Cardinal Heenan recently participated in the North East Regional Final for the English-Speaking Union’s Public Speaking Competition hosted by St Peter’s School, York.
The final consisted of five speakers, presenting on their chosen topics. Each school’s speaker was matched up with a chairperson and questioner from an opposing school to provide 15 to 20 minutes of insight and discussion.
Cardinal Heenan’s team of students Jayden, Lois and Lorna qualified for the regional final earlier this year for a chance to compete in the Grand Final later this year. The team were runners-up but missed out by the finest of margins, with the judges struggling to choose between the top two.
Jayden spoke about “The most Potent weapon in the hand of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.” Lois expertly chaired for the speaker from Dame Allan’s School. Lorna questioned the speaker with the discussion focusing on the power of trade unions and whether modern TUs can be seen as political or social pressure groups.
The other discussions were eye-opening – including will Artificial Intelligence result in higher or lower living standards for future generations, whether a public health approach can combat violent knife crime in the UK and the extent to which our ability to vote is hampered by our ability or inability to pay.
Well done to the Cardinal Heenan team.
