Inter-school debate impresses audience

The 21st century has given rise to smart gadgets which have become the norm of the day and are the result of the great strides made by technology.
Picking up on this trend, the Novel International School Jeddah (Al Mubdioon) organized and hosted a very inspiring school debate in Jeddah, under the auspices of the CBSE board’s Gulf Sahodhya Chapter on Saturday.
A total of nine different schools participated in the 24th Inter-school Western Zone Cluster debate including Al Falah International School (DPS), Jeddah; Al Manar International School, Yanbu; International Indian School, Jeddah; International Indian School, Taif Mahd Al Uloom International School, Jeddah, New Al Wurood International School, Jeddah; Novel International School, Jeddah; Radhwa International School, Yanbu and Shathi Al Noor International School, Jeddah.
The chief guest of the event, Mohammed Raghib Qureshi, head of Chancery & Consul Education, Indian Consulate (Jeddah) praised the efforts of the organizers saying that he was impressed by the debate.
“Cluster events encourage critical thinking and clear, logical representation of thoughts, and I look forward to more such events in the future,” said Qureshi.
Moderator Dr. Lakshman Socklingam, judges Anitha Beevi Kolooth, Shanthi Lakshman, and Ramesh Babu Menon, timer Satheesh Puthige, and assistant timer Sumaiya Ilyas, all of whom are experienced Toastmasters also generously donated their time and expertise to the event.
The junior students were given the topic entitled: “Social networking technologies will bring about great changes in educational methods in and out of the classroom,” while senior students presented their views on the idea: “Technology-enabled teaching is a blessing for the students of the 21st century.”
“Gulf Sahodhya’s Cluster Debate aims to bring students of KSA’s CBSE schools together as they learn from each other and promotes healthy competition. The children have made me proud by their performance. This event has proved that each one of them has immense potential and are destined for greater things,” Dr. Padma Hariharan, director & HOI of Novel Group of Institutions said.
She further explained that Gulf Sahodhya is a group of principals of various CBSE schools and aims to standardize the content and methods of education imparted to students. In addition, they also organize inter-school activities to promote a more holistic approach to learning. The cluster debate is one of such activities.
International Indian School Jeddah bagged first place in both the junior and senior debate, while Al Wurood International School and Al Falah International School (DPS) clinched second and third places respectively.
Mohammed Samraan Ghouse of New Al Wurood (for the motion), AtiqurRahman Khan of Al Falah (against the motion), and Mohammed Hashar Ahmar Qadeer of IIS-J (against the motion) were awarded best speaker awards for the junior debate.
Mohammad Maniyar (against the motion) and S. Farheen Fatima (for the motion) of IIS-J, and Najmussaqib Idrees of New Al Wurood (for the motion) were the best speakers of the senior debate.
The winning schools of this program will go on to compete in the finals, which will be hosted by Al Yasmin International School in Riyadh. Dr. Hariharan thanked her management Mr. Mujeeb Rahman, Principal Mr. Mohammed Shafeeque, and her team of faculty and staff for the full support in organizing yet another successful event for students of the community.