Success for Southland Boys' High School in the Southland Debating Competition.
William Paris, Debating Captain 2025
If there was to be any doubt of the capability or sophistication of the debating ability of Southland Boys’ High School students by speculators, it would soon be diminished following the results of Southland Boys' High School at the Southland Secondary Schools Pre-Regional Competition.
On Saturday 1 March, Southland Boys’ High School competed in the Southland Pre-Regional Debating Competition hosted by James Hargest College. The interest in debating as an academic sport at Southland Boys' High School is no more evident than the approximate 30 debaters and eight teams representing Southland Boys' High School. A number not seen in my time.
The day would begin early at 8:30AM and see three open rounds of debating, where a variety of motions (topics of discussion) would be presented, and students would prepare arguments thereof.
Topics included were as broad as the benefits or costs of human space exploration, the idea of New Zealand forming a union with Australia, and whether single-sex schools should continue to operate. Through the day, the Southland Boys' High School team set an excellent standard of debating throughout the three speeches used in each debate.
The team have been practicing twice weekly at lunchtime in 4P. A recent focus has been learning how to interpret different types of motion, developing context, and structuring points, skills that are a necessity in the National Competition.
The high quality of the debaters throughout all rounds was evident in the results of the competition, with numerous Southland Boys’ High School teams winning their rounds and scoring high individual speaker points. The sheer number of Southland Boys' High School students did impose a few rounds of Southland Boys' High School vs Southland Boys' High School debates, however the boys handled this dilemma well, with some well-placed banter between teams providing comedic relief to an otherwise intellectually serious competition.
The quality of the speeches and development of arguments as teams resulted in a successful day.
Southland Boys' High School qualified for three of the possible four semi-finals placings.
Semi-final 1 between the two Year 13 sides consisting of William Paris, Rhys Harrison, and Zephyr Jackson against Josh Reynolds, Hayden Millar, and Michael Crean, with Head Boy Tom Smith sitting out as a notable fourth member.
Josh Reynolds, Hayden Millar, and Michael Crean would ultimately prove victorious in a debate surrounding the use of Artificial Intelligence as Friends.
In the other semi-final: The Year 12 team of Levi Te Amo, Tim McIlhone, and Lee Herrick would decisively win against Central Southland College.
In the final:
The Southland Boys' High School Year 12 Team versus the Southland Boys' High School Year 13 team debated the ethical motion of private charities receiving funding from groups contrary to their purpose. EG: Greenpeace receiving money from arms manufacturers.
After an intense debate, the Southland Boys' High School Year 13 team of Josh Renyolds, Hayden Millar, and Michael Crean prevailed over the SBHS Y12 team in what was an articulate and expressive argument by both teams.
This meant that overall Southland Boys' High School achieved first, second and third.
Southland Secondary School Team Selections
William Paris and Josh Reynolds for the Southland Regional Debating Team.
Levi Te Amo and Tim McIlhone selected as reserves for the Southland Regional Team.
Good luck for the finals to be held in Wellington. We hope that one of you is selected for the New Zealand debating team.
This marking not only the highest number of students from Southland Boys' High School ever selected for this team but also representing the quality of Southland Boys' High School debating on a national scale, with very few teams ever being comprised of more than one student from the same school.
Southland Secondary School Development Team:
Michael Crean, Rhys Harrison, Zephyr Jackson, and Lee Herrick
In Closing
Reflecting as Captain, I cannot think in my time at Southland Boys' High School of any better accomplishment in debating that what was seen at this competiton. The awards and victories received are a testament to the dedication and skills developed by our team members. For those considering joining debating at Southland Boys' High School, it is a more than worthwhile activity for developing confidence, academic ability, and the ability to present your ideas in a way broader than slinging insults at one another, with there being multiple competitions of various formats still to be held. Namely, the Regional Competition in August, Model United Nations this month, and the Winter Interschools in June. These opportunities are open to boys of all years from Year 7 - 13. Particularly, we have a current focus of developing Year 7 and 8 teams to fill our junior interschool teams in the coming years. Debating practices continue as per usual at lunchtimes on Wednesdays and Fridays in Mrs Welsh’s classroom in 4P, with all newcomers welcome.
