After months of grilling rounds of competition, The Spelling Bee 2019 came to a close over the weekend with another bout of history-making moments.
For the first time in the 12 years of the competition, three boys clinched the 1st to 3rd positions and all of them were from Tema in the Greater Accra region.
Also, the top five Spellers to emerge from the competition were all boys, with one of them being a hearing impaired student from the Tetteh Ocloo State School for the Deaf in Tema.
The deaf students’ participation in this year’s competition is the Young Educators Foundation’s quota to inclusive education.
“We have always believed in the Ghanaian child, regardless of any perceived challenges they may have. Our children must be counted amongst the world’s most literate children.
“Therefore, The Spelling Bee shall continue to open its doors and arms to all children in Ghana”, said Eugenia Tachie-Menson, Country Director, Young Educators Foundation.
The Spelling Bee is a literacy programme that teaches children between the ages of six to 13 the rudiments of spelling and how to use the English language effectively. For the past 12 years, the programme has impacted close to 20,000 children throughout the country.
After several rounds of competition, Kwabena Adu Darko-Asare, 13, of DPS International Ghana in Tema emerged winner of The Spelling Bee 2019.
His winning word is ‘Baldenfreude’, meaning the pleasure felt at the misfortune of others – relating specifically to the discomfiture of those with little or no hair.
For his prize, he received a South African Airways return ticket to Washington D.C. to represent Ghana at the 92nd Scripps National Spelling Bee. He also got ¢5,000 scholarship from Indomie, an engraved trophy, a fully installed Explora Decoder with six months subscription from DSTV as well as a one-year subscription to Merriam-Webster Unabridged Online Dictionary.
The elated champion also got a Samuel Louis Sugarman Award, ¢1,000 worth of books and stationery from Blue Knights Bookshop, Indomie & Voltic products and ¢500 worth of KFC vouchers.
Spellers who performed creditably were also acknowledged and given prizes.
Godsway Wadata, the 14-year-old deaf student who beat over 370 students to make it to the top 5 Spellers, received a total of ¢8,500 from Indomie, DSTV, GNTV Junior DPS Foundation and Young Educators Foundation, organisers of The Spelling Bee.
Other Spellers who performed creditably during The Spelling Bee 2019 finals and are Nana Boadiwaa Owusu from Robert J. Memorial School, Takoradi and Miss Prisca Adwoa Dufie Yeboah of New Mission Academy, Kumasi.
Both girls won an all-expense-paid trip to South Africa, courtesy DSTV.
Bernice Samata of Alhassan Gbanzaba Memorial School in Tamale, who was the only girl left standing amongst five boys before misspelling her word also received a package from DSTV and ¢1,000 from Indomie and The Spelling Bee, and ¢300 worth books of Blue Knights Bookshop.
“This year, the Spellers have outdone themselves. They have exceeded all our expectations and charted new ‘firsts’ for the competition. The stakes and bar have been raised from this year and we at The Spelling Bee are truly proud of each and every Speller,” said a visibly elated Tachie-Menson said.
The Spelling Bee is sponsored by Indomie Noodles with support from DSTV, South African Airways, the PAS of the US Embassy, Goil, STC, Akai House Clinic, Samartex, KFC, Blue Knights Bookshop, Rufus Green Parks, Voltic, Coconut Grove Hotel, Citi FM, Joy FM, GNTV Junior and B&FT.
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