Reading Champs

Last Friday GHEI held a quiz competition for the Library Reading Club at the Joekwart Memorial Community Centre. There were nine contestants participating, divided into groups of three, with Library Administrator Lawrence Donkor serving as the competition’s quiz master.

The club members were being quizzed on their latest reading material, a young adult novel called “The Housemaid,” by Ghanaian author Amma Darko. The novel is described in its synopsis as “a dramatic story of exploitation in modern Ghana.” Lawrence started the competition by introducing the panel of judges, Jen Matthews, Happy Nkrumah and Bright Ofori, all members of GHEI’s education programming staff.

The quiz kicked off with a speed competition, with contestants chiming in with a bell to answer comprehension questions. Team 3 started off strong, demonstrating early that they knew this book inside and out, with one member, Bridget, correctly answering seven questions in a row. The two boys on her team congratulated her, patting her on the shoulder after each correct answer. The look they exchanged with each other clearly expressed their satisfaction in having Bridget on their team.

Bridget on a roll!

“And what was her occupation?” Lawrence asked.

*Ding Ding*

“Akpeteshe seller!” shouted Bridget. Correct again!

Next were the long-answer comprehension questions, with each team given 45 seconds to come up satisfactory answers. Once again, Team 3 dominated the round, and our crowd of young spectators cheered with glee. The definitions section of the quiz, which followed, proved to be very tricky for the students, with words like reconciliation stumping them. 

 

The grand finale of the competition was a spelling bee. The very term spelling bee jolted me back to my elementary school days, and I was immediately reminded of the panic I felt so long ago. How I dreaded the spelling bee! I was a good speller, but to stand on stage in front of the whole school made my knees shake, palms sweat and voice quiver. I was overcome with empathy for our contestants, some of them showing obvious signs of nervousness. The bee was by far the most challenging section of the quiz, with each team spelling a couple of words incorrectly.

With a quick tally of points by our judges, the winning team was announced. It came as no surprise to everyone that Team 3 were the victors, having racked up a big lead in points with Bridget’s string of correct answers. They cheered wildly and everyone applauded joyfully, people shouting out Bridget’s name. So confident and on the ball throughout the quiz, Bridget quietly reverted to her usual shy and bashful self under the barrage of ecstatic attention. Winners received a book prize and all participants received a new notebook and pen, honouring their hard work. 

 

GHEI Country Director Clement Donkor gave a closing speech to both the quiz participants and the young audience members. As he translated for me afterwards, he told the group that the community library is a wonderful resource to them, holding 6,000 books. He encouraged them to read, and not just a few books here and there, but to read hundreds of books! He stressed the importance not only of reading comprehension, but also the ability to express the content of the books to others, and to be able to spell properly.

 

As the rambunctious crowd left, the contestants were ushered into the back room where they were treated to some chilled sodas. One more treat for a job well done! Bridget was the centre of attention in the room, and she had certainly earned this appreciative adulation. It was great to see her take the lead in the competition and to speak up so quickly and confidently under pressure. Given our cultural context here in rural Ghana, where many families favour boys’ academic pursuits over girls', it is high success indeed when a young lady rises up to demonstrate not only her intelligence but also her will to succeed.

Kudos to the reading club! Keep hitting those books!

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