The maiden edition of the Brain Battle Mathematics and Science Quiz for Catholic Junior High Schools (JHS) came to a successful end on Sunday, March 15, 2020 with Kumasi-based school, Good Shepherd JHS emerging the overall winners after a close battle.
After three rounds of intellectual battle, the quiz Mistress, Dr. Amanda Bruce- Adjei, a Medical Practitioner at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital (Ridge), ecstatically announced Good Shepherd JHS as the overall winners with 47.5 points beating St. Mary (former Brong-Ahafo Region) with just 2 points to become first runner-up with 45.5 points and Mount Mary (Eastern Region) placing third with 27.5 points.
For their efforts, Good Shepherd was rewarded with a coveted Trophy, cash prize of GHc10, 000, certificates and other consolation prizes; the second School received GHc5,000 and the third had GHc2, 000 in addition to other consolation prizes. Other contesting Schools were also rewarded.
The St. Anthony of Padua from Western Region, Ancilla School from Upper West and St. Mary’s Preparatory and JHS, Brong-Ahafo Region, who displayed their Science practical Project were awarded for excelling in that category. The practical project includes the generating of electrical energy from urine and a technology for sorting out different Ghana Cedi coins.
The quiz started last year with 120 JHS schools from all the ten regions across the country participating at the regional contest after which twenty-one qualified for the national quiz contest which was held from February 7 to 9, 2020.
The 21 participating Catholic Basic Schools from the ten Regions were St. Theresa and St. Joseph School, from the Greater Accra Region; St. Anthony and Mary Queen of Peace School from the Central Region; Orange Star and Mount Mary Junior High Schools (JHS) from the Eastern Region; St. Anthony of Padua and St Francis JHS from Western Region, Good Shepherd and Martyrs of Uganda JHS from the Ashanti Region.
Others were St. Joseph R/C and St. Joan of ARC JHS in the Northern Region, Christ the King and Chiok JHS from the Upper East Region, Ancilla, St. Louis and Charia JHS from the Upper West Region; Ho Police Depot and Ho Dome RC JHS in the Volta Region and Sacred Heart and St. Mary’s Preparatory JHS in the Brong-Ahafo Region.
After the National contest on February 9, 2020, the Mount Mary School in the Eastern Region, Good Shepherd School from the Ashanti Region, and St. Mary in the former Brong-Ahafo Region qualified for the Grand Finale.
The National Catholic Secretariat Education Directorate in partnership with the Cocktail Media (a youth media NGO), introduced this practical based Science and Maths Quiz programme for Catholic Basic Schools in September 2019 which was launched by the Episcopal Bishop in charge of Catholic Education in Ghana, Most Rev. John Bonaventure Kwofie.
With the slogan ”Its Mental, not Muscles,” the quiz contest was aimed at enhancing the knowledge of Basic School pupils in Ghana in the study of Science, Technology, Engineering Mathematics and (STEM).
Ing. Dr. Ken Ashigbey the Chief Executive Officer of (CEO) of Ghana Chamber of Telecommunication, who was the Guest of Honour at the Grand Finale, commended the finalists for making their schools proud and thanked their teachers for moulding them in the area of Science and technology.
He said the world required skills and innovations and was happy young people through Catholic education and the brain battle quiz have explored by bringing their creativity, innovations and initiatives of science, maths and technology to bare.
He appealed to Ghanaian businesses and individuals to use their resources to support the young ones build technology for the advancement of the nation.
Meanwhile, Mr. Ashigbey, who was a former Managing Director of the Graphic Group of Companies, advised the pupils to denounce any act relating to homosexuality and also to take their studies seriously.
The quiz is an endowment of Archbishop John Bonaventure Kwofie, the Episcopal Bishop of Education in Ghana. The Brain Battle was initiated to keep the young youth engaged with their studies and also to add to the co-curricular activities for JHS students. Being the maiden competition to be held, it was not going to be the last to be organized.
Addressing the audience at the Grand Finale March 15, Archbishop Kwofie thanked the organisers, contesting schools, teachers and all the contestants especially the finalists for exhibiting great knowledge at the competition, saying that “the next event will be super.”
He said the Brain battle quiz was preparing the young ones for the future especially for the National Science and Math Quiz for Senior High Schools and prayed that this year, a Catholic SHS will again win the national trophy.
Meanwhile, at a Press briefing in Accra on February 6 to kick-start the competition among the 21 Schools, Archbishop Kwofie emphasised that “the Quiz is not for only Catholics but Catholic Schools which have non-Catholics who outnumber Catholics.”
He said the quiz by the young ones at the basic level was to prepare them to build for the future, stating that “Non-Catholics studying in Catholic Schools is normal since the Church prepares them also for the future of the country.”
“It will also prepare them for the National Science and Maths Quiz which catholic schools have performed excellently over the years with a catholic school being the reigning champion”, Archbishop Kwofie intimated.
He stated that deep-seated knowledge of science, sound moral life and character are values the Catholic Church stood for and have been instilling in Pupils of Catholic Schools to building a strong moral character.
The quiz, he noted, was in line with the church’s contribution to education, evident by the number of educational institutions the church had established in the country. “As you seek knowledge and intellectual capacities, seek good character also to become the real Ghanaian. Building intellectual capacity goes together with seeking good character,” he said.
He stated that “As this country continues to advance, the need for science has become apparent and we need to have many people in the area of science and technology.”
Apart from demystifying the study of Science, Technology, Engineering Mathematics (STEM), he said the competition, particularly its practical aspect, would help unleash the students’ innovative skills which would propel the development of the country.
Source: newswatchgh.com//Flora Aseye Khein
