On 10 March a group of eight, Richmond upon Thames College (RuTC) A Level students were invited to take part in the self-titled 'toughest debate in the world' competition by Debating Matters charity.
RuTC's first year A Level students, Emily Johnson, Peyton Lewis-Williams, Eve Wilson, Evie March, Akash Rehinsi, Alice Mockett, Keira Napier and Cat Hay were chosen to take part in the national debate and faced Burgate School from Fordingbridge, Hampshire in the second semi-final round.
The topic of debate for both teams was, “Skills Gap: Too many people are going to University.” With Burgate answering for and RuTC against.
Burgate School won the debate against RuTC and went onto win the final against Queen Elizabeth Grammar School from Faversham, Kent debating “Tech companies should act to stop online misinformation.”
Kasim Agpak, Government and Politics teacher at RuTC was extremely proud of the participating students, he explains “When I first heard of this opportunity, I thought it would be a wonderful and useful experience for the students.
“Taking place in the House of Lords, the centre of political decision-making, there is nowhere more relevant to have these conversations.
I was so proud of their courage and enthusiasm to debate topics that are both currently affecting their lives and those that will do in the future, so all in all this experience was invaluable, totally priceless.”
Debating Matters is part of the Ideas Matter charity that seeks to renew social life through debate, discussion and education about the big ideas that have inspired humanity throughout history.
Learn more about studying A Levels at RuTC here
Images © House of Lords 2023 / photography by Roger Harris.