Our girls at St Margaret’s College are an ethical bunch.
They know how to consider an ethical issue and look at various sides of the argument.
To prove it, they’ve just won Gold at the South Island Ethics Olympiad. In July, they will be one of two South Island teams (the other is SMC brother school Christ’s College) vying at the international competition.
The team is Anita Avia, Claudia Hundleby, Tessa Sitjes, Hannah Wylie, and Emily Harris – they won Bronze at last year’s South Island Olympiad. Anita also recently participated in an ethics case writing competition and received an honourable mention for her case, ‘Kids Getting Older Younger.’
The Ethics Olympiad provides teachers and students with a creative vehicle for developing skills in clear collaborative communication, critical thinking, and respectful discourse while dealing with contested issues.
Amanda Surridge, Assistant Head of Learning Enhancement, says the girls learn about collaboration, open discussion where everyone contributes their ideas, planning, and respect for each other.
“They have a passion for it. They are very good communicators – they work as a team and are very good at articulating their ideas as well as building counter arguments.”
Amanda Surridge, Assistant Head of Learning Enhancement
The girls had eight ethical cases that they had been discussing in the weeks leading up to the event. During the day, all students competed in a series of heats where they were scored according to set criteria that rewarded, clear, concise, respectful discourse around interesting ethical cases.
“Our vision to empower our students to make a positive difference in the world, and to encourage team work, critical thinking, and an appreciation of diverse points of view, aligns beautifully with the Ethics Olympiad. We are proud of our SMC team and looking forward to supporting them at an international level.”
Diana Patchett, Executive Principal
The students are now hard at work preparing for the International Ethics Olympiad on 27 July. This year’s event is again being held online, adding another challenge to the mix
