Parliament Debating Week by Pippa Sutcliffe
I have been growing debating at Westbourne House since the spring term in 2016. This year, we had a Parliament Debating Week to coincide with the one going on in Westminster.
This consisted of two evening debates of pupils against parents and then finished off with a morning of inter-Patrol Debating for the Year 8s.
Pupils (5) versus Parents (0)
The proposals were debated: pupils against their parents. The points of information were perceptively made by all of the teams and the pupils displayed a real confidence when conducting themselves in front of an adult audience that included their parents. The pupils won every debate with the support of the audience each time.
I would like to thank everyone for their support, enthusiasm and time that they gave to enable this evening to take place. At the end of the day, these debates were a lot of fun. The atmosphere was respectful and we were able to have a joke and laugh too. I am hope to repeat this debate once a term.
Inter-Patrol Debating: Year 8
This was the first time that an inter-Patrol debating event had taken place at Westbourne House. Every year 8 pupil took part. Each patrol was split into three teams and they debated against one of the other three patrols. The teams were presented with the motion, told whether they were the proposers or the opposition and then given eight minutes to organise their arguments. The audience for each debate (the rest of the Year 8s) were required to consider the different viewpoints and allowed to contribute their ideas at the end of each debate.
Mr Sharman very kindly came to judge the debates in the Mill Hall. We were privileged to have his expertise and experience.
The inter-Patrol debates involved everyone and each team had a good mix of abilities. Overall, the morning was a great success and I really enjoyed watching the children’s confidence grow as the debates progressed. I will definitely be organising inter-Patrol debates for Year 6 and Year 7 over the course of the year. It will now be a permanent fixture in the calendar!
Result:
1st Tigers
2nd Panthers
3rd Owls
4th Otters
