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IT’S good to talk and persuasive pupils from some of the region’s top schools proved the point in a riveting debating contest.
The inaugural British Schools in the Middle East (BSME) Debating Tournament was hosted by St Christopher’s School and finished with a farewell banquet for all participants.
The weekend event involved 18 teams taking part in 79 debates. Jumeriah College, Dubai, and Doha College, Qatar, both made it to the final without losing a single debate.
In front of an audience of 180 students and staff, with guests of honour the British Embassy chargé d’affaires Russ Dixon and the chairman of the BSME and principal of St Christopher’s School, Ed Goodwin, the finalists contested the motion: ‘This House believes that the GCC countries owe it to the world to take the lead in the conservation of fossil fuels and the development of sustainable energy’.
Doha College, who were in opposition, argued that it was unfair to ‘finger-point’ Gulf countries in the way suggested and that oil companies and major consumers such as the US and Europe were the ones who should ´take the lead´ instead.
Their case prevailed. They won the votes of all five adjudicators, though for some by as little as four marks out of 250.
To get this far, Doha and Jumeriah had taken on 16 other teams, who came from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE and Bahrain.
One of the host teams of St Christopher’s comprising of Zaid Al Alawi, Ahmed Mohieldin and Conrad Sanderson, made it to the semi-final, but then lost to Jumeriah College by eight marks on the motion: ‘The Euro was a mistake’.
The BSME Debating Tournament is set to become an annual event after this year’s success.
The event has two principal objectives: firstly, to promote debating within the region; and secondly, to help prepare students for world-class public speaking challenges, such as the Model United Nations and the World Schools Debating Championships.
During their stay, participants and adjudicators enjoyed the hospitality of The Crowne Plaza Hotel in Manama.
More details of the event can be found at www.debatebsme.com
