On Wednesday the 27th of March 2024, GIS students rushed into the multipurpose court eagerly awaiting the start of the much-anticipated debate between GIS and St. Thomas Aquinas Senior High School.
Following the opening speech by Mr. Ike Kowfie, the debate commenced with Form 4 students of GIS debating their counterparts from St. Thomas Aquinas school. They spoke for the motion: AI Stifles Creativity And Slows Down Human Advancement.
This captivating topic caused students to think deeply about the topic of discussion. They highlighted that AI kills the ‘Eureka!’ moments for humans to experience their inventions or discoveries, taking away the opportunity for them to think critically, amongst others. After this, however, the programme was not over. The seniors, the Lower 6th Formers were yet to argue on an equally captivating and thought-provoking topic: “Brain Drain is a catalyst for innovation and not a barrier to development in Africa”. The two sides battled this with St. Thomas Aquinas arguing against the motion and GIS arguing for it, each making strong points that Africa loses revenue in taxes due to brain drain and continues its dependency on the West when it relies on remittances from citizens abroad.
The debate was closed off with the judges announcing the winners. From the junior team, the students of St. Thomas Aquinas deservingly took home the trophy and in the senior category, Ghana International School came out as the champions! Regardless of who won, both schools and their students worked hard and tirelessly to put this debate together.
To close the debate, there was a short meeting between students of the two schools in the Math room, where the opportunity to expand knowledge on both topics was given. Students engaged with each other, shared ideas and opinions in a moderated but informal way, learnt from each other and built bonds that would hopefully stand the test of time. Thank you to all our English Language/ Literature Department teachers who worked tirelessly to prepare students for the debate and to all the students who cheered on the speakers. We hope to see more collaborations in the future.
By: Maame Adwoa Nduom, F3X and Ewuraba Asmah L6M
