Perse pupils have the answer to succeed in major quiz competition
Quizzical Perse pupils have prevailed in exceptional fashion in a new national online general knowledge competition.
Fifteen Perse pupils were among almost 1,000 participants from across the country who tested their understanding of four key areas – culture, geography, history and science – by answering 80 questions in 40 minutes in the BM Schools Academic Quiz (BMSAQ) Junior Challenge.
Amazingly, eight Perse pupils finished in the top 10 students nationwide with Elliot (Year 8) attaining the highest overall score with 69 out of 80.
Harry (Year 8), Jacqueline (Year 7) and Liz (Year 8) were second, third and fourth respectively, with Jai and Buddhan (both Year 7) finishing join-fifth, while Shrey (Year 7) was ninth and Anvita (Year 8) and George (Year 7) joint-10th.
Elliot was thrilled to emerge as the highest scorer in the competition, having already achieved Gold in the BMSAQ Senior Challenge and finished 10th in the Intermediate Challenge – aimed at older age groups – earlier this year.
He said: “I’m happy that I managed to finish first as I wasn’t expecting to. I’m really proud not just of how I did, but of my friends as well, and it bodes well for the future of general knowledge at The Perse because some of those who did so well were Year 7 pupils.”
A fan of shows such as University Challenge and QI, Elliot felt the BMSAQ suited his approach to quizzing.
He said: “The BMSAQ isn’t about how quickly you can answer on a buzzer, so I was able to work at my own pace and demonstrate how much I actually knew rather than be under time pressure.
“You had around 30 seconds per question rather than five to 10 seconds when you’re doing a Schools’ Challenge quiz.”
Elliot, whose favoured topics include world geopolitics, history, and country’s borders and flags, will be part of the Perse team taking part in the Junior Schools’ Challenge national finals on 21 June along with captain Jacqueline, Buddhan and Harry.
He said: “I find the Schools’ Challenge really exciting and we’ve got through a number of rounds to get to the national finals.
“Apart from the last round, we’ve also managed to beat some teams by comfortable margins, so I’m hopeful we’ll do well in the national finals.”
The Perse will also be represented in the Intermediate Schools’ Challenge national finals on 14 June with a team featuring captain Benjamin, Alexander, William (all Year 9) and Lynden (Year 10).