An inter-schools contest to engage the minds of Junior High school students in finding practical solutions to the nation’s basic environmental challenges has been launched in Accra.
The contest, which formed part of the annual quiz competition organized by a youth-oriented Non-governmental Organization, Foundation for Generational Thinks (FOGET) would challenge participating students to put their classroom knowledge to work and find solutions to the identifiable national problems in the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) as well as environmental pollution.
A total of 27 schools under the Ghana National Association of Private Schools (GNAP), would participate in the ‘FOGET-GNAPS Quiz Competition’. The schools have been put in a group of six with two best performing schools in each group progressing to the next level.
Speaking at the launch of the contest last Friday, President and founder of FOGET, Mr. Prosper Dan Afetsi said the challenge was to develop the mental fortitude of young people to be critical thinkers.
He said Ghana’s inability to compete with its peers like the ‘Asian Tigers’ was as a result of students not being challenged enough to apply the knowledge acquired in the classroom to solve basic problems in the communities for the benefit of the entire country.
Touching on the modalities for the challenge, Mr. Afesi indicated that, the four best performing schools from the semi-finals of the quiz competition, would qualify for the Challenge- where the participating students would be given a task of finding solutions to an identified problem in their community.
“The project would require that the students conduct research into identified problems, by going on a field trip to relevant agencies to conduct interviews to find out what is being done to curtail the identified problem and most importantly, provide practical hands on solution to the identified problem at the end of the research,” he explained.
The four qualified schools would be required to produce a minimum of 40 page research paper on their chosen project, detailing their findings and solutions to the identified environmental challenge, which the contesting students would present before a panel of judges at the grand finale, where the penultimate winner will be declared.
Mr. Afetsi who assured of fairness and transparency in the competition, said it would be expanded to cover other schools across the country in the near future and appealed to corporate Ghana to support the programme.
Below are the Competing schools
Group A: New Standard Academy, Bethel Preparatory School, Adormens Int. School, Zion Academy.
Group B: St. Charles Preparatory School; Universal Christian Home, Great Star Montessori and New Baps School.
Group ‘C: Vision Port Int. School, Joehans Academy; Rodsa Academy and Kiddy Garden Academy. Group ‘D’ members include Ashley’s Preparatory School, God’s Gift Int. School, Favour Complex School and S.D.A High Street School.
Group ‘E’ members are Decent Learning Centre, Word Gospel Preparatory School, Datus Complex School and S. Sowah Boye Memorial School. Group ‘F’ has Apostolic Preparatory School, New Generational Academy, Ewit Greenwich Classical Academy and Last Chance Preparatory School.
Group ‘G’ comprises of Star Academy, Extra ‘O’ Preparatory School and Josephus Memorial School.
Source: Ghana/Starrfmonline.com/103.5FM
