Description

In 2007 Hale School in Perth Western Australia embarked on a bold new project to promote higher order thinking among secondary school students. The success of Philosothons in WA has largely been due to its close association with APIS. The WA Philosothon grew each year eventually involving 30 schools and all the major WA universities. Recently APIS has taken up the mantle from Hale School, and in collaboration with the University of Western Australia hosts the competition. 

Taking the form of a ‘community of inquiry’ students from a diverse range of schools collaborate to answer a philosophical question. Given university grade stimulus material written by well respected academics, students are exposed to a wide range of philosophical disciplines, including epistemology, ethics, and metaphysics.

Philosothon aims for vernacular accessibility and collaboration over competition and speciality. As a result, Philosothon is judged not on how many philosophical concepts you can slide into the conversation or how well you can ‘debate’ your teammates. Ultimately, Philsothon is a safe and collaborative space that allows students from all year groups, knowledge and skills to work together and enrich each other. 

Philosothon also provides students the opportunity to progress to the Australasian Philosothon which is held in an Australian Capital city each year.