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New Zealand hosts world’s best secondary school debaters

This February, New Zealand school students will have a rare opportunity to witness some of world’s best secondary school debaters as they tour the North Island as part of the Russell McVeagh International Schools’ Debating Tour 2011. The tour is being run by the New Zealand Schools’ Debating Council.

The tour runs from the 13th to the 20th of February and will work its way from Wellington to Auckland via Palmerston North, Hawkes Bay, Rotorua, Hamilton and Whangarei.

Teams will be competing from New Zealand (Winners of the World Schools Debating Championships in Athens 2009), Canada (Winners of the World Schools Debating Championships in Doha 2010) as well as other world class teams such as Australia, the USA, India, South Korea and Malaysia. A New Zealand Development team of Year 11 and 12 students will also compete.

There will be eight rounds of debating followed by semi finals and a final. Teams will exchange arguments on important topics such as the merits of Wikileaks, China's one child policy, electing central bankers and the solitary confinement of prisoners. They will also compete in debates where they receive the topics just one hour before debating.

Debates will take place at secondary schools.

New Zealand will be represented by team captain Kieran Bunn (Logan Park High School), Sophie Boot (Christchurch Girls’ High School), Nick Orr, (Auckland Grammar) Aric Shakur (Palmerston North Boys’ High School) and Duncan McLachlan (Wellington College).

The New Zealand Development team includes James Penn (Whanganui High School), Kimberley Savill (Nayland College), Tim Robinson (St Bede’s College) and Michael Prendergast (Kerikeri High School).

President of the New Zealand Schools’ Debating Council Christopher Bishop says “NZ is delighted to be hosting some of the world's top
student debaters and we're sure that the teams will receive a warm
welcome at the schools they visit. And of course we hope NZ continues
its run of recent success and takes out the title!”

The New Zealand Schools’ Debating Council is a not for profit organisation which seeks to promote secondary schools debating at a regional, national and local level. Each year it hosts regional debating competitions culminating in the Russell McVeagh New Schools Debating Championships - to be held in May this year in Wellington. The team selected at that competition will go on to represent New Zealand at the World Schools Debating Championships in Dundee, Scotland, in August 2011.

This is a great way to start the academic year and we encourage media to attend.

ENDS

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