Claudia Creque trumps ESHS in debate semi-finals
![Members of the victorious Claudia Creque Educational Centre debate team [L-R] Gay Toni Kirton-Francis, Revonne White, Lawrence Kirton-Wheatley, Wilfred Faulkner, Shirley Vanterpool-Evans, Kysean Wheatley and Barbara Stevens De Freitas. Photo: VINO](https://www.virginislandsnewsonline.com/cache/images/800x_i_IMG_5950.jpg)
The CCEC trumped the Elmore Stoutt High School (ESHS) in what emerged to be a hard fought contest with both sides debating the moot “Mobile devices should be allowed in schools”. It was described by Chief Adjudicator Jennelle Archer as a debate filled with high standard.
CCEC opposed the moot during the debate and both teams were commended for their good inflection at the end as well as their use of rhetorical questions during the debate.
Ms Archer added that both teams had good points which were supported by statistics and felt this was fantastic. Ricosha Penn, the lone female among the debaters for the evening, was singled out as being a voice with a welcome change that offered a bit more modulation when her turn came at the lectern.
Judges remained critical of the fact that there was “a little too much reading” during the debates, a trend that had been observed throughout the competition.
Best Speaker adjudicator, Mr Denniston Fraser, said the high points in the debate for the two teams were for articulation while the low points came in their command of the material. He pointed out that the teams appeared too attached to the lectern and could have made better use of the stage given the use of the removable microphone and their cue cards as a means of capturing the audience and judges’ attention.
He was critical of the rebuttal phase of the debate and offered that the teams fell a little in this regard. Fraser noted that the teams should have anticipated their opponent’s responses in advance of the debate and adjusted accordingly based on what was actually said during the debates.
“I feel like I could carry the world on my shoulders,” expressed Best Speaker Lawrence Kirton-Wheatley after the team’s victory; his compatriot, Revonne White, felt that it was a very challenging debate and said “we’re very proud of ourselves for what we have done.”
Kirton-Wheatley said after the first debate, his nerves calmed down and it was less difficult seeing everyone on stage and he was also proud of himself for the achievement of being adjudged Best Speaker. Being a fluent and gifted public speaker he said, was something that came naturally to him.
His mother, Gay Toni Kirton-Francis, who was also part of the team’s success, expressed that she was also very proud of the team. She was hopeful that the team would take it all the way through to the finals and ultimately take home the trophy to Anegada. “The whole island is rooting for them… they’re already winners in our eyes, but it would help a little bit if they bring home the final prize as well,” related Kirton-Francis.
Shirley Vanterpool-Evans, an English and History teacher at the CCEC was also an instrumental part of the team’s victory. “I feel great, I knew they could do it, they’ve actually been working on it from the time they found out they won the last debate and we worked together in putting the material together.” She added that Elmore Stoutt High School was the larger school but this didn’t necessarily mean that they would be the successful team.
The Claudia Creque Educational Centre team next faces the Bregado Flax Educational Centre on March 13, 2013 in the finals of the competition to be held at the Eileene L. Parsons Auditorium of the H. Lavity Stoutt Campus in Paraquita Bay. The Topic will be “An additional year should be added to the school’s requirement for graduation”.
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22 Responses to “Claudia Creque trumps ESHS in debate semi-finals”
I was listening to the debate last night and these kids were on the ball. They all did a very good job and I must say congratulations to the winning team they were awesome. I also want to commend the young men for stepping up and taking this challenge. Our young men have a lot of talents so I would admonish the teachers and parents to continue working and encouraging our young men and don’t let them fall by the way side.