Vusumuzi Dube
A group of six – Form three Zimbabwean students are currently in Romania battling it out in the prestigious 2024 International Junior Science Olympiad Competition.
The six students, drawn from St Johns College, Hellenic Academy and Arundel School left Zimbabwe this week accompanied by 3 optimistic Science mentors who have been providing the much-needed tutoring for this famed global event.
“55 nations will gather to compete for a gold, silver and bronze medals in Science. The students will write several examinations, which will also include a practical examination that relies heavily on teamwork. All three Sciences (Physics, Biology and Chemistry) will be examined. We are particularly excited that these young students, all aged 15 and below have shown great determination, hard work and stamina over the last two school terms.
“They have received additional science tutoring every week outside of their regular lessons at a level beyond their current classroom level. They have also spent a great amount of time together which has fostered the team spirit which will be very critical for a competition of this magnitude,” said Carola Bogezi one of the organisers.
“Outside of the competition, we will also be taking the students on tour to some of the famous locations in Romania such as the Dracula’s castle, the Science Museum and the Parliament Palace which was built under Ceausescu, a Romanian politician, which we believe will be very exciting for them on a social level”.
Zimbabwe is represented by Munotida Mundira ( St Johns College), Munotida Munhemo, Rutendo Kufakunesu(Arundel), Xander Stevenson, Joshua Carlise(Hellenic Academy)
According to their website, the International Junior Science Olympiad (IJSO) is an annual individual and team competition in the Natural Sciences for students who are under sixteen years old on 31st December of the competition year. IJSO has been established in recognition of the significance of the Natural Sciences in the general education of young people and in all aspects of their lives and is a purely educational event.
The promotion of science education is particularly important to aid the development of African nations.
Online Reporter