21 May 2016 12:00 am
Block your weekend calendar to witness promising students from 16 schools across the island compete for the esteemed Tokyo Cement Super Quiz – Season 3 crown, on Sundays at 5:30 p.m. on Swarnavahini. Share the excitement of our nation’s next generation as they show off their brilliance in general knowledge in a bid to walk away with Rs.1 million grand prize.
A thirst for general knowledge and an unfettered curiosity to explore the world is what set these 16 finalist schools apart as they try to keep their flags flying high as the competition intensifies. The televised quiz round saw 192 teens representing all school going children from 32 schools battle it out at Sri Lanka’s biggest schools quiz competition organised by Tokyo Cement under the patronage of the Education Ministry.
The 16 schools qualified to round two are Kiribathgoda Viharamahadevi BV (Gampaha), Visakha Vidyalaya (Colombo), Malabe Sri Rahula BV (Colombo), Thurstan College (Colombo), Sri Shanmuga Hindu Ladies College (Trincomalee), Methodist Central College (Batticaloa), Pushpadana BV, Dharmaraja College and Mahamaya Girls’ College (Kandy), C.W.W. Kannangara MMV (Kalutara), Richmond College (Galle), Mahinda College (Galle), Vijitha MMV (Polonnaruwa), Hatton/Sri Paada MMV (Nuwara Eliya), Balangoda Central College (Ratnapura), Puhulwella MMV (Matara).
“We’re very excited just to be at the finals with all the big schools from all over the country. We need to really brush up on our knowledge to face the next level as it will be tougher. We will do our very best to make it all the way to the finals,” enthused Suren Dhananjaya, Captain of Hatton/Sri Paada Central College team, representing the Nuwara Eliya District for the second consecutive year. Over the upcoming weeks his team will face off against 15 other frontrunners from other districts. Respected educationist and veteran journalist Kala Keerthi Dr. Edwin Ariyadasa, who heads the panel of judges of the competition, stated, “Gone are the days when one had to wait for days to read a newspaper or wait for weeks to receive an international magazine by post. Children today are very fortunate as they have information rushing at them from every angle at lightning speed. However, it is sad to see that not many of them possess the thirst to learn new things and are worried only about attaining higher grades. So, I am very proud to see these sons and daughters taking part in the Super Quiz programme, for they have a rare gift which has led them to be open to the world and learn about a range of subjects. Each one of them is indeed a champion by any standard and I encourage them to keep this fire to acquire new knowledge burning and make it a lifelong passion.”
Tokyo Cement Super Quiz – Season 3, kicked off in October last year, saw 458 schools from every district in Sri Lanka gaining an equal opportunity to claim 5.2 million rupees worth prize money channelled for school development and expanding students’ horizons. While some of the schools taking part in the finale have had a taste of victory in previous seasons, there are new entrants who have triumphed over apparent fan favourites attempting at the one million grand prize going out to the winning school. Education Ministry Director Education Core Curricular Activities, Guidance and Counselling and Peace Education Y.A.N.D. Yapa, who champions the cause to improve general knowledge among school students said, “We always look at these programmes from the students’ perspective to ensure that they gain much bigger value and enriching experiences by actively seeking knowledge beyond their usual domains. This is a good platform to show-off and test their knowledge among peers. We must encourage more students to get involved in the quest for general knowledge, not just the teams participating. It opens up new information horizons, thus enhancing the sum total impact on every student making
all of them winners.”