Congratulations to Emerald Willett and Stacey Zverev who were semi-finalists in the Modern Foreign Languages Debating Competition at Highgate School!

This was a tough competition, where the girls had to prepare arguments in French for and against the following motions:

·         L’état devrait financer la construction de tous les édifices religieux.

·         Mieux vaut l’intelligence que la beauté.

·         Les caméras de surveillance ne sont pas là pour la protection des citoyens.

Camilla and Natalie were knocked out in the group stage by North London Collegiate, but they came second in their group having fought their opposition fiercely.  Emerald and Stacey won their group stage by 8 out of 10 points, beating both Highgate School and Chigwell School, and making it through to the semi-finals.  The girls were fired up for the semi-finals and the French arguments were flowing!  They drew the semi-finals on points with North London Collegiate, with both teams achieving 7 out of 10 points, but North London Collegiate went through to the final though as they won both their games.  The Wycombe Abbey girls were commended by the adjudicators for the logic of their arguments, the depth of their research, the accuracy of their language and their spirited approach to the debate.

We are grateful to Highgate School for organising such an exciting competition and hope to return in future years.  The girls came away enthused by the sprit of the event and with their confidence boosted by debating in French.