Grade 9 student from southern Alberta competes in world debating and public speaking championship

The youngest student competing at the World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championship in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was from southern Alberta.

Thiren Sockanathan, 14, competed in the World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championship (WIDPSC) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, at the end of March.

The event brought together talented students from all over the world in a competition designed to test their skills in both prepared and impromptu formats.

“Day 1, we went to check in, and I didn’t know what to expect. Everyone is so good; I’m only in Grade 9,” said Sockanathan, who attends Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School in the Okotoks area.

“But as I went on, I found it great; I loved meeting people, making friends with people from (places like) South Korea. I didn’t expect something to happen like that, but it did, and it was great.”

The majority of the competitors at the event were in grades 11 and 12, and Sockanathan ended up being the youngest participant.

He earned the right to compete after a good showing at the International Independent Schools Public Speaking Competition (IISPSC) in Bermuda.

“That one is primarily Canada, U.S., India and Bermuda,” he said.

“Then, the one in Malaysia was so many different countries; it was Singapore and South Korea, Russia, Lithuania, Canada, U.S., Bermuda and Australia, New Zealand. It was so many.”

At the WIDPSC, students have four categories to test their skills in: prepared speech, impromptu speaking, interpretive reading and parliamentary debate.

Sockanathan competed against 122 of the world’s best high school public speakers and finished 20th overall, with his best showing in interpretive reading, where he placed sixth reading an excerpt from the novel Life of Pi.

“I enjoy doing voices in different accents, and I felt that the whole idea of Life of Pi, I just felt like I connected with Pi," he said.

“It was just something that was serious, but it also had humor in it, and it had many different people and voices and it was a really interesting piece to listen to and read.”

Lennard Fink, director of speech and debate at the school, says the good showing by Sockanathan at the world’s will only help him grow.

“It’s a huge feather in the cap for us; it’s great exposure for the school, certainly,” Fink said.

“We have a very strong program, and we’ve had several students go through to the world level and it’s great for the program because it encourages younger students to participate.

“Especially with a student like (Thiren) because he’s so approachable and (other students) look up to him.”