1993 School Magazine

the shape of her face, do Bono's six hats theory and the bene- fits of failure. Eighty percent of human thought is negative which leaves minimal room for insight and progression Therefore, if we are taught more about how to think we will be able to apply as well as just absorb.

U. N. CAMP 1993 For the first four days of the September holidays Dominque Ruedegger, Kerne Godden, Alex Maiden, Kylie Pierce and I attended a conference held by the United Nations. One hun- dred and forty students from a variety of Queensland schools attended the camp in order to acquire a greater understanding of the cultural and physical environment of the world today. Prior to the camp each student was allocated a member of slate of the UN. for which the student had to act as delegate in a mock General Assembly. This required some background research as the delegates had to act on behalf of their desig- nated country and not their own. Grammar delegates repre- sented Vanuaiu, Thailand, Russia, Venezuela and Iran respec- lively rig. '... ai *,- ,. ,,.. ., ,. : ? .", * 3.4 .?*

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As experience is one of the most useful instruments of educa- lion, Monday was spent in a mock General Assembly coin- PIGte with desk-top nameplates. The day consisted of several structured debates on student-organised resolutions. The top- ICs included trade sanctions on those nations not up holding the right of free religious expression, colonised countries to be paid damages by their coloniser, the phasing out of all nuclear weapons by the year 2000, the implementation of UN air strikes on Serbian artillery and the withdrawal of UN troops from the Iraq-Kuwait border by 1995. Some more humorous resolutions were also debated. Only the nuclear resolution was passed although not by a comfortable number For those countries participating, the day was demanding and entertaining but despite the diversity of resolutions, nations such as Zaire, Rumania and Bangladesh unfortunately could not have much direct contribution. By acting out the process- es involved, the flaws in the system were more noticeable. The day ran smoothly apart from the disbarring of the American delegates, a Mexican military coup on the Assembly and the assassination of a Japanese representative. The conference was a great informative and social experi- once. 11 was an opportunity to get to know people from all over Queensland and discuss the world's present and future The conference inspired those who attended with the faith that they can make a difference in the world. The 1993 United Nations Youth Conference can be best summed up in this quotation: "NeveJ. meds!{I'e Ihe he Ighi of a triouniQiii JIMiil yoit have ledched 111e lop. Then yoti n, ill see how low 11 wds. " (Dag Hammarskjold) 11 is these conferences that will teach us how to create a better future.

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After Friday night's introduction activities and a bonfire on the local beach, the remainder of the weekend was spent in seminars. The diversity and ability of the guest speakers made the periods captivating and educational. Several talks were based on the United Nations' associated bodies and other top- ICs covered the environment, the distribution of wealth, Amnesty International, human rights, self-esteem, peace- keeping in Cambodia and the future. These talks were given by highly respected experts like Professor Ken Wiltshire who spoke about the educational aspects of UNESCO. The timetable for the camp, although hectic, was immaculate Iy planned and well supervised. The seminars were enlightening although sometimes overwhelming Alarming statistics quoted included: two-thirds of the world's one billion illiterate population are women and sixteen per cent of cultivation in Cambodia is chiefly for mining than nine million land mines to be specific! ! in a world today so concerned about peace and fellowship between nations and races, it was disturbing to discover that $28 nilllion is being paid as interest every minute of every day from the "develop- ing" countries 10 the rich countries. Facts were not the main focus of the conference but instead the ideals and the ability to make them a reality. As Bill Hazelwood, an organiser, said on the first nioht "Learning in life can not be gained just from events but rather from the examination of the process which allowed them to occur. " The process of thinking was a main theme of the weekend. Different theories of thinkino were discussed and examined. The aim was not to view intelligence as the ability to regurgi- tale knowledge but instead the ability to create it. We were shown how a person's personality could physically determine more

NICole Glover

ANTARCTIC EXPERIENCE Creating a window in the timetable that would allow students and teachers to work without the constraints of subject and lime boundaries has been something that the year 8 program has been working towards for a number of years.

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