Pupils from Y Pant School will be participating in the prestigious English Speaking Union British Finals, to be held at Cambridge University on Saturday April 21st. Following their success in the Welsh finals of the Churchill Public Speaking competition, in Ty Hywel on March 5th, Thomas Hart, Lydia Morgan and Evie Morgan will be representing Wales.
All three competitors were highly praised by the experienced judges, who were particularly impressed by the competitors’ composure, maturity and understanding of their roles in the competition. Evie Morgan received praise for her speech: ‘Social proof and confirmation bias are more persuasive than rational evidence.’ The judges awarded her the title of ‘Best Speaker’ in the competition in recognition of her depth of understanding of this complex topic and the manner in which she responded to questions. Thomas Hart was commended by the judges for his skill in questioning the Speaker of the opposing team. He was awarded the title of ‘Best Questioner’ in the competition, with judges commenting that he was the most highly skilled questioner to have taken part in the competition. Lydia Morgan was highly commended by all judges for the mature and confident manner in which she led proceedings in her role as Chairperson. It was noted that her prior experience in this challenging role had played an important part in the development of her team leadership skills.
The pupils are looking forward to the final and will be well supported by their parents, family, friends and peers who will be making the journey to Cambridge along with proud and supportive teaching staff from Y Pant and members of the local community. We wish them all good luck!
By Miss R Jones
Photo: Lydia Morgan, Thomas Hart and Evie Morgan receiving the prestigious ESU shield – presented to the team by Manon Antoniazzi, Chief Executive of the Welsh Assembly