Over the last three weeks Newington has affirmed its position as one of the stronger debating schools in the GPS. We have seen great success in all age divisions, with the 3rds topping the table.

This week we saw excellent results against Sydney Grammar School; historically one of our strongest competitors, with the 1sts losing narrowly whilst negating the topic ‘That university students who choose to study non-vocational courses (such as the Arts, History and Social Sciences majors) should not receive Government funding’.

“This year’s topics have been really challenging,” says Lachlan McKirdy (12/LE) Deputy Senior Prefect and Captain of the 3rds.

“We have had to debate topics like ‘That we should return to a system of amateur sport’, and ‘That we should re-elect the Federal Government’. We’ve had to argue about issues in the real world that many other boys our age would never even consider.”

On Friday 23 August, Newington will be debating against St Joseph’s College here at home, and many teams will be competing for podium positions. Debating to a full crowd is much more fun than to an empty room, so we always appreciate your support.

Clyde Welsh (12/ME)