Public Speaking at St Benedict’s offers boys the opportunity to participate in various competitions/events that are essentially aimed at assessing and improving the oratory skills of the participants. There are three major competitions/events that take place over the course of the First and Second terms:
- The St Benedict’s Internal School Competition: This competition is divided into the Junior and Senior categories whereby external adjudicators assess the various participants on both their prepared and impromptu speeches. Awards are given to: The Best Prepared Speaker; The Best Impromptu Speaker and the Best Overall Speaker.
- The Guild Festival: Includes a series of competitions between different schools across Gauteng (ranging from Grade 8 – Grade 12). This festival is organised and adjudicated by the Speech and Drama College of South Africa. This particular festival has scope for both Team and Individual events and includes both Prepared and Impromptu sections, providing a platform for learners to hone their skills in Public Speaking.
- Interschool Public Speaking: St Benedict’s has recently started to participate in the Interschool Public Speaking Festival (attended by St. Andrew’s; Assumption Convent and Holy Rosary). This festival is aimed at giving individual speakers (from Grade 8 – Grade 12) an opportunity to present their prepared speeches on various topics aimed at giving the pupils an opportunity to speak in a “real-life context”.
As from the beginning of 2011, Toastmasters (an external public speaking organisation) has been running workshops with our boys, and their input has thus far been extremely beneficial and rewarding.