Sastra Inggris

Universitas Sanata Dharma
Terakreditasi A Nomor 7345/SK/BAN-PT/Ak-PPJ/S/XI/2020
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Invited Adjudicator in AEO 2016: A Momentum to Defy Your Limit

In a prestigious semi-international debating competition participated by many countries in all over Asia, Asian English Olympics (AEO) needs not only competitive debaters from all over Asia but also a strong pool of adjudicators who are dedicated to provide fair assessment and sharpen the mindset of the debaters through constructive criticism. In that light, Christopher Tjia (2012), one of the members of EDS Sanata Dharma was invited by the Adjudication Core of AEO 2016 last February. Initially, he was afraid of accepting the invitation from the Adjudication Core of AEO 2016. He said that he had no experience in adjudicating a semi-international debating competition at all. Despite his doubt, he finally decided to accept the invitation after further consideration. He thought that AEO 2016 would be the great momentum for him to challenge himself, improve his adjudicating skill, and defy his limit to welcome lots of self-improvement.

In the preliminary rounds of AEO 2016, Tjia adjudicated diverse teams from all over Asia, such as teams from South Korea, Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, and of course Indonesia. Everything was going well in the preliminary rounds as he was able to provide fair assessment and insightful constructive criticism to the debaters in AEO. He even got the opportunity to adjudicate a top room twice in 2nd and 6th preliminary round. After the breaking announcement, he continued his adjudicating journey in elimination rounds after getting an A-Accreditation (with the score of 85). After adjudicating the rigorous and tight elimination rounds, Tjia was appointed as one of the judges in Grand Final for both Open and Novice category along with adjudicators from Indonesia, South Korea, and Philippines. To be a grand final judge in his very first adjudicating experience in semi-international debating competition was a remarkable achievement that he had ever made. He said that he felt so honored to be trusted as one of the adjudicators in both Novice and Open Grand Final Rounds. He also emphasized the exquisite learning experience that he got in adjudicating a hypothetical debate about indigenous society and minorities, an experience that he will never forget. In the end of AEO 2016, he said that he learned a lot of insightful perspective from diverse adjudicators from all over Asia and he would look back to AEO 2016 with pride.

To be one of the invited adjudicators in a semi-international debating competition is not a piece of cake. In order to enjoy that privilege, Tjia needs to attain a national adjudicating accreditation in British Parliamentary Debate (which he got last August 2015 in NUDC 2015 with B-Accreditation), establish a good connection and remarkable credentials in Indonesian debating society. He said that in order to fulfill the prerequisite to be an invited adjudicator, it takes lots of hardwork that tests him to maintain his resilience. He hoped that this achievement would inspire his juniors in EDS Sanata Dharma to always work hard and be resilient in order to enjoy prospective privilege in the future, including being an invited adjudicator of debating competitions. He also hoped that this achievement invited all students in Sanata Dharma University that EDS Sanata Dharma is more than just debating. Adjudicating is also an activity that is actively proliferated in EDS Sanata Dharma University that can sharpen our critical thinking and habituate ourselves to be a globally informed citizen. (tjia)

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