Organizer
Junior Philosophy Olympiad
JPO 2026
Confusius & NextGenThe Junior Philosophy Olympiad (JPO) is an English playground on philosophical topics for students from grades 4 to 9 in Viet Nam and internationally, organized by The Olympia Schools.
The theme for 2026 is “Confucius & NextGen.” Contestants will explore and delve into Confucius' philosophies and reflect on how these ancient teachings connect to the questions and challenges young people face today. The competition touches on profound topics centered around Dao (way of life), virtue, and self-cultivation, such as:
- What do people need in order to live harmoniously with others?
- What does “Ren 人” (humaneness) mean in modern life?
- What should a student today cultivate to become a “Junzi 君子” (a noble man)?
- How can we act rightly in difficult or complex situations?
- What are the responsibilities of each individual toward family, community, and society?
- Why are rituals, discipline, and social order important?
- How can we understand ourselves — and understand others?
Through engaging in dialogue with Confucian ideology, contestants will strengthen their abstract thinking, self-reflection, and logical reasoning, while exploring how classical values can become meaningful guidance for NextGen as they make sense of the world — and their place in it.
Participants
Vietnamese and international students can register to participate in groups of 3 and compete in the 2 corresponding boards:
- Griffin board: For students from grade 4-6
- Olympia board: For students from grades 7-9
- Members of a team can come from different ages (within the age range of each board) and are not required to study at the same school.
Locality
Vietnam & international
Competition format
Creative video production, knowledge quiz, collaborative writing and ethics bowl (philosophical discussion)
Competition theme of 2026
Confucius's philosophy
Download
the Competition rules
Selection Round
Knowledge Quest
Online Video Submission
Teams register in groups of three. After registration, teams will receive selection-round questions and collaboratively produce a video response of 90-180 seconds. All submissions will be posted on the JPO Fanpage for public voting. 70% of scoring points come from the scoring by the panel of judges, 30% others come from voting results. In each division, the top 10 teams with the highest scores in this round will advance to the Qualifying Round, held in person at The Olympia Schools.
Qualifying Rounds
Being pen
Collaborative Writing
The Panel will provide a writing prompt. After a team discussion, each member will write an individual essay, ensuring coherence, interconnection, and consistency among the three essays within the same team.
Mind's Goblet
Collaborative Quiz
Teams will participate in a themed philosophy knowledge quiz conducted in groups. The quiz consists of 30 questions, with 30–90 seconds per question to answer depending on difficulty. Questions focus on key concepts, arguments, themes, and philosophers outlined in the JPO 2026 Manual..
Ethics Bowl
Ethics Bowl Showcase
Teams in each division will be paired to compete in philosophical dialogues (Ethics Bowl) based on assigned ethical cases. Each team will participate in 3 Ethics Bowl matches, with 2 cases per match, and each team will present on a different case per match..
Final Round
Ethics Bowl
Ethics Bowl Showcase
The Final Round takes place on the same day as the Qualifying Round, after the writing challenge, knowledge quiz, and 3 Ethics Bowl matches. The top 2 teams will be selected based on the following weighted criteria: 40% from Being Pen, 15% from Mind's Goblet, and 45% from Ethics Bowl. These 2 teams will compete in an Ethics Bowl match to contend for First and Second Prizes..
15/12/2025
Registration Opened
Jan 2025
Info Session for Selection Round
27/01/2026
Registration deadline for Selection Round
02/02 - 08/02/2026
Online voting period for Selection Round
March, 2026
Training Workshop for Qualifying Round
8/3/2026
Qualifying rounds and Final round
Challenge students’ knowledge and skills
All competition rounds require not only contestants’ learning agility but also their diverse subject knowledge and strong academic skills to satisfy their desire to learn and explore profound, humane and philosophical topics..
Cultivate philosophical thinking
Annually, students accompany the competition in their philosophical journey to foster their philosophical thinking, form a solid human outlook, worldview and value system for themselves in their learning and life journey..
Valuable Award
Scholarship awards and valuable gifts.
Improve students’ foreign language skills
Develop and hone students' skills in using academic and creative English language..
Self-development
Practice teamwork skills, critical thinking, and cultivate their reflective capacity..
| Prizes | Olympia Board(Students from grade 7 - 9) | Griffin Board(Students from grade 4 - 6) |
|---|---|---|
01 First prize |
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01 Second Prize |
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03 Third Prizes |
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Dr. Vo Thuc Anh
PhD Linguistics, Nottingham University
Head of English Department at Olympia
Dr. Nguyen Chi Hieu
PhD Economics, Stanford University
MA Philosophy & Education, Columbia University
CEO & Co-founder, IEG Global
Mr. Do Hoang Long
Debate & Speech Expert, Advisor (The Debaters, Truong Teen on VTV7…)
Academic Manager & Co-Founder, EdGage Education
Mr. Chu Duc An
Champion of The Debaters VTV7 SS1
Two-time National Debate Champion (NSDC, VUDC)
CEO & Co-Founder, Moji Debate Academy
Ton Nguyen Minh Uyen
Assistant Production Director of Educational VTV7 Programs (The Debaters, Truong Teen…)
CEO Assistant, The Olympia Schools
Pham Thi Hoai Thu
MA English Language, University of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University-Hanoi
CEO Assistant, The Olympia Schools
