house public speaking event round 4

A change of location for the latest round did nothing to stem the level of public-speaking, participation, or demands of the questioning audience at lunchtime today in session 4 of the House public-speaking competition.

First up were Year 7 Oliver, and Year 8s Afonso and Matthew, who spoke intelligently, insightfully and eloquently while debating liberty versus security in today's society and the current climate.

They faced down some tough questions from the audience and judges Mrs Derby and Mrs Harness, but presented with intellectual finesse.

Team 2 then took the stand, debating whether money can buy happiness, which they argued strongly against. 

In a strong performance, not least from Year 7 speaker Anjelica (centre), the team pitched that although happiness is differentially quantified for each individual, it is rooted most strongly in personal relationships, community, love, friendship and family, rather than in wealth or in material goods that can be bought.

This prompted an extensive round of questions from the audience that were fielded excellently by Anjelica and the team.

In feedback, Mrs Derby was full of praise for both teams: Team 1 for their seamless delivery, and Team 2 for their personable and engaging manner.

Mrs Harness commended Team 1 for their handling of a complex topic, and Team 2 for their confidence and skill in engaging the audience, with a particular shout-out to Anjelica and her impressively mature delivery and handling of challenging interactions with the audience.

In summing up, Mrs Derby congratulated the teams on a brilliant display, thanked the audience for their participation and looked forward to announcing the results in the New Year and the next step: the Semi-Final!