SHS & SHSID Bilingual Debate Tournament (Final)

On Tuesday, December 5th, the final round of the first Shanghai High School and Shanghai High School International Division Bilingual Debate Tournament took place. Having gone through preliminary rounds, quarter-final rounds, and semi-final rounds, 8 debaters came to this Final round. Under the topic ofwhether or not to replace online classrooms with traditional ones in our education system,two teams, each consisting of two representatives from SHS and two representatives from SHSID, presented their perspectives using novel ideas and relevant examples. Both teams took a firm stance on the issue of online versus offline classrooms, which has played an increasingly important role in the midst of our rapid technological progression.

Among the judges, two news anchors from local Shanghai television channels, Ms. Bei Aixinjueluo and Mr. Xuxu Bai, were joined by teachers from both the local and international division of Shanghai High School. They commended the debaters for

their outstanding performance, and stressed the importance of seeing this specific topic being discussed. Overall, the participants were able to demonstrate excellent skills in active debate using two languages and address a fundamental issue that faces our education system today.

(Written by Jerry Chen 12(1) Pictures by Sophia She 12(8) & SHS Media Center)

Testimonials :

SHSID: 夏云帆 11(1)A

Bilingual debate is personally significant to me as it's my first ever debate experience. I had never thought trying to defend a stance could be so difficult, so rigorous, and yet so exciting. This tournament not only offered me new opportunities to challenge my critical thinking, collaboration, and communication skills, but more importantly, it opened my eyes to the fascinating realm of debate and public speaking.

SHS: 杨俊杰 高二（9）

I think the bilingual debate is meaningful in that it not only enhances communication between local students and the international division but also offers an opportunity to compare the differences of Chinese and English debates in their styles. I enjoyed the whole process including both prepaing and debating, and hope the bilingual debate will become even more successful next time!

SHS: 蔡英诚 高一（8）

Bilingual Debate provides such a great opportunity that students from different backgrounds(both shs and shsid) can work together as a team towards a common goal in the realm of education. I gained a lot from the discussion and the ideas shared by my teammates and their great personalities shown in the cooperation. The ceremonious final round makes the debate even more meaningful. This is my first time to attend a bilingual debate, and I wish the tournament would be more successful next year!

SHS: 冯祚源 高二（9）

Bilingual debate, according to my understanding, stands not only as a platform for students from both divisions to compete and exchange views, but as a way to connect students together. Besides the skills and experience of the brand new system, what I treasure most is the pure friendship among our team and the harmonious relation of all teams. Wish the competition last long and bring both divisions closer together.

SHSID: 徐骁一 12(8)

This event was great in the fact that it promotes communication. Not only was every competitior's delivery skills tested, we also had to face the challenge of language barriers since our teams were mixed between international and local students.