Culture

The chess program at St Edmund’s is played across all year levels at the College. During Term 2, students in Years 7 to 12 compete in the Associated Independent Colleges (AIC) competition.  Students will often practice their skill and ability in chess throughout the year playing many internal games against other students within our school context. Often these games will occur at lunch breaks or before/after school in the Chandlery (Library).

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?

Often regarded as the contest for the intellectually gifted, chess is the best sport to exercise the most important organ in one’s body: the brain. Not only will chess improve one’s memory, focus, self-discipline, problem-solving, and reasoning, it will also enable players to interact with other like-minded strategists.

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?

Chess is available to all students from Years 5 to 12.

WHEN IS IT HELD?

St Edmund’s College competes in the AIC chess competition on Friday afternoons during Term 2. The chess teams train once (1) a week during Terms 1 and 2.

UNIFORM REQUIREMENTS

Students who represent the College at chess wear their school uniform.

WHO ARE OUR COACHES?

A team of dedicated external and internal coaches facilitate the teaching and development of the teams. For more information, please contact our Chess coordinator at sports@sec.qld.edu.au.

The College offer students a variety of Coding & Gaming groups to be part of. These opportunities can be summarised into: 

• Lego League
• Hackathon
• Dungeons & Dragons
• eSports 

These activities present a modern and technological way of engaging students and it requires skills such as thinking strategically, learning to work as a team and putting forth strong individual effort. Being a part of a team can be beneficial in a student in helping them to develop strategy, teamwork and problem-solving skills while increasing socialisation as the boys work together as a team. The College will provide coaches and a supportive environment for these activities. 

 The College has registered in numerous competitions including: 

• Federation of United Schools eSports (FUSE) Cup
• University of QLD High Schools Cup
• QUT High School League 

The chosen eSport games are age appropriate and do not include any violent content. These games include Mario Kart Deluxe 8, FIFA20 and Rocket League on the Nintendo Switch. The boys will train at school and compete in tryouts to select a representative time to compete once a term. 

Lego League is an internationally acclaimed robotics program that inspires a passion for Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths in young people. Our involved students are reaping the benefits of participation in FIRST programs such as Lego League. 

A Hackathon is an event, usually hosted by a tech company or organisation, where programmers get together for a short period of time to collaborate on a project. The students work rapidly to achieve their task picking up the necessary coding skills along the way. 

Dungeons & Dragons is a table-top role play game involving narration, mathematics, problem solving, deduction, improvisation, story-telling, strategy and character formation. Students involved are reaping the benefits of participation to widen their own transferrable skill set.

Debating is aimed at helping students develop skills such as communication, leadership and confidence through participating in a range of local, state, national and international competitions. 

Debating is a structured method of presenting a point of view developing lifelong skills which include effective teamwork, focused research, critical analysis, case structuring, purposeful rebutting and general public speaking ability. It is an area of learning which encourages intellectual exchange and allows students to develop confidence and creativity.  Students across Years 8—12 participate in debating at Iona and are coached on a weekly basis. 

It is an enjoyable activity that develops confidence and an ability to work in a team, research and logically argue both sides of a given topic, and speak confidently. Debating has been strongly supported in the College for many years with opportunities for participation in Inter-House and Inter-School competitions. Both experienced and new debaters are welcome to join the teams each year. Astute coaching of the many talented young men has frequently resulted in competition victory. 

Each year, the College takes part in the Ipswich Secondary Schools Competition held in Term 2. The College has also entered teams in both the Queensland Debating Union (QDU) Schools Competition and APEX competitions in the past across many year levels. The College has a good record across all competitions regularly participating in the finals.

The St Edmund's Drama and Media Clubs offer students an additional avenue to cultivate their skills and interests beyond the confines of the classroom. These clubs run year-round, providing ongoing opportunities for students to hone their talents and pursue their passions.

In addition to competing for St Edmund’s College as part of the Associated Independent Colleges (AIC), St Edmund’s is involved in a range of external cultural competitions. These include the Queensland Debating Union, Queensland Youth Theatresports and the Queensland Catholic Schools and Colleges Music Festival. Students are also able to access a range of exciting opportunities through a variety of external performances, camps and touring events.