YTC surprises prestige schools

For the first time in the history of the institution, the Youth Training Centre Government School has entered a debating forum for secondary school students, and has succeeded in trumping some of the more prestigious institutions to secure a place in the semi-final round of the RBTT Roytec Young Leaders Debate. The debate, which began two years ago, welcomed all secondary schools as well as non-conventional educational institutions. The duo of Adrian Johnson and Javon Charles from YTC has proven to be quite a crowd favourite since the start, and has been lucky to secure a spot in each consecutive round of the debate.

The duo will come up against  El Dorado Secondary School in the semi-final round of competition on March 24. In delivering their arguments against the motion “Be it resolved that Creative Leadership is the key requirement for the Peaceful Co-existence of Mankind” Johnson and Charles drew a lusty round of applause from the audience, after claiming that creative leadership, along with universal education would ensure that mankind lived together in harmony. Both Johnson and Charles sought to establish a link between the motion which had been argued in rounds one, two and three, by stating that creative leadership was not the only pre-requisite for peace. They argued that qualities incorporated through universal education taught man how to accept one another, and hence determined what choices an individual made, and whether these were good or bad.

While commending creative leaders, Johnson demonstrated that if a leader had no knowledge of a situation, which would be taught through universal education, then he/she would be unable to make a suitable decision on the matter. However, he also argued that if they were properly schooled, they would be armed with the necessary educational tools to make an informed choice, thereby preserving peace in society. Additionally, he stated that universal education ensured a person’s all-round development, so that leaders would be emotionally, spiritually and mentally armed to deal with conflict resolution. Supporting his colleague’s statements, Charles said there were different types of leaders, and that universal education and creative leadership “go hand in hand. “Using the analogy that universal education and creative leadership “were like a pair of feet, they need each other to balance,” Johnson and Charles argued that education came with life experiences and that it also determined how successful a person becomes in life which would eventually bring contentment, and ultimately peace.

Kadisha Cox and Witney Pope, the winning duo from Barataria Junior Secondary argued that while there is a need for creative leaders, there was also a need for the establishment of a good value system which included honesty, humility and integrity. While creative leaders can continuously expound on what they want from followers, once someone is educated, they will have a choice and can exercise this ability in every situation, they argued. The team of adjudicators for yesterday’s round of debate included Margaret Walcott, Kim Morton, June Nathaniel, and J Errol Lewis, while Linda Francois acted as time-keeper, and Hans Geiser performed the role of chairman. The four teams which were successful in moving through to the semi final round were St Mary’s College, Youth Training Centre Government School, El Dorado Secondary, and Barataria Junior Secondary.