Boluwatife Tijani
A
pupil of Araromi Primary School, Orile-Agege, Lagos State, Miss
Boluwatife Tijani, has emerged winner of the primary school category of
the annual Spelling Bee competition.
Boluwatife, 12, was named the overall
best pupil at the end of a keenly contested competition at the Adeyemi
Bero Auditorium, Alausa, Lagos, on Wednesday. She was rewarded with a
cash prize of N150,000 and a plaque for her efforts.
The contestants, who were drawn from
public primary schools in the six education districts in the state, had
an intriguing time spelling tricky words such as barracuda, casserole,
quarantine, igloo, acapella and others.
At one point, a contestant spelt the world ‘aisle’ as ‘high.’
Before finally bursting into tears,
Boluwatife, whose parents are traders, said, “I feel so happy and
excited. I prepared by reading the dictionary and my teachers also
helped me. I would like to be a medical doctor in the future, but I
don’t know how the money will be spent.”
In her address, Director-General, Office
of Education Assurance, Mrs. Ronke Soyombo, said the Spelling Bee
Competition was “conceived to encourage academic excellence.”
She added that the annual programme,
which was initiated in 2001 by a former first lady of the state, Senator
Oluremi Tinubu, through her New Era Foundation, has since been adopted
by the Lagos State Ministry of Education.
“The competition helps pupils to improve
their spelling skills, increase their vocabulary and develop correct
English usage. It also creates good reading habits that will lead to
better academic performance and boost the confidence of the
participants, with a view to preparing them for future endeavours,”
Soyombo said.
According to the Commissioner for
Education, Mrs. Olayinka Oladunjoye, the secondary schools’ category of
the competition, which has produced 14 One-Day Governors, will soon
hold.
She said winners at both primary and secondary school categories would benefit from government education scholarship.
“The success of the winners at the
competition, over the years, has continued to motivate our pupils to
greater heights, as manifested in their achievements in their chosen
careers.
“This is buttressed by the achievements
of past winners who had graduated with distinctions and are now in
enviable professions nationwide,” she said.
Ifaniyi Iretiola, a pupil of the
Methodist Primary School, Ibeshe; and Jonathan Awobodu, a pupil of
Abesan Primary School, Ipaja, emerged second and third position winners
respectively.
They were also rewarded with plaques and cash prizes of N100,000 and N75,000 respectively.
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