Tonbridge named winners of National Spanish Debating Competition

Two Tonbridge debating teams took part in the National Spanish Debating Competition for the first time on Wednesday 8 March. Hosted by North London Collegiate School, the competition saw 24 teams from 15 schools debate a range of motions.

The School was represented by four Sixth Form students: Konstantin Mamkhegov (PH5), Henry Collins (FH5), Tobé Onyia (FH5) and Johnnie Averdieck (WW4). The boys worked together to prepare materials ahead of the debate but delivered arguments as two teams.

The first round of debates covered a variety of topics from “The monarchy is unnecessary and must disappear” to “Public toilets should be unisex to ensure inclusiveness” and “Artificial intelligence brings more problems than solutions”.

Up against Eton College in the semi-final, Konstantin and Henry argued against the motion: “The existence of zoos violates the rights of animals”. In the competition final, the pair went head-to-head against Sevenoaks School with the motion: “Without immigrants the economy would completely fall apart”.

The pair impressed adjudicators with their use of sophisticated language, well-evidenced arguments, sharp closures and excellent teamwork. As winners, the boys have won a week-long residential trip to Salamanca this summer.

Head of Spanish, Mar Ponce Galán, said: “The Spanish department is incredibly proud of the boys’ performance and achievements. They were true ambassadors for our School.”

This success rounds off a fantastic couple of weeks for Tonbridge linguists.

The Lower Sixth French Drama group had fun performing an extract from Jean-Michel Ribes’ “Musée haut, musée bas” at the Festival de Théâtre Francophone, organised and hosted by Charterhouse School, winning Best Play and an individual award for Best French.

Meanwhile, the Upper Sixth group entertained and delighted their audience at the Festival de Théâtre Francophone at The King Alfred School with an excerpt from Molière’s “Les Femmes savantes”, taking home awards for Best Unique Theatrical Experience and Best French.

The School has also seen some younger boys proudly work independently on entries to the Anthea Bell Translation Prize and the Oxford University French and Spanish Flash Fiction Competitions.

Head of Modern Languages, Will Law, said: “Opportunities like these help the boys see that language learning extends far beyond the classroom and A-level/IGCSE courses, and it has been brilliant to share these experiences with other participating schools and their own communities of talented linguists.”