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30.06.2016 Feature Article

The National Science And Maths Quiz Is A Non-Starter; Ghana Needs Science And Technology Innovators

The National Science And Maths Quiz Is A Non-Starter; Ghana Needs Science And Technology Innovators
30.06.2016 LISTEN

Dedication - To the social media marketing firm, Hyperactive Ghana, which proudly promoted NSMQ 2016.

I can confidently tell that shallow minds will definitely chastise me for this defiant, controversial and weird article. Well, critical thinkers will find this write-up a really good read because they know it is simply priceless. Okay, do I have the guts to write such a mind-blowing-cum-unorthodox piece of writing? Oh yes, because I am a writing innovator and a connoisseur of innovation. My start-up writing firm is built on innovation, that is why I have launched #HelpMeOut memes, and my upcoming book project which is about to initiate a rare literary movement in Ghana and beyond. So brace yourself up for thought-provoking analyses on the delicate matter in hand.

Alright, let me congratulate Adisadel College in Cape Coast for beating Opoku Ware School and Mfantsipim School to win the 2016 edition of the National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ). For according to Wikipedia, "The National Science and Maths Quiz is an annual science and mathematics based national level quiz competition for senior high schools. It has been produced by Primetime Limited, an advertising and PR Agency, with a huge interest in education, since 1993." The objective of NSMQ has been to promote the study of the sciences and mathematics, help students develop quick thinking and a probing scientific mind about the things around them, while fostering healthy academic rivalry among senior high schools.

However, I sincerely believe that NSMQ is just an annual academic exercise devoid of practical innovation, and thus mediocre to say the least. I also cannot fathom out why we hail NSMQ as academic success and we continue to neglect science and technology innovation in Ghana. In fact, NSMQ actually compels the contestants to develop predefined abilities and not to explore the impossibility in the twin-world of science and technology. I ask, "Will this year's winners progress to becoming great science and technology innovators such as Ghana's own Kantanka, or even William Kamkwamba of Malawi, and the like?" Probably no, because a large chunk of NSMQ contestants are excellent students but not geniuses. A genius differs from an excellent student in a million ways. A genius operates with peerless intellects, supreme imagination and critical thinking skills, but an excellent student is very good at exams.

Moreover, I have always maintained that priceless innovations will only do the magic of transformation for Africa, and not our backward-looking school system which really sucks. Why should the Ghana government place a premium on mere academic science and technology when it can invest more in and also create a robust enabling environment for science and technology innovators to flourish? Science and technology innovators have the economic capacity to move Ghana's nominal GDP of about $70 billion in 2014 to the region of $500 billion in one decade, if only our dear nation incredibly supports them. Did you know that Facebook, which is the brainchild of Mark Zuckerberg, a Harvard dropout and an unparalleled software innovator, was worth about $328 billion - fortune.com's report on February 1, 2016 revealed?

Again, China recently manufactured its first passenger jet and all we can do in Ghana is ranting on radio, TV, at workplaces, homes and schools about partisan politics while Kantanka struggles to produce commercial quantities of his made-in-Ghana cars. What a national folly! Science and technology innovation should be a topmost national priority, and not always spending huge sums of money on our failing school system. NSMQ is a laudable academic project, yet science and technology innovators in Ghana must be empowered economically, socially and psychologically to do unthinkable works which will create massive fortunes for our developing country. This is the secret to growing, developing and advancing our economy just as the West and the East have done successfully.

Source: sirarticle.blogspot.com

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