The Year Thus Far

Hey all, this year has certainly been a year that will go down in the history books of the SJII debating society. Many milestones were set, and many precedents achieved by the debate society. But that's not to say that we didn't have our fair share of disappointments, failures, and problems. As they say, failure is the mother of success!

To sum up what has been truly a year to remember, Thiruneeran has given physical form to his thoughts of the year. Below is his perspective on the year thus far, and wha the has gained from it. Hopefully, juniors might appreciate the effort Thiru has put in for you guys (:

Debate Society – Audacia et Effetus
by Thiruneeran

My year at the debate society has been very interesting and meaningful because it has taken me through a learning journey. My experience has enabled me to achieve 2 important things. First of all, it has enabled me to acquire an incredibly useful skill set of being able to persuade. I used to have the impression of myself that I was able to persuade effectively. While I think I wasn’t entirely wrong, I found that there was so much more that I was able to do to clarify my thought processes and arguments to persuade much better after undergoing the training and the competition experience. Secondly, it has also given me many opportunities to interact with people and get to know them better. In the process, I have made a good many friends.

Debating in competitions enabled me to calm my nerves and remain relaxed even in tense situations. The nerve-wrecking moments during competitions were countless, even in the few competitions that I participated in. Over the months, with increased training and practice, I have been able to tackle opposing arguments not only with a calmer and hence clearer line of thought and logic, but also with more sophisticated arguments. Apart from that, it has generally improved my line of logic and has brought about increased clarity in my thought processes. And I am able to see the benefits of this first hand in my academic performance. For instance, the general standard of my English essays and commentaries have improved significantly since the start of the year. My English teacher made a point to tell me that the flow of ideas and the structure in particular have improved over the whole year.

The year in debate has given me many valuable opportunities. There have been many instances where I have been able to exercise my leadership and build rapport with many peers and juniors. Because I joined the school a year after most of the juniors had, I had little opportunity to interact with them directly. This was the case with most of the senior students. Therefore, as a whole grade level, we felt somewhat detached from the rest of the school community. My involvement in debate enabled me to overcome this distance from the juniors because I was able to interact with them on debate activities. Coupled with the juniors’ camp in which I played a role as a facilitator, I was able to effectively establish friendships with students in the junior grade levels. This gave me an avenue to get to know many more people in the school community.

Also, I have been able to serve well as I was presented the opportunity to lead the society as President. I have served in a leadership role as the President of the Drama and Gavel Club in my previous school. However, my secondary school years were a period of great change and I found it difficult to cope with the dramatic changes and as a result, my relationships with my peers and juniors underwent some stress. Hence, I wasn’t fully able to maximise the opportunities in my capacity then to bring as much benefit to those who depended on me. However, it was a great learning opportunity for me, and I’m glad that I was able to take away the learning from that experience. This time round, i’ve been able to observe my vice president and secretary and learn from the way they interacted with the juniors and coupled with my past experience, I believe that I was able to bring much more benefit to my peers and juniors. Apart from that, I have also been able to grow as a person and be much more of a friend, and in a good way, less of a president, to the members of the debate society. By doing so, even though I was in a position and capacity to lead, I was able to communicate with my peers and junior s more comfortably and got their support much more readily.

And often, I found that I was not only able to lead, but also able to bring out the leaders in many of the members. I recall more than a few occasions on which I was able to evidently see the compassionate side or the initiative of several members. Seeing my peers and juniors being leaders in their own right was a gratifying experience in itself. And they all added to my overall experience in debate society.

Also, I appreciate that the people around me constantly supported me throughout the whole process. My teacher-in-charge, coach and peers were always there to help and to cooperate. And they always reminded me of how important the art of cooperation for an organisation to grow and excel. And I’ve been able to actively practise what I have learnt and accumulated over the past years.

At the beginning of the year, I wasn’t sure whether to join debate or not. But at the end of the year, I can only say that I have most certainly made the right choice. The friends, competitions, events, and training have made for a wonderful experience throughout the year.

It’s not all good news though – there were things that could have been improved upon. The debating blog that was set up wasn’t kept up to the standard we initially aimed for. And some of the juniors did find themselves somewhat detached from the debate sessions and weren’t able to fully appreciate the merits o debating. However, the problems have been identified and I intend to work more closely with members next year to improve their experience in debate.

Conclusively, I’d just like to say that at the end of the day, my experiences and learning in the debate society have prepare me better to cope with the stresses and tensions of next year and for university.

The End