10 May 2024
The internal Year 9 public speaking event, the Arnold Reid Competition, has run over the past month. The competition, first established in 1945 and recently reinstated in 2010, allows students to build their creativity and public speaking prowess by presenting on a topic of their interest.
As part of the 2024 event our Year 9 contestants presented a short speech responding to a list of prompts, taken from Rostrum’s Voice of Youth topics. Students responded to prompts such as “Positive Vibes” and “Age is No Barrier” with speeches of their own creation. Contestants spoke broadly about the importance of mental health, inclusion, and social advocacy. Additionally, the competition required students to present a prepared reading from a list linked to the Year 9 curricular in the final round.
Thank you and congratulations to all participants. This year’s finalists, Advaith Abilash (Hawkes House) and Andrew Ung (Da Costa House), presented their speeches to a Year 8 audience in Big School Room in Week 10.
The competition was closely contested. Ultimately, Andrew Ung reigned victorious with an inspiring prepared speech on the failings of juvenile detention systems in response to the prompt “The End of an Era”. Similarly, Andrew’s reading of an extract from Desmond Tutu’s 2003 sermon, “No Future Without Forgiveness”, was impactful.
Congratulations Andrew!
Nia O’Loughlin
Coordinator of Public Speaking
