Calcutta Debating Circle in association CLC presents Debating Excellence 2024
Calcutta Debating Circle in association with CLC presents Debating Excellence 2024. NSHM Centre for Language and Communication, Kolkata, organised a Debating Workshop and Competition in association with the Calcutta Debating Circle on 29th June 2024.
Over 130 NSHM students participated in this workshop, where ten mentors from prestigious universities like Cambridge, Yale, Harvard, and the London School of Economics trained them.
Mr. Pradeep Gooptu, CDC Trustee, interacted with the participants, explaining the rules and regulations of debate. He emphasized, “Listening is the most important part of debate for clarity of thoughts to counter the opponent later.”
Jordan Anderson, winner of 21 UK and International debating competitions and a well-known coach, along with Heather Robinson, who has over ten years of competing and coaching experience, addressed the audience. Anderson explained rebuttal techniques and the importance of time limits, while Robinson presented a demonstration to make the concepts comprehensible to the participants. This engaging session encouraged participants to recognize key points and get involved in the process.
Mr. Cecil Antony, Chief Mentor of NSHM Knowledge Campus, warmly welcomed all guests and participants, expressing hope for future such endeavors.
After the session, participants were divided into eight groups, each with a mentor to train the group of 15-20 students. The mentors included notable debaters and coaches like Molly Callaghan, Elias Silver, Arjun Gunalan, Martha Lucas, Nir Amir, Joe Fennel, and Mihika Chechi. These breakout sessions began with basic debate topics and progressed to more advanced ones, providing hands-on exercises for effective learning. The mentors focused on language usage, content, confidence, body language, and vibrancy for the final selection.
Dr. Soujanya Pudi, Head of the Centre for Language and Communication, stated, “We look at how we could help the students to improve their public speaking skills.”
Among the selected students for the last round of the in-house debate, Mr. Soumyapriya Chatterjee, a second-year BBA Sports Management student, represented NSHM Knowledge Campus, Kolkata in the final debate.
