Strong opinions and the ability to think fast on their feet proved valuable for the Waimea College debating team who are now the top debating school team in the Top of the South.
Year 13 students Rory Stock, Tom Meldrum and Riley Nicholls beat Nayland College in the grand final to win the Jeremy Johnson Cup in the Kahurangi-Marlborough Regional School’s Debating Championships.
Now Riley will compete at the national finals in May as part of a squad of three debaters selected for the Kahurangi-Marlborough team. He has just competed in an international debate via Zoom as part of a South Island team, so it is no surprise that politics are a possibility for him down the track.
At the competition, the team were given topics and told which side of the argument they would be debating, then given half an hour to prepare without the ability to google the subject. In the finals, the team had to argue against building cheaper houses in wealthier areas.
To that, they argued that the high cost of building houses in “rich” areas meant it made more sense to build more houses in cheaper areas.
Tom says that for him, debating is all about public speaking, strong opinions and being able to voice those opinions.
“I’ve always had a lot of strong opinions and I get to be able to speak and voice those opinions. For five minutes they have to be silent and listen to what I have to say.”
He says there is no right or wrong answers in debates and it can be fun building an argument for an issue that you really disagree on.
Arguing issues from an opposing view to what you think can be good, Rory adds.
“It gives you a wider perspective.”
The three say that during a debate, each speaker has different jobs because each has their own set of skills, such as being good at rebuttals to the opposing team.
“It’s thinking about counter arguments as they’re speaking,” Rory explains. “I like how you have to really think on your feet.”
Students debated in four preliminary rounds on topics ranging from mandatory community service to the best approach to making change in communities.
