On Monday the 2nd of March, Interschool debating for the Debating Association of Victoria (DAV) kicked off with our first debate at St Bernard’s College in Essendon. This round saw our A Grade, C Grade and D Grade teams participate in their first competitions of 2020.

Our A Grade team, which consists of Jake Park, Emilio Alingcastre, Dylan Oliveria, Holly Collins and Camryn Duncan, argued the affirmative side for the topic “That we regret the rise of streaming platforms (such as Netflix and Disney+)” against Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School.

Our C Grade team, which consists of Kaley Roe, Caitlin Hopkins, Jade-Amanda Falzon-Tabone and Melecia Koster, argued the affirmative side for the topic “That children should be legally required to take care of their parents rather than placing them in aged care” against Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School.

Our D Grade team, which consists of Tasman Broadway, Charlotte Tate, Ivy Nielsen, Melanie Sebire and Gemma Ellis, argued the affirmative for the topic “That we should limit the number of cars that each household can own.”

The debates were incredibly close, with our teams putting forward strong arguments and presenting their cases clearly, engaging the audience and firmly rebutting the opponents’ cases. The D Grade team successfully argued their case and won their debate, and our A and C Grade teams came very close, missing out on the win by a very small margin of points.

It was also the first debate for Jake, Emilio, Dylan, and Ivy outside of Staughton College and the students spectacularly held their own in front of an unfamiliar audience. We were also awarded the “Best Speaker” for the D Grade debate, with Tasman Broadway taking out this great achievement. Well done to everyone involved in round one of debating, it was a huge success for all involved.

The following dates are the rest of our DAV interschool debating competitions for any interested parents and guardians:

Round 2: Monday 27th April
Round 3: Monday 11th May
Round 4: Monday 1st June
Round 5: Monday 20th July

- Haley Clancy

Debating and Public Speaking Coordinator

Student Reflections:

"On Monday the 2nd of March 2020, we held our first excursion to St Bernard’s College in Essendon for our first round of the debating season. We are very lucky this year to have three teams participating in the debating competition. Our year 12 team and year 10 team unfortunately lost their debates, with both teams ending the debate with very close scores between each other. But our year 9 team was able to take the win in round one by a close margin. The trip back to school was eventful with all three teams singing karaoke and enjoying some McDonald’s. We are so proud of our teams and their performance for the first round and can’t wait for what’s next to come."

- Kaley Roe and Melecia Koster

For more details/information regarding debating or public speaking please contact Ms Clancy at the college.

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