Alyssa Yap from SMK Green Road in her element during the finals.
KUCHING: SM Lodge and SMK Green Road battled it out at Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak Campus Inter-School Debating Championship (SSIDC) finals yesterday.
After five preliminary rounds since Jan 28, in the senior category, SM Lodge team of Elissa Chung, Ian Russell Kueh and Nicole Njor lost to the team from SMK Green Road comprising Alyssa Yap, Eric Khiu and Joshua Jong, with Alyssa winning the Best Debater award.
In the junior category, Kolej Yayasan Saad from Melaka with Harvynna Kaur Kier, Nurhasya Mahadzir and Muhammad Adam Zachry Mohd Ali beat SMK Batu Lintang of Kuching comprising Abigail Silvester, Nophel Cheng and Ryan Reyner Low Way Wen. Harvynna Kaur Kier was awarded Best Debater.
Sarawak Education Department director Dr Azhar Ahmad presented prizes to the winning teams.
Earlier, Swinburne Sarawak deputy vice-chancellor and chief executive officer Professor John Wilson said the debating platform has become an event that brings experienced and novice debaters from all over the country and region, exposing Sarawak students to their peers with varied debating skills. The tournament has truly grown beyond expectations.
“More than 90 teams from 30 schools with lower and upper secondary school students participated. I hope this has been a positive platform for you to forge new friendships and learn from the adjudicators, and that the conservation activities at the tournament have sparked your care and concern for the environment,” he said at the award presentation ceremony.
The schools ranged from fully residential schools in Betong, Kuching and Melaka to private day schools in Kuching as well as Chinese independent schools, government cluster schools, single-sex and co-educational schools in Sarawak, Peninsular Malaysia and Indonesia.
Swinburne Sarawak is awarding Engagement Scholarships to the champions, runners-up and two semi-finalists, and the top Sarawakian team. The debaters in all teams are eligible to enroll in any of Swinburne Foundation programmes within the next three years with scholarships ranging from RM3,000 to RM4,500 each.
Since its inception in 2005, the annual event is eagerly awaited by students and teachers as it offers diversity on the debating floor that is unparalleled and the opportunity to meet and mingle with peers.
Other activities during the championship were Tree of Life and Looks for Conservation and Debate, promoting environmentally-friendly practices and behaviour organised by the major sponsor Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Malaysia Programme.
This year’s chief adjudicator was Swinburne’s Hugh John Leong, deputy chief adjudicators were Sheikh Muhammad Faizal Shah director of Nous Academy, Lim Tai Jie SSIDC alumnus and debater for Monash University, and Christina Yin founder of the inter-school debating tournament.
Swinburne sponsored 19 experienced adjudicators from Peninsular Malaysia to provide fair and constructive feedback to the debaters, as “oral adjudication” helped debaters earn and improve each round, as well as other adjudicators based in Kuching.
It was organised by the Swinburne Debaters’ Club, funded by the School of Foundation Studies with sponsorship from WCS Malaysia Programme, The Brooke Gallery, English Language Centre, Data Print Centre and John’s Pie.