It has been a very busy term for public speaking, with girls involved in a variety of clubs, competitions and initiatives.

A record 75 students have applied to the ESU(English Speaking Union) School MACE and ESU Public Speaking Competitions.  The ESU MACE is the oldest and largest debating competition for schools, with heats taking part in January 20201 and the national final in late March 2021. The competition encourages students’ debate skills in a fun, competitive environment. Working in teams, students enhance their speech-writing, public speaking and critical thinking, helping them to excel both in and out of school and giving them a sense of pride in themselves and their achievements.

Representing NHEHS in the ESU MACE will be Zahra, Alice R, Ruby H, Anouska H, Immie B, Esmee H, Jennifer H and Beatriz Z (Year 12). Year 9s representing the school in the English Speaking Union Churchill Public Speaking Competition will be Anya T, Hope G, Tara M (Team 1) while Team 2 will include Shaan W, Flora D and Madison W (al from Year 10). 

We are also entering teams in the International Competition of Young Debaters – Cambridge Union, which will line up as follows:

Team 1 = Nur M, Chloe B (Year 10)

Team 2 = Elizabeth O’B, Charlotte F (Year 10)

Team 3 = Lewhat and Salem Y (Year 10 + 9 – sister bubble)

Team 4 = Isie H, Bella P-M (Year 10)

After successfully negotiating the NHEHS heats, we are delighted to announce that the Year 11 representing NHEHS at this year’s Chrystall Carter GDST Public Speaking Competition is Rhea, with Divya K as our Vice (runner up, in case Rhea is unable to compete).  Head of Public Speaking at NHEHS, Miss Gordon was very impressed with the 20 girls who reached the internal heats, who spoke on a variety of topics with great confidence. Rhea and Divya will be taking part in a Google Meet Workshop to hone their skills in research and delivery (practising intonation, pace, dynamics, metre etc) before the next step – London Regionals, where Rhea will deliver a prepared 7 minute speech followed by a Q&A from a panel of external judges.  Well done to all! 

Year 11 students who reached the internal heats:

Divya K, Alabama, Chloe P, Sophie Anwar, Zoe M, Alice J, Imogen D, Angelina K, Sophia A, Asha M, Vysali, Selena A, Kirshiya, Rhea, Anvi G, Abha B, Ayna S, Aditi A, Sakeena S

Miss Gordon recently held two separate morning sessions for Year 9 and Year 12 on ‘Captivating Communication’ called ‘Speaking Out Without Freaking Out,’ where she gave valuable tips on re-framing nerves before speaking, discussed what holds us back from answering or asking questions as well as scenario-based activities and games. The sessions also included sections on how to feel more confident using the likes of Zoom and Google Meets, which have replaced a lot of face-to-face communication this year.

As part of Miss Gordon’s Public Speaking remit, she has created a new initiative this half-term. Given that so many people may not be able to see their loved ones this December, she launched an ‘Advent for All’ Calendar to spread some festive cheer across the local community. Girls across the school have recorded themselves reading aloud original short poems/ readings/ brief music and dance pieces, which have given students a way to practise experimenting with varying the intonation and pace of their voice control (and body language). You can see some of the girls’ original work on our Twitter account here and the fun, festive short play by Year 7’s Annabelle and Adeline below.

Finally, DebSoc has been going from strength to strength. Year 7 DebSoc (in line with bubble restrictions) meet fortnightly on Mondays. A group of 35 Year 7s have been introduced to British Parliamentary format, and adopted the roles of Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition in debates. Offering and responding to Points of Information (POIs) – they have honed their structure and delivery of important arguments. They have discussed a range of motions, including: “Books are always better than their film counterparts” and “Drones are a menace to society.”

Year 9  DebSoc meet fortnightly on Mondays. They have been honing skills in BP style debating, focusing on how to construct rigorous arguments. A few motions debated this term have included: “The House believes we cannot thrive without religion” and “Should a person’s social media be considered by school admissions, police investigations, and potential employers?” Year 13 student Izzy did a fantastic job running the latter debate motion this week.

Year 12 Speaking Society continues to run weekly 4-5pm Thursdays. We alternate between debating and public speaking each week. Y12s have honed their skills in debating in a range of formats, including preparing for the ICYD and ESU Mace competitions. One debate this term was, “Social Media has made conversations less civil”. On public speaking weeks, a group of 8 students are continuing with their official TedTalk TedEd student talks, following the formal course led by Miss Gordon. They will be meeting fellow students from around the world in an online social next week, to share their experiences of the programme so far.