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05.07.2012 Education

Annual Quiz Competition Launched In Upper West

By Daily Graphic
Annual Quiz Competition Launched In Upper West
05.07.2012 LISTEN

The annual quiz and awards competition for students in junior high schools (JHSs) in the Wa Central Constituency has been launched in Wa in the Upper West Region.

The competition, which is under the auspices of the Member of Parliament for Wa Central, Alhaji Rashid Pelpuo, was as a result of a research conducted by the Social Catalyst for Development (SCYD) on the possible causes of poor performance of JHS students in the Wa Municipality.

Launching the competition, the Programme Coordinator of the SCYD, Mr Tahiru Hakeem Adamu, said there were three main causes of the abysmal performance of the students.

He mentioned these as the inadequate tuition for schools in very deprived rural communities, low support and interest shown by parents and guardians in the education of their children and the devotion to movies, European soccer and browsing on facebook at the expense of their studies.

In view of these, therefore, and with approval from the Ghana Education Service (GES), he said the MP had been organising series of programmes, including inter-school debates and career guidance and counselling.

Mr Adamu said the quizzes would help to get the students stay away from too much entertainment and rather concentrate on studying their books to improve on their academic performance.

Other objectives of the programme include helping teachers, parents and guardians to assess the academic strengths and weaknesses of the children, identify and reward brilliant students and their respective schools for their academic excellence and to provide avenues for students to share relevant knowledge and experience in their academic lives.

Mr Adamu thanked the Wa Municipal Assembly, GES, National Youth Authority, Wa Methodist School for the Blind and individuals and organisations who contributed in diverse ways towards the programme.

A legal practitioner, Mr Abdul- ShaqurSaeed, who launched the programme, commended AlhajiPelpuo for the initiative, and expressed the hope that the competition would go a long way to motivate students to study.

He advised JHS students in the Wa Municipality to see education as a solution to the cycle of poverty in the three northern regions, and also urged them to “make books their friends.”

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