Students from Gozo honed their oracy skills at a public speaking competition in English held earlier this month.

The competition was the third of its kind organised by the Gozo branch of the English Speaking Union in association with Rotary Gozo. It was held on Thursday January 16 and Friday January 17.

On the first day, seven 11-year-old students from the Bishop’s Conservatory Secondary School and the Gozo College Middle School competed in the Junior category.

Seniors competed on Friday evening, with five students from the Gozo College Senior School and Sir M A Refalo Sixth Form College in the running to be crowned Gozo’s best young public speaker.  

Whilst the junior speakers concentrated on issues of global warming and the ways in which it could be tackled, senior contestants used a wider approach to the competition theme with topics as varied as ‘The value of happiness and how to achieve it’, ‘Intolerance and the rise of extremism’, and ‘Post-crossing – the value of exchange of post cards internationally’.

In the Senior competition, the prepared speeches were followed by impromptu speeches on a topic selected by each speaker from a choice of three given during the first interval. 

The topics selected included ‘Something I’ve always wanted to do but haven’t yet’, ‘An important lesson I have learned’, ‘If I could travel through time’, ‘What school doesn’t teach us’ and ‘Is travelling good for you?’ and these speeches were delivered with a spirit and humour which perhaps gave the audience a greater insight into their character than did the pre-prepared speeches.

Last summer, for the first time, two of the senior students had, with help of grants from Rotary Gozo, attended the annual residential ESU London Debate Academy in England. Whilst waiting for the Judges to return after their final decisions, they gave an enthusiastic account of their experiences. It is hoped that the number of Gozitan students attending this Debate Academy can be increased this year.

All smiles as Senior category contestants pose for the camera.

On each night the Judges praised all contestants for the very high standard of presentation, emphasising that selection of the three first placed had been very difficult.

Eliza Stellini won the Junior competition, with Daniel Grech and Kyle Saliba in second and third places.  Presley Clark  won the Senior competition, with Elena Attard and Nicole Micallef in second and third places.

Gozitan students will be competing next year in the heats in Valletta to select the Maltese representative for the ESU International Public Speaking Competition in London.

Doris Cini, Frank Muscat and David Gahan were judged for the Junior competition. Anthony Galea, Frank Muscat and Pia Zammit were judges for the Senior category.