Mohammad Maniyar, and Farheen Fatima (senior), and  Mohammed Hashar Ahmar Qadeer and Nasreen Nasser (junior) from IISJ receive trophy from Mohammed Raghib Qureshi. Maniar and Fatima also won first and second individual position of best speakers respectively. Mohammed Samraan Ghouse of New Al Wurood International School (extreme right) is the best individual speaker in junior category. — SG photos

 

Hassan Cheruppa

Saudi Gazette

 

DIVERGENT views and visionary ideas of talented teenage speakers on the pros and cons of using smart gadgets as learning aids captivated the audience in the 24th Western Zone Inter-school Cluster Debate Competition held at Golden Tulip Hotel in Jeddah.



Students from International Indian School-Jeddah (IISJ) stole the show by clinching first place in both the junior and senior categories while Jeddah’s New Al Wurood International School and Al Falah International School (DPS) bagged second and third places respectively. Mohammed Samraan Ghouse of New Al Wurood, Atiqur Rahman Khan of Al Falah, and Mohammed Hashar Ahmar Qadeer of IISJ won the first three individual positions of best speakers in the junior category while Mohammad Maniyar (IISJ), S. Farheen Fatima (IISJ), and Najmussaqib Idrees (New Al Wurood) were the best speakers in senior category.



They will compete with winners from other zones in the finals to be hosted by Al Yasmin International School in Riyadh. The debate, held under the auspices of the Gulf Sahodhya Chapter of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), was organized by Novel International School Jeddah.



Mohammed Raghib Qureshi, head of chancery and consul education, was the guest of honor.



The topic of debate for senior students was “Technology-enabled teaching is a blessing for the students of the 21st century” while the debate of junior students was on “Social networking technologies will bring about great changes in educational methods in and out of the classroom.”



Taking part in the debate, talented teens from nine schools of Jeddah, Taif and Yanbu virtually turned the event into a brainstorming session on how to use social networking technologies effectively for learning, in such a way that wards off its demerits. Most of the contestants agreed on the paramount role the teacher needs to play in the students’ learning process even in this high tech world.



“The smart gadgets can never and ever replace the role of a teacher. Similarly, the conventional teaching methods cannot be replaced by the new technologies, but they should be complementing and supplementing the traditional ones,” they said.



Some of the young speakers emphasized that books should be the main source of education. They alerted fellow students not to be too addicted to Facebook to the level of having apathy to textbooks and other traditional teaching aids. Some of them opposed the view that social media is a distraction from studying, arguing that if one focuses on study, nothing can distract him.



When a number of speakers argued that new media would help end shyness, others retorted arguing that some addicts of social media are reluctant to mingle with other students and even their family members and preferred to live in their ivory towers. But all of them agreed on the point that the effective use of social networking technologies would be helpful to multiply magnitude of knowledge and learning skills.



Addressing the audience, Qureshi congratulated the participants, especially the winners, and urged them to improve further their speaking skills so that they can become future leaders of the community and the country as well. He also highlighted the CBSE’s shift of focus to the development of students’ skills by using the high tech devices.



“CBSE’s is one of the best systems of education in the world. It continues updating the curriculum year after year, after thorough researches, and helps enable all round development of students’ talents and skills so as to build a better career,” he said.



Dr. Padma Hariharan, director & HoI of Novel Group of Institutions, also spoke. “Conducting the event was a wonderful experience for us,” she told Saudi Gazette. “It was highly encouraging for us to host such an inspiring event in this technological age when people of all ages and walks of life are armed with smart gadgets and spend hours cultivating their points of view on social media profiles. It was amazing to see talented young speakers are making an in-depth and microscopic analysis of various aspects of the topic and are instrumental in having sparkling of novel ideas,” the visionary academic added.



She thanked Novel School’s Chairman Mujeeb Rahman, Principal Mohammed Shafeeque, and her team of faculty and staff for their full support to make the event a great success.



Students from Jeddah’s Shathi Al Noor International School, Novel International School, and Mahd Al Uloom International School, as well as from International Indian School Taif and Yanbu’s Al Manar International School and Radhwa International School also participated in the debate in which Dr. Lakshman Socklingam was the moderator. The panel of judges comprised Anitha Beevi Kolooth, Shanthi Lakshman, and Ramesh Babu Menon, while Satheesh Puthige was the timer and Sumaiya Ilyas was the assistant timer.



The students of Novel School regaled the audience with their wonderful march past, and a mesmerizing musical event on building a better tomorrow by the school’s choir team. Head Master George Joseph proposed the vote of thanks. Anu Jose, Arshiya Taranum, Nafi, Mohammed Shah, Shaikha, and Pramila were the coordinators of the event. Sabitha was in charge of band and choir.