Exhibition Debate with Harrow
3 February 2026 - All
In January, sixteen debaters, ranging from UIV to UVI, went to Harrow School for a rewarding evening of competitive debating and socialisation.
Here’s what Debating Officer, Neda (UVI), shared about the day:
‘Having been introduced to our Harrovian counterparts upon arriving, the teams began diligently preparing for the first motion, addressing whether or not we should ban targeted political advertising on social media. Each round took the format of four rooms of British Parliamentary debates, with two Wycombe pairs and two Harrow pairs in each room. The demanding nature of British Parliamentary debate, allowing fifteen pressurized minutes to prepare five-minute speeches immediately after the release of the motion, produced some fiery debates that pushed all teams to carefully analyse the repercussions on their side of the house, engaging with and rebutting other teams’ points with clarity and precision. All of our pairs showed an impressive grasp of the topic, speaking on the complex themes of online data protection, political radicalisation and cognitive biases with considerable acuity.
The second round took an abstract turn, positing that we should regret the demonisation of selfishness. Once again, our debaters approached the motion with analytical rigour, resulting in rooms that explored many distinct facets of the question with admirable skill and nuance. Throughout this round, the pairs continually challenged each other’s definitions of human nature and explored whether the causes and consequences of selfishness have led to an overall positive or negative impact on humanity.
As co-head of our school’s Debating and Public Speaking Society and judge of one of the rooms at Harrow, I was extremely pleased with the evident progress our debaters have made since the beginning of the academic year, with several having started debating from scratch in September and now delivering fruitful, full-length speeches in exacting conditions. Our advanced debaters were similarly successful, employing their refined skills to emerge victorious in their rooms. Many teams placed highly in one or both debates, with all benefitting from the opportunity to grow their abilities in a competitive context and enjoying the experience of debating with another school.
The rounds were followed by a wonderful dinner in Harrow’s dining hall, allowing plenty of time to unwind and socialise with fellow debaters across years and schools. I would like to thank Harrow School for hosting us, particularly their debate leadership team, as well as my co-head, Daisy, for playing a significant role in organising the event and Mr Puwar for his valuable support and facilitation of the evening.’
A big well done to our debaters! We look forward to future events with Harrow in the coming year.
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