Putting argument skills to good use at St Bernard’s College!

Well, St Bernard’s has another healthy complement of debating teams ready to hone their skills for another season of debating.

Each year our College plays host to the Essendon region of the debating series run by the Debaters Association of Victoria. It is an exciting time at the College where we welcome neighbouring schools with their debaters, teachers, and families for a night of wit, wisdom and well-prepared speeches!

The dates for the Essendon region are:

1. Round 1 Tues March 19
2. Round 2 Mon April 22
3. Round 3 Mon May 27
4. Round 4 Tues June 25
5. Round 5 Tues Aug 6

We have five teams this year:

• A grade - one combined team of nine of our most able Year 11 and 12 speakers guided by Ms Siobhan Loukomitis.
• C grade – an amazing three teams of Year 10 students, many of whom are continuing their journey since they began in Year 8! Coaches are Mr Sean Pieper, Ms Clare Hayes, Mr Vincent Marsicovetere, Mr Luke Reynolds and Ms Jessica Deprost,
• D grade – one team of ten Year 9s students, mostly new to debating, steered by the incomparable Ms Ziino.

Carrying on from last year, we are extremely excited to receive the ongoing support of three former students, our ‘crack’ A grade debating team of 2018-2022: Thomas Alessandrini, Taj La Fontaine, and Andre Lesnjak (College Captain 2022). Last year, they regularly attended Resurrection House to guide the two D grade teams of 2023, and their help and encouragement has played a significant role in the healthy numbers at C grade. We look forward to seeing how they can support our five debating teams this year.

ACC Debating and Public Speaking

In addition to the five debates organised by the DAV (Debaters Association of Victoria), the College participates in three marquis events organised by the ACC (Association of Catholic Colleges).

• Thurs May 2^nd – Year 9 - 12 - Open / Senior Debating and Public Speaking Tournament held at St Mary’s College.
• Wed August 21^st – Year 9 - 10 - Intermediate Debating and Public Speaking Tournament held at Mazenod College.
• Mon November 11^th – Year 7 – 8 - Junior Debating and Public Speaking Tournament held at St Bernard’s College.

Whilst we will primarily select our competitors for these events from our DAV teams, any student who is interested is welcome to speak to Ms Loukomitis to register their interest.

Junior Debating at St Bernard’s College

With the DAV stipulating, for the first time this year, that only year 9 students may compete in D grade DAV debates, a wonderful opportunity presents itself: the creation of a Junior Debating program later in the year.

Ms Leah Harris, Mr Sean Pieper and Ms Siobhan Loukomitis are in the planning stages and will announce later in the year what will be on offer for interested students. It is hoped that by participation in our school Junior debating program, we can form a superb team to represent the College at the Junior ACC event held here in November.

So, Year 7 and 8 students – if you are a confident speaker, or if you would like to practise becoming one, stay tuned!