On the 23rd of January, a group of A Level French students went to St Paul’s Girls’ School to take part in the Joutes Oratoires, a French debating competition held by the French Institute.

Here’s how they got on:

By Katy M, Year 12

Despite initially being nervous, all of the three teams went for it with all our might. The first debate was nerve-racking, since we had not done anything of the kind before, but we all tried our best and found that it was actually a very enjoyable experience. Personally, my favourite part was the Lutte Acharnée, where we got to argue (in a civilised manner) with the opposition team, as we really got to practice our quick-thinking on the spot skills. We also enjoyed being able to speak to the other teams afterwards – everyone was extremely kind, supportive and talkative, and I am very grateful to have been able to practice my French in this way! Thank you.

By Martha H, Year 12

The afternoon was centered around three motions: We should stop western countries from exploiting new sources of fossil fuel; Freedom of Speech should be total in the world of music; the French government should let all migrants who wish to come to the UK pass. We were in teams of two, with each team from NHEHS competing against three other schools, and were told which side we would be debating just before the debate. The debates took the form of two minutes of introduction from each team, two minutes of rebuttals and four minutes of Lutte Acharnée, where both sides were free to speak.

Despite being a completely new experience for us all, the afternoon provided an incredible opportunity to improve our French speaking skills and certainly made us grateful for any future debates in English! It’s safe to say that Notting Hill triumphed, as each team won two out of three of their debates; c’était formidable!

Head of French, Madame Spencer said, “The team were incredible! Speaking French for hours beforehand, they were unstoppable and “won” two of their three debates, which were conducted completely in French. They really made the French department proud!”