researched and formed their arguments clearly and carefully. Taking part in debates like this helps the girls develop ideas and express their opinions in a concise and measured way. It can be daunting speaking to a large audience, especially in front of their peers and the girls did incredibly well.”

For more information contact:

Rebecca Conroy, Senior Marketing Executive, Pipers Corner School. Telephone 01494 719850 or email [email protected] | www.facebook.com/PipersCornerSchool | @PipersCornerSch