Ghana National Science and Maths Quiz

*Ghana National Science and Maths Quiz*
Ghana National Science and Maths Quiz
Also known as	National Science and Maths Quiz
Genre	Quiz show
Presented by	Elsie Effah Kaufmann
Country of origin	Ghana
Original language	English
Original release
Network	GTV ; Joy News ;
Release	1993 –; present

Last updated June 11, 2024

The National Science and Maths Quiz is an annual science and mathematics content-based national level quiz competition for senior high schools in Ghana. It has been produced by Primetime Limited, an education-interest advertising and public relations agency, since 1993.^[1]

The quiz, originally sponsored by Unilever's"Brillant Soap", is popularly referred to as “Brilla” by many who have gone through the secondary school system and it is one of the few academic events that brings all of Ghana's secondary schools together.^[2]^[3] The National Science and Maths Quiz is the longest running educational programme on Ghanaian television. It is broadcast on GTV during the quiz season every Saturday at 11am and Wednesdays at 4pm.

History

The idea for the production of a quiz programme aimed at encouraging the study of the sciences and mathematics was not mooted at a national science fair or conference. It happened on the tennis court of the University of Ghana, Legon in 1993. Kwaku Mensa-Bonsu, then managing director of Primetime, was on the court to play a tennis game with his playmates, the late Professors Marian Ewurama Addy and Ebenezer Kweku Awotwe. Mensa-Bonsu was curious as to why birds could stand on a live electric wire without getting electrocuted, but human beings could not do same.^[4] From Awotwe's explanation, Mensa-Bonsu got the idea of putting together a quiz programme on science and mathematics.

When the quiz started, it involved only 32 schools across the country, and these were divided into the Northern Sector and Southern Sector, with 16 schools per sector. Winners in both sectors were then brought to Accra for the national championship. Prempeh College won the maiden edition.

In 1997, the geographical sector system was abandoned, and two northern sector schools (from the old format), Opoku Ware School and Prempeh College made it to the finals where Opoku Ware School won its first trophy.

In 1998, the tournament became known as the National Science & Maths Quiz, when the quiz show lost its original sponsorship from Brillant Soap. Subsequently, in 2012, the Ghana Education Service, through the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS) took up the sponsorship of the programme. In terms of participation, beginning in 2000, the number of schools was increased to 40. The number of participating schools again, was increased in 2013 to 81, although 66 ultimately showed up for the competition. Thus, the participation format was changed to a three-team contest instead of the two-team contest which had characterized the competition since its inception in 1993. To give the programme a national character, the quiz has since 2014 involved 135 schools from all parts of Ghana. Since 2014, 108 schools are selected from regional and zonal competitions and qualifiers to join 27 seeded schools (quarter-finalists from the previous year's competition) at the National Championships. The NSMQ regions are Greater Accra, Central, Eastern and Ashanti Regions while the zones are Bono-Ahafo, Western, Volta-Oti and Northern Zones.

The first quiz mistress was the late Professor Marian Ewurama Addy, a professor of biochemistry at the University of Ghana, Legon. She was quiz-mistress from 1993 till 2000. “When in 1993/94, during the planning of a televised quiz programme on Science, I was asked to be the Quiz Mistress, I could not say No”, she wrote in her memoir, Rewards: An Autobiography. “I was interested in females becoming scientists and this was an opportunity to invite the young ones to become scientists…I thought that this was a most effective way of being a role model,” she added. In recognition of her contributions to promoting the study of Science and Mathematics among girls through the NSMQ, Prof. Addy was named the Marketing Woman of the Year by the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana in 1995.

Eureka Emefa Adomako, a botanist at the University of Ghana, Legon, took over as quiz-mistress from 2001 to 2005, having been recommended by Prof. Addy. Dr. Adomako took charge of the programme until she had to leave for postgraduate studies. Before leaving, just as Prof. Addy recommended her as quiz mistress, Dr. Adomako recommended that Dr. Kaufmann take over as quiz mistress.

In 2006, Dr. Elsie Effah Kaufmann, the founding Head of the Biomedical Engineering Department at the University of Ghana, Legon, took over as quiz mistress.^[5]^[6] Over the years, she has succeeded in bringing her own style to the programme, occasionally injecting some humour into an otherwise formal programme. As the chairperson of the moderation team, Dr. Kaufmann is supported by a team of consultants made up of Prof. W. A. Asomaning, Dr. Ebenezer Owusu, Dr. Amos Kuditcher and Dr. Douglas Adu-Gyamfi, all of the University of Ghana, Legon. At the preliminary stages, the quiz is moderated by Drs. Anita Oppong-Quaicoe,^[1] Thelma Ohene-Agyei^[3] and Gladys Odey Schwinger.

Presbyterian Boys' Secondary School, (PRESEC-Legon) has been the most successful school in the quiz so far, having made twelve appearances at the finals, including five consecutive grande finales. The school has won the competition eight times, a record that includes back-to-back wins on two occasions. Achimota School is the only coeducational school to have won the competition. No all-girls' school has ever won the competition. Only 11 schools in Ghana have won the competition since its inception.

In 2021, Primetime Limited launched the STEM Festival comprising Mentorship Sessions and the Sci-Tech Fair.^[7] The Sci-Tech Fair component includes a Sci-Tech Innovation Challenge and an Exhibition open to Senior High Schools, Basic and Junior High Schools, Tech firms and start-ups.^[8]

List of Hosts and Quiz Mistresses

Marian Ewurama Addy, 1993–2000
Eureka Emefa Adomako, 2001–2005
Elsie Effah Kaufmann, 2006–present

Quiz Structure

Three schools compete in each contest and each school is represented by two contestants. The current quiz mistress is Dr. Elsie Effah Kaufmann. Presently, every contest is composed of five rounds with the following rules:

Round 1 — The round of fundamental questions. Each contesting school has to answer 4 Biology, 4 Chemistry, 4 Physics and 4 Mathematics questions. A wrongly answered question may be carried over as a bonus. Partial credit is sometimes awarded by the quiz mistress.
Round 2 — This round is called the speed race. All three schools are presented with the same mainly applied questions at the same time. A school answers a question by ringing the bell. There are no partial credits at this stage and a school gains a maximum of three points for answering a question correctly.
Round 3 — This round is known as the Problem of the Day. The contestants are required to solve a single question, worth 10 points, within 4 minutes.
Round 4 — True or False statements are given to the contestants in turns. The objective is to determine whether each statement is true or false. A correctly answered question fetches 2 points. A wrongly answered question attracts a penalty of -1 point. One may decide not to answer a question, in which case it will be carried over to the next contesting school as a bonus for the full benefit of the two points.
Round 5 — Riddles; clues are given to the contesting schools. The schools compete against each other to find the answers to the riddles. Getting the correct answer on the first clue fetches 5 points. On the second clue, 4 points are awarded for a correct answer. On the third or any other subsequent clue, a question answered correctly is given 3 points. There are 4 riddles in all.

List of Past Winners and Finalists

^[2]^[9]

Year	Winners	1st Runner-up	2nd Runner-up
1994	Prempeh College	Achimota School
1995	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	Opoku Ware School
1996	Prempeh College	Presbyterian Boys' Secondary School
1997	Opoku Ware School	Prempeh College
1998	Achimota School	St. Peter's Senior High School
1999	Mfantsipim School	Wesley Girls' High School
2000	St. Peter's Senior Secondary School	Mfantsipim School
2001	Pope John Secondary School	Ghana Secondary Technical School
2002	Opoku Ware School	St. Peter's Senior High School
2003	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	Opoku Ware School
2004	Achimota School	St. Peter's Senior Secondary School
2005	St. Peter's Senior Secondary School	Opoku Ware School
2006	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	St. Peter's Senior High School
2007	St. Augustine's College	Kumasi Anglican Senior High School
2008	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	Opoku Ware School
2009	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	Achimota School
2010	No competition held
2011	No competition held
2012	Ghana Secondary Technical School	St. Francis Xavier Minor Seminary
2013	St. Thomas Aquinas Secondary School	Presbyterian Boys' Secondary School	Mfantsiman Girls Senior High School
2014	Mfantsipim School	Ghana Secondary Technical School	St. Francis Xavier Minor Seminary
2015	Prempeh College	Adisadel College	University Practice Senior High School
2016	Adisadel College	Opoku Ware School	Mfantsipim School
2017	Prempeh College	St. Thomas Aquinas Senior High School	Adisadel College
2018	St. Peter's Senior High School	West Africa Senior High School	Adisadel College
2019	St. Augustine's College	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	St. Peter's Senior Secondary School
2020	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	Adisadel College	Opoku Ware School
2021	Prempeh College	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	Keta Senior High Technical School
2022	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	Prempeh College	Adisadel College
2023	Presbyterian Boys’ Secondary School	Achimota School	Opoku Ware School

Ranking

Here is the league of finalists at the National Science and Math Quiz.

Rank	School	Number of wins	1st Runner-up	2nd Runner-up	Total finals	Years won	Years 1st runner-up	Years 2nd runner-up
1	Presbyterian Boys' Secondary School	8	4	0	12	1995, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2020, 2022, 2023	1996, 2013, 2019, 2021	–
2	Prempeh College	5	2	0	7	1994, 1996, 2015, 2017, 2021	1997, 2022	–
3	St. Peter's Senior High School	3	4	1	8	2000, 2005, 2018	1998, 2002, 2004, 2006	2019
4	Opoku Ware School	2	5	2	9	1997, 2002	1995, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2016	2020, 2023
5	Achimota School	2	3	0	5	1998, 2004	1994, 2009, 2023	–
6	Mfantsipim School	2	1	1	4	1999, 2014	2000	2016
7	St. Augustine's College	2	0	0	2	2007, 2019	–	–
8	Adisadel College	1	2	3	6	2016	2015, 2020	2017, 2018, 2022
9	Ghana Secondary Technical School	1	2	0	3	2012	2001, 2014	–
10	St. Thomas Aquinas Senior Secondary School	1	1	0	2	2013	2017	–
11	Pope John Secondary School	1	0	0	1	2001	–	–
12	St. Francis Xavier Minor Seminary	0	1	1	2	–	2012	2014
13	West Africa Senior High School	0	1	0	1	–	2018	–
13	Kumasi Anglican Senior High School	0	1	0	1	–	2007	–
13	Wesley Girls' High School	0	1	0	1	–	1999	–
16	Keta Senior High Technical School	0	0	1	1	–	–	2021
16	University Practice Senior High School	0	0	1	1	–	–	2015
16	Mfantsiman Girls' Senior High School	0	0	1	1	–	–	2013

Awards

TV Programme of the Year, 2017, 2022 (CIMG Awards)^[10]^[11]^[12]
Six Gold Awards (Branded PR, Digital, Social Media, Print, Integrated Campaign, Television), 15th Advertising Association of Ghana (AAG) Gong Gong Awards, 2021
New Media Campaign of the Year, 2022 (CIMG Awards)^[13]

Related Research Articles

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References

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1 2 "Winners Of The National Science and Maths Quiz From 1994 – 2019". afrosages.com. 12 July 2019. Archived from the original on 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
1 2 "National Science & Maths Quiz". seniorhighub.com. Archived from the original on 2019-10-09. Retrieved 2019-11-15.
↑ "About". NSMQ. 2016-04-26. Archived from the original on 2021-11-29. Retrieved 2021-12-05.
↑ "Elsie A. B. Effah Kaufmann (BSE MSE PhD (Pennsylvania)) | Department of Biomedical Engineering". ug education ghana. Archived from the original on 2020-11-01. Retrieved 2020-10-09.
↑ "Elsie Effah Kaufmann". Archived from the original on 2021-11-29.
↑ "Primetime Limited set to launch STEM Festival - MyJoyOnline.com". myjoyonline. 14 July 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-11-20. Retrieved 2021-11-29.
↑ "Obuasi SHTS wins maiden Sci-Tech Innovation Challenge". NSMQ. Archived from the original on 2021-04-19. Retrieved 2021-11-29.
↑ "Past Winners - NSMQ". Archived from the original on 2017-06-30. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
↑ "CIMG Awards: National Science and Maths Quiz is TV Programme of the Year 2017". ghanaweb. 29 September 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-10-06. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
↑ "McDan Chief Executive Officer emerges CIMG Marketing Man of the Year". ghanaweb. 2 October 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-10-06. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
↑ "NSMQ wins CIMG TV Programme of the Year 2022 - MyJoyOnline.com". myjoyonline. 2023-10-01. Retrieved 2023-10-02.
↑ "Double CIMG Honours Illuminate NSMQ's 30th Anniversary Festivities". NSMQ Ghana. 2023-10-02. Retrieved 2023-10-03.

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[:0-1] 1 2 "Inside Ghana's wild and raucous quiz show". BBC News. Archived from the original on 2018-07-22. Retrieved 2018-07-22.

[auto-2] 1 2 "Winners Of The National Science and Maths Quiz From 1994 – 2019". afrosages.com. 12 July 2019. Archived from the original on 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2019-11-06.

[:1-3] 1 2 "National Science & Maths Quiz". seniorhighub.com. Archived from the original on 2019-10-09. Retrieved 2019-11-15.

[4] "About". NSMQ. 2016-04-26. Archived from the original on 2021-11-29. Retrieved 2021-12-05.

[5] "Elsie A. B. Effah Kaufmann (BSE MSE PhD (Pennsylvania)) | Department of Biomedical Engineering". ug education ghana. Archived from the original on 2020-11-01. Retrieved 2020-10-09.

[6] "Elsie Effah Kaufmann". Archived from the original on 2021-11-29.

[7] "Primetime Limited set to launch STEM Festival - MyJoyOnline.com". myjoyonline. 14 July 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-11-20. Retrieved 2021-11-29.

[8] "Obuasi SHTS wins maiden Sci-Tech Innovation Challenge". NSMQ. Archived from the original on 2021-04-19. Retrieved 2021-11-29.

[9] "Past Winners - NSMQ". Archived from the original on 2017-06-30. Retrieved 2017-06-26.

[10] "CIMG Awards: National Science and Maths Quiz is TV Programme of the Year 2017". ghanaweb. 29 September 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-10-06. Retrieved 2018-10-05.

[11] "McDan Chief Executive Officer emerges CIMG Marketing Man of the Year". ghanaweb. 2 October 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-10-06. Retrieved 2018-10-05.

[12] "NSMQ wins CIMG TV Programme of the Year 2022 - MyJoyOnline.com". myjoyonline. 2023-10-01. Retrieved 2023-10-02.

[13] "Double CIMG Honours Illuminate NSMQ's 30th Anniversary Festivities". NSMQ Ghana. 2023-10-02. Retrieved 2023-10-03.

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