Nana Afrah Sika Mensah
Twenty-four second-cycle institutions from across the country have qualified for the grand finale of the maiden edition of the STEMNNOVATION contest slated to take place today at the University of Ghana.
All the participating schools who are from Senior High, Senior High/Technical Schools as well as Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions in the country would be locking horns for the ultimate prize.
The STEMNNOVATION contest, organised by the Free Senior High School Secretariat of the Ministry of Education, would see 16 regional champions from all 16 regions and eight promising projects contesting for the grand finale.
Briefing the media in Accra on Tuesday, the Deputy National Coordinator for the Free Senior High School Secretariat, Nana Afrah Sika Mensah, said the contest is to test what students were studying in the areas of robotics, coding and other science-related practical lessons.
She indicated that all the contestants would be competing in the areas of solar for socio-economic development, recycling for socio-economic development as well as coding and programming for socio-economic development.
The Deputy Coordinator stated that the competition apart from testing what students were studying at school has also allowed them to exhibit what they have acquired at school, at other learning places, work as team players and also learn how to solve societal challenges with their peers.
Ms. Mensah mentioned that the ultimate winning team will receive a trophy as well as a trip to the United States of America.
The Deputy Coordinator lauded the judges and all stakeholders who have been part of the maiden edition of the contest, and pledged to continue working very hard for the youth of the country.
She also commended the Education Minister, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum for his role in the introduction of innovation into the nation’s education space with the view of sharpening the skills of students to meet global standards.
The 1st runner-up will be presented with a cash amount, the 2nd runner-up will receive a smart board and winners for the three categories of the contest will receive a laptop and a printer.
Background
A total of 200 schools submitted videos of their projects meant for the contest, but only 97 of the schools qualified after going through vetting by the team of experts put together for that purpose.
The event, which was launched on September 5, 2022 and started October 2022 has been held in virtual form since its commencement, but the grand finale would be held face-to-face with the judges and contestants who would be meeting physically for the first time today.
In charge of the contest are six local judges and six international judges who would be busy selecting the winner of the contest.