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Background The Schools Mace has been encouraging the discussion of controversial topics and current affairs since 1957. The competition is the largest and oldest schools debating tournament in the country, and former winners have gone on to be MPs, well-known journalists, captains of industry, senior lawyers, and prominent scientists. Establishments of all types enter the competition: further education colleges, comprehensives, private schools, grammar schools, schools with and without sixth forms, specialist status schools and city academies. The 2009 international champions were Ben Woolgar and Ben Martin from St Paul’s School in London. All schools in England can enter the competition on this website. Schools in Scotland should enter through ESU Scotland. Schools in Wales and Ireland have their own national competitions, the Julian Hodge Cup run by CEWC-Cymru, and the All-Ireland Schools Debating Competition run by a consortium of Irish university debating societies. The winners from all four of these national competitions will meet at the ESU’s own International Final with the date and venue to be confirmed. |
Debate AcademyThere are still places for the ESU’s debate summer school, Debate Academy. Held at Oakham School from 24 to 27 July, it offers intensive coaching to individuals aged 14-18 (there is no need for them to be accompanied by their own teacher) from some of the best schools debate coaches in the world. CPD – teacher training daysThe ESU is in the process of arranging CPD (Continuing Professional Development) days to run at the beginning of the next academic year covering an introduction to debating, an advanced debating session and one on public speaking. These days are excellent opportunities for teachers to develop and hone their own public speaking and debating skills as well as to learn how the competitions we offer run and get an inside view of how to coach students. Judging the national championshipThe ESU Schools Mace, more than any other debating competition, relies on the generosity of large numbers of people—the debating community, teachers, ESU branch members and members of the public—who give up their time to assess the early heats. At the heart of the ESU’s beliefs about debate is the conviction that it should represent real-world persuasive skills and debate skill can be evaluated by intelligent and fair-minded lay people with no special expertise in competitive debate. If you are interested in helping the competition to run, you could be an adjudicator. Please get in touch with us by e-mailing centre@esu.org. |
The online home of the ESU Centre for Speech and Debate.
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