Jesuit Schools Debating Carnival

Over the first week of our holidays a group of 4 students and 2 teachers travelled to Sydney for the 2023 Jesuit Schools Debating Carnival. The Saint Ignatius’ College Adelaide team consisted of Matilda Byrne (captain), Emily Fidock, Fernando Osborn and Hayden Sparrow and they were joined by Mr Haskell and Ms Thurston.

We began the carnival with a very satisfying Round 1 win over Saint Ignatius College, Riverview, negating the motion That the environmental movement should take more radical action in the fight against climate change. Our Round 2 match was also victorious, over Xavier College, where we successfully affirmed the motion That teachers should actively and aggressively seek to compensate for social biases in the classroom. Round 3 saw the hosts from Saint Aloysius successfully affirm the motion That celebrity activism has been good for social justice against us, setting both teams up for a berth in the Grand Final.

Unfortunately, the Grand Final did see us defeated by Saint Aloysius negating the motion That the International Criminal Court should be able to give the death penalty for crimes against humanity; however, second place overall is a terrific result for the team.

Matilda Byrnes is congratulated on being awarded both the Team Spirit award and gaining a place on the Honorary Jesuit National team. We really appreciated the opportunity to sharpen our skills against the experience of the eastern states' debating teams and, most importantly, to forge new friendships with our fellow Jesuit Colleges.

Aaron Dohse
Coordinator of Co-curricular Arts & Activities