Debating Society
The Scientific Society of the Boston Grammar School was formed in January 1925 and later became the Scientific and Debating Society. In 1930 the two functions separated, and the Debating Society was formed. Here are the results of some of the debates.
1928
- 22 November 1928 - "Prohibition in England is desirable" Defeated by 43 votes to 25
1930
- 30 October 1930 - "There will be another World War before 1945" Defeated by 12 votes to 8
1931
- 1931 - "Talking films will never replace Stage Plays" Defeated by 10 votes to 5
- October 1931 - "There will be another World War before 1945" Defeated by 12 votes to 8
- 1931 - "England is suffering from an overdose of Sport" Defeated by 10 votes to 8
1932
- 1932 - "This house views with disfavour the Americanisation of the English Language" Carried by a large majority
1933
- 1933 - "That school reports should be abolished" Defeated by 8 votes to 6
- 1933 - "That no profit is to be gained from the teaching of History" Defeated by 7 votes to 4
- 1933 - "That body-line bowling should be abolished" Defeated by 11 votes to 7.
1934
- 1934 - "That Hitler has improved Germany's position" Defeated by 19 votes to 8
- 1934 - "That America is now producing better films than England" Defeated by 29 votes to 2
- 1934 - "That a Scientific Education is more advantageous than a Classical Education" Carried by 15 votes to 5
1934/35
- 1935 - "That educational films should be adopted in schools" Carried by 16 votes to 8
- 1935 - "That co-education is desirable" Carried by 11 votes to 6
1935/36
- 24 October 1935 - "Military training should be given to all schoolboys over the age of fourteen" Defeated by 11 votes to 5
- 5 March 1936 - "A safety pin is of more use than a bottle of glue on a desert island" Defeated by 5 votes to 4
1936/37
- 1937 - "That horse traffic should not be allowed on the roads" Carried by 6 votes to 4
- 1937 - "That women and children should not be saved first." Defeated by 11 votes to 3
- 1937 - "That a return to Roman Britain would be desirable." Defeated by 18 votes to 4
- 1937 - "That a rolling stone does gather some moss." Carried by 21 votes to 3
1937/38
- 21 October 1937 - "That corporal punishment should be abolished" Defeated 36 votes to 2
- 4 November 1937 - "That we are more cruel than our ancestors" Defeated 11 votes to 7
- 18 November 1937 - "That cats should be taxed" Defeated by 17 votes to 3
- 2 December 1937 - Reading papers on "The use of Wireless Waves other than for Broadcasting" and "Aeroplanes"
- 27 January 1938 - "That this House views with growing disfavour the appalling lack of manners in the twentieth century" Defeated by 13 votes to 3
- 24 February 1938 - "That the good old days were not so good" Defeated by 5 votes to 4
1938/39
- 27 October 1938 - "In the Munich Agreement Mr. Chamberlain betrayed not only Czechoslovakia, but also his own country." Carried by 19 votes to 15
- 10 November 1938 - "The prefect system is ridiculous" Carried by 13 votes to 9
- 24 November 1938 - "The cinema is an abomination" Defeated by 3 votes to 17
- 2 February 1939 - "Radio gives better value for money than the cinema." Carried by 12 votes to 6
- 16 February 1939 - The society held a General Knowledge Bee. Foster's team beat Campbell's 35 points to 32
1939/40
- 1939 - "That school-teachers are born and not made." Defeated by 18 votes to 3
- 1939 - "That novels and films should always have a happy ending." Voting resulted in a tie. Mr. Bastick who was Vice-President of the society had the casting vote. He gave it against the motion which was therefore defeated
- 1939 - "That all propaganda is childish and undignified." Defeated by 36 votes to 2
- 1940 - "That sarcasm is the lowest form of wit." Defeated by 16 votes to 5
- 1940 - At the final meeting of the Society a Lincolnshire Knowledge Bee was held. Foster's team beat Baxter's by 36 points to 28
1940/41
Since most of the Sixth Form and many other Upper School boys devoted a lot of time to studying First Aid and to the ATC, the Scientific Society did not meet during the year and the Debating Society only held one debate.
- 1940/41 - "That the Government should sanction reprisals against the enemy" Defeated by 21 votes to 13
Unknown
Other motions listed in Floreat Bostona without dates (but possibly from 1931) are:
- "That co-education in schools is desirable." Defeated by 10 votes to 8
- "That homework should be abolished." Carried by 14 votes to 1
- "That school games should be compulsory." Defeated by 11 votes to 5
1968
The 1968 school year followed the Summer of Love and that got a mention in the Bostonian magazine report (written by D Thomas) of that year's activities of the society:
During the year the Society has pursued a policy of dealing with controversial subjects of current interest. The issue of immigration and the "make love not war" philosophy, which all hit the headlines this year, were debated by the Society, which often brought a touch of humour to apparently serious issues.
We had the assistance of High School members in some of the debates and also during a discussion on abortion and euthanasia. Liberalism seemed to be the essence of the decisions taken on all the subjects debated and discussed.
Although attendances have increased, there still seemed to be a certain unwillingness of many members to participate in the debates, both from the floor and the platform. This has led to the predominance of a small number of speakers, whose coherence never seemed to improve with experience. However, their unique brand of "humour" partly compensated for this.
We hope for a flux of more gifted speakers in the near future.