Students Find Their Voice Through Debate
ISA’s Debate Club recently travelled to Rotterdam to compete in the preliminary round of the Oxford Schools’ Debating Tournament, one of the largest English-speaking debate competitions for high school students in the Netherlands, and the biggest British Parliamentary school tournament in the world.
For some students, this marked their very first debate tournament. For others, it was an opportunity to develop and hone their debate skills. For all the students, it was a challenging day, which required them to think on their feet, sharpen their arguments and push themselves outside of their comfort zone.
Each debate round pits four teams of two students against one another. Teams receive their motion just fifteen minutes before the debate begins, and are required to prepare their argument without access to the internet. Participants’ success depends not on any memorised facts, but on their ability to build persuasive arguments and, crucially, respond with confidence under pressure.
“Every student learned a lot from the tournament and took something valuable from their experience,” says the group’s advisor, Individuals & Societies teacher Jordi. “Whether it was their first event or they were already experienced, everyone grew.”
What makes this achievement even more impressive is that ISA’s Debate Club itself is still relatively new. The club was revived just last year when two motivated students proposed bringing debating back to campus. Starting with just eight members, the group has quickly grown to around twenty committed students from Grades 6-11.
The club now meets every week, and combines workshops with practice debates where students take turns speaking and judging. A student board runs much of the club, which gives students the opportunity to build leadership skills while giving younger members the chance to learn from their more experienced peers.
That student leadership has already led to something bigger: ISA now hosts its own debate tournament, ISADA. The second edition, held in December, welcomed around eighty students from Dutch and international schools. With beginner workshops and advanced strategy sessions, the event opened debating to newcomers while challenging experienced participants.
The debate club also offers students the opportunity to develop skills that extend far beyond tournaments. Participants develop confidence in presenting their ideas, learn to listen carefully to different perspectives, and gain practice in building clear and reasoned arguments, which support their progression in subjects such as English and Individuals & Societies, and prepare students for their future study and career paths.
“Being able to present your thoughts clearly is an important life skill,” Jordi explains. “It helps students academically, socially, and later in professional life.”
Perhaps most importantly, students learn to engage with complex global issues while respecting viewpoints different from their own. As older members graduate, they pass on their skills to younger debaters, keeping the club student-led and constantly evolving.
From first speeches to confident tournament performances, students in ISA’s debate club are proving that growth often begins with simply having the courage to speak up.
