Swinburne’s debating championship draws over 30 schools
KUCHING: More than 30 schools and up to 300 students will take part in the 15th Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus Inter-School Debating Championship (SSIDC) on Feb 17-20.
The largest secondary school debate tournament in Borneo will see students from Bintulu, Kuching, Miri, Mukah, Samarahan, and Sarikei, as well as Johor, Melaka, Sabah, Selangor, and Kuala Lumpur on the debate floor.
A press release said experienced adjudicators from around the country and region will be brought in to provide thoughtful and constructive feedback during the oral adjudications a er each debate round.
“This year we are delighted to have experienced adjudicators joining us from Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Peninsular Malaysia who will provide invaluable feedback and advice to students at this tournament,” said chief adjudicator Hugh Leong.
Swinburne Debaters’ Club advisor and championship founder Christina Yin said this year’s tournament will include a magazine to commemorate its 15th year.
“There will be articles and write-ups from organisers, debaters, runners, tabulators, and others who have taken part through the years. We hope the magazine will give us a glimpse of what SSIDC means to so many people and how it has contributed to their learning, thinking and basically, their lives,” she said.
Apart from the champions and runners-up, five best debaters in the preliminary rounds and best Sarawakian team will be honoured from both junior and senior categories.
The coveted titles of best debater in the final and best overall debater in each category will also be up for grabs. Awards will also be given to the most improved and most promising teams, along with best speaker of English by a non-native speaker.
In between debate rounds, participants will enjoy downtime with games and activities run by the Swinburne Debaters’ Club.
Prizes are sponsored by the university’s various departments including the PVC Academic’s office, Marketing and Student Recruitment, Swinburne Sarawak Library, and the university’s Student Council.
The annual championship organised by Swinburne Debaters’ Club seeks to encourage students to debate in English and hone their oral and communication skills as well as their reasoning and critical thinking skills.
The tournament began with debaters from just six schools.
Since 2012, it has a racted participation of schools from Peninsular Malaysia as well as Brunei, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
For more information about Swinburne, visit www.swinburne. edu.my, or look for Swinburne Sarawak on Facebook, Instagram, Twi er, or YouTube.