A participant in the third Qatar Schools Debating League, which was won by Qatar Academy last weekend
More than 120 students from 22 schools recently participated in the third Qatar Schools Debating League, organised by QatarDebate and hosted at the Tareq Bin Ziyad Independent Secondary School for boys.
Qatar Academy’s team finished first in the competition, followed by DPS Modern Indian School and the Amna Bint Wahab Independent Secondary School for Girls in second and third respectively.
Member of Team Qatar 2011, Yousif Fakhroo welcomed the students to the event, and provided them with advice and a number of debating tips, stating that comprehensive preparation is the most important aspect of a debate. The tournament centred around four motions: ‘This House Believes (THB) that newly democratised Arab nations should not allow religious parties to participate in elections,’ ‘THB that developing nations should place limits on migration from the countryside into cities,’ ‘This House would punish parents who smoke in the home,’ and ‘This House would ban the trade and sale of animal fur.’
The award for best speaker was presented to Doha College’s Mustafa el-Mumin, with Jonathan Coutinho, Abdullah al-Shackarchi, P Vainatheya, Shima Abdulla, Paul Illori, Leen Walid, Anton Paulson, Wessam Kanes and Vane Swetah comprising the top ten individuals of the day.
Head of the English programme at QatarDebate, Kelley Bieringer expressed her pleasure at the success of the league and the introduction of a number of new schools to debating.
Officials from host school, Tareq Bin Ziyad Independent Secondary School for boys said they were pleased to host the event, and explained that most of their students have been learning about debating, highlighting the positive impact that it has had on their schoolwork.
“The school is very concerned about the art of debate and believes in its great importance for the educational process,” they said, expressing their commitment to support future activities organised by QatarDebate.
Some 63 judges took part in the tournament, including Khalid al-Khulaifi, who highlighted the impact of debate on students’ educational, practical and personal lives.
He said: “The most important characteristic of the third league is significant participation by schools’ students, pointing out that the level of the participants is in continuous progress and improving the great efforts of QatarDebate Centre.”
Students, Mariam al-Manaai and Leen Walid expressed their happiness at the strong performance of their Amna Bint Wahab team in the competition, noting that participating in debating has helped improve their studies.
Fellow student Nada Nabil said: “The debates give students a space to be creative, and grow their minds in order to be updated with the education revolution through the development of the art of debate culture and dialogue, and to accept others’ opinions and to listen to others.”
The schools which participated in the competition included the Al Arqam Academy, Al Resala ISSG, Al Wakra ISSB, Ali Bin Jassim ISSB, Al Sailiyyah ISSG, Amna Bint Wahab ISSG, Arwa Bint Abdul Muttalib ISSG, Birla Public School, Cambridge International School for Girls,  Doha College, DPS-Modern Indian School,  Khalifa ISSB, MES Indian School , Mosab Bin Omair ISSB, Omar Bin Abdul Aziz ISSB, Omar Bin Khattab ISSB, Park House, Pakistan Education Centre, Qatar Academy,  Raba’a Al Adawiya ISSG, Rauda Bint Jassim ISSG and Tareq Bin Ziyad ISSB.
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