As part of our accreditation for the International Schools award the children have been taking part in a number of internationally linked events. One of these was a ten week programme called the Young Historians and the children in Year 4 learned all about American history, in addition to his they did research and prepared arguments against the legitimacy of the American War of Independence (or American revolution). the whole class were linked to judges, adjudicator and classrooms in New York to battle it out and I was stunned with the quality and the enthusiasm (E = Enthusiasm) the children argued with. It was a passionate debate and one professor found the Wallace fields Juniors the winners and the other professor scored the American school higher. Considering the level of the arguments and the excellent counter arguments it was a delight to watch and I was extremely proud of the children who represented the school online. More detail below in the Year 4 section or read on the diversity page on our website by clicking here. 

We are exceedingly proud of all our year 4 children who studied, researched and wrote points for a trans-Atlantic Zoom debate with their partner school in New York, USA: Talented and Gifted school for Young Scholars. Over the last few months, in a 17 lesson series to complete a project: Young Historians Program. Our capable, insightful year 4s absorbed and learnt concepts that are mature, thought provoking and enlightening. 

They learnt concepts such as colonialism and enlightenment with amazing brilliance. In their debate, they argued that America had no legal or ethical right to declare independence. Our debate team comprised of 12 children: Monty, Sabrina, Mai, Francesca, Ella, Elias, Dilan, Peggy, Nandika, Leena, Lochlan, Yoon Seul. They fought like mini warriors and ripped holes in the arguments of their opponents. The debates were judged by esteemed experts in the field of colonial history as follows:

Professor Andrew Jackson O'Shaughnessy, born in Britain and educated at Oxford, teaches history at the University of Virginia. Before becoming a professor, he taught history at Eton College. Between 2003 and 2022, he was Vice President of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation and Director of Jefferson Studies at Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's famous estate in Virginia. He is the author of An Empire Divided: The American Revolution and the British Caribbean (2000) and The Men Who Lost America: British Leadership, the American Revolution and the Fate of the Empire which won eight national awards.  He is a fellow of the Royal Historical Society. 
Professor Robert Allison, born in the US and educated at Harvard, is the Chair of the History Department at Suffolk University in Boston.  His books include The Boston Tea Party (2007), The Boston Massacre (2006),  and The Revolutionary Era, 1754-1783. He is the president of the South Boston Historical Society and president of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts. 
Both the judges were extremely impressed with the standard of the debate from both school and one stated, 'I almost forgot that I am not in a lecture hall with college students and that I aIm with 8/9 year olds' and one complimented, 'The oracy is supreme and the composure and confidence of the children of Wallace Fields is exemplary, I couldn't talk like that when I was that age and until much later' whilst Mr. Lee commented, 'They were absolutely phenomenal and they had the air and confidence of Year 6 children, I was blown away and loved listening to them' and the creator of the course acknowledged, 'The British children had the harder side to argue but they showed a gladiatorial spirit and made the competition so close'. By a small margin, our American counterparts won the debate with the judges divided as Professor Alison favoured us and Professor O'Shaughnessy going with the American school.  

A special thank you to Mr. Lee, Mrs. Curran and Mr. Taylor for your support and encouragement in completing the Young Historians Program. The knowledge gained and the skills learnt applied have catapulted our learner's abilities and self-belief. 

We have attached some photos and a copy of their debates. We hope you will commemorate their superb effort with immense pride and joy. I am extraordinarily proud of them. Mrs. Kidwai