College students perform excellently in Public Speaking competition

Posted: Thursday, February 16, 2012

On the cold and frosty evening of 31^st January,several year 10 students departed in the school minibus to attend the annual event of the Inter-School Public Speaking Competition for International Students. Alina, Jane and Steven were supporting their peers Adam and Assel , both of whom had been selected to represent the College.

The 10 contestants, from a total of 5 nearby boarding schools, were aged between 14 and 18. Each talk, on a topic of the student's choice and typically presented in a PowerPoint format, was to last 2 minutes, allowing for 1-2 minutes of questions from the audience afterwards.

To deliver an uninterrupted presentation in another language, in front of an unfamiliar audience is no easy task, particularly for those students who have been studying in England for less than 6 months; on this, the judges and the Headmaster from King's Bruton, who gave a welcome speech, agreed. However, all rose to the challenge. The wide range of titles, together with the high standard of fluency and pronunciation, meant that the judges had some difficult decisions to make in choosing an overall winner.

After a pleasant break for refreshments, results were announced and certificates - and chocolate - presented. The judges were 'impressed with Assel's vision of her dream hotel and the power of her sales pitch' in 'A Place of my Dreams'; Adam was commended on his 'flights of expression and wonderful sense of humour behind his dead-pan delivery' of 'Space Tourism'!

All in all, it was a most enjoyable evening. Thanks and well done to all involved, especially Mrs Scott-Flintan for organizing the event and for helping the students to prepare so well for it; also to Mr Budd for driving and to Mrs Thompson and Miss Smith for their support.