We were at an inter school quiz like any other. They cheered, they clapped, they jumped with joy for giving the right answers and also looked disappointed when they got it wrong. The only difference, these were teachers from various schools battling with each other!
This was the atmosphere at the 14th edition of the ‘Teachers’ Qwiz’ with the theme ‘Teacher, You Empower’. The event saw teachers from across the city of Bengaluru pouring in, to be a part of the ‘one-of-a-kind teachers’ quiz’. Organised by National Hill View Public School (NHVPS) every year to celebrate the Teacher, one can witness teachers reliving their childhood days.
‘Qwiz’ was conceptualized by Mrs. Rama Ranganathan, the Principal of NHVPS, to bring the teachers together. The ‘Q’ in the Qwiz symbolises curiosity and the questioning authority, while the ‘wiz’ comes from the trust and confidence with which the teachers are looked up to, by young learners. The ‘I’ in the wiz is the magic wand in the hands of every teacher, who helps aspirant learners recognise the inquisitive ‘I’ in himself or herself.
Like it is every year, the teachers of the school had put in a lot of effort to make the event a success. Everything in the school, including the bulletin boards, arrangements, posters and the activities, were according to the theme. The first thing that caught the teachers’ eyes was the huge rangoli made of coloured rice (the same rice is recycled every year! Nothing is wasted!). As they entered the venue, they were greeted to witness an array of activities on the theme.
Noted academician and educator, S. Ayyappan Nair, with over 50 years of teaching experience, was the chief guest. He was a teacher who taught soldiers during the Indo-Chinese war. He addressed the gathering with zeal and rightly compared it to a ‘sangam’, a confluence of rivers which is considered holy, by calling the Qwiz a ‘holy sangam of teachers’. He shared three mantras to become good teachers and administered an oath to them. The atmosphere suddenly became tense when the quiz began. The preliminary round was hosted by a young quiz master from Greycaps, Ms. Rashmi Furtado. Some shouted for more clues while some shouted for no clues at all. The enthusiasm continued to the final round, hosted by quizmaster Pickbrain, where the teachers on stage were on the edge of their seats, ready to press the buzzer to answer the questions and win points. The first few rounds were in favor of the teachers from Sindhi School, Hebbal, who were leading the quiz by 50 points. The tables turned when they scored a negative on a question, leading the other teams to take over. Ultimately, the team from BGS NPS consisting of Mrs. Nalini Ujre and Mrs. Lakshmi Ananthakrishna won the quiz, it is their maiden victory.
See what the winning teachers had to say about their experience here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAF80ICJ_qo&feature=youtu.be.
