The Socratic Club - 1st June 2025

We were hugely impressed with both Junior and Senior groups during our sessions at the end of half term.

Our skill of the week focussed on the ancient concept of PATHOS – and how to garner and elicit pity from an audience, from the argument being made. The aim being to inspire an emotional response.

Newsrounds took in:

The Chagos Islands deal, The King’s Speech and visit to Canda, Spain’s potential new rules on AirBNBs, the footballing tragedies of both Liverpool and PSG following on field success.

Our unseens took in ‘on this day’ in history moments, both on the Fall of Constantinople and also The late Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation 2 June 1953.

Debating motions took in the topics/questions:

·         Should the UK have more Bank Holidays?

·         Should we not just ban zoos? Rather than reform the rules to improve animal welfare?

·         Should people be allowed to go camping on Dartmoor?

·         ‘This House agrees with the US Treasury’s position on ending the role of the penny-cent’

·         With a global race to access and be involved in the Arctic, we asked ‘should the Arctic be owned by the world? Be divided up by individual countries or be created into a sovereign territory?’

·         ‘This House would have more Drama lessons in Schools’

In the Senior group we debated at length whether the disposable vape ban was the right course of action and whether all vapes should be banned, not just disposable.

We also turned to the Defence spending review and whether now was the right time for more defence spending.

Well done all on such tremendous contributions!