Mr. Richard Mensah, the Opoku Ware School’s NSMQ Coordinator, shared the motivational tale of how Stephen Baah, an SHS 1 student, led Opoku Ware School to the 2023 NSMQ Final and talked openly about choosing Form 1 students for the competition.
According to him, the decision to add Stephen to the contest was a very challenging one. He had to find convincing reasons to support his suggestion, not only for the general school but also for the team of teachers training the students for the contest, the old students association of the school, as well as Form 3 students of the institution.
According to him, the choice had to be made, especially after SIMMS SHS taught them a bitter lesson. He added that among the Form 3s, the school was not getting what they were expecting in terms of performance.
They noticed students in SHS1 and SHS2 were getting trial quiz questions correct, yet the form three students in the NSMQ team were struggling to answer the questions.
Mr. Richard Mensah added that, after they tried Stephen in one trial quiz, they were convinced he was good to represent the school. This compelled the school to draft a preparatory lesson timetable to help Stephen cover topics for the NSMQ. The other three students in the team also supported Stephen by helping him learn some of the topics as well.
This helped them build a team around Stephen, who was also good in the riddle section of the contest. Stephen Baah, an SHS 1 student, led Opoku Ware School, which ended up leading the school’s contingent into the finals and clinching third place on the day when they clashed with PRESEC Legon and Achimota in the final.