Historical Association Great Debate National Finals
Anya, in Year 11, recently performed exceptionally at the Historical Association's Great Debate finals and was named runner-up in this national competition. The Great Debate is a public speaking competition where students have five minutes to present their speech arguing their answer to a historical question. This year's question was 'How can your local history tell a global story?' Having progressed through a school heat, a round of Reading schools and a national semi-final, Anya impressed the judges and history professors from the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford and York, at a final held at Windsor Castle. In their words:
Anya’s presentation on the secret history of BBC monitoring at Caversham Park near Reading was original and moving. Underpinned by excellent research, it opened a window into the hidden world of the refugees who contributed to this important enterprise, and to the enduring value of the multilingual and multicultural exchange that it serves to symbolises. Anya opened with sophisticated questions about the very meaning of global history, and used her talk to emphasise the vital and ongoing importance of telling true stories about the past and the present.
Congratulations to Anya and to the other Kendrick students whose entries were also of a very high standard.