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NOW it is
not only game shows which are aired live on radio or TV.
For the first time, a mathematics quiz was aired live on
radio and TV to develop in the youth the love for
mathematics and science.
Actually,
the finals of the second season of the math quiz—courtesy
of Pinoy SciTek Challenge Mathematics Edition of the
Department of Science and Technology’s Science Education
Institute (DOST-SEI) and aired over ABS-CBN tele-radio
program dzMM’s Bago ’Yan Ah! and SkyCable 26—was
held on March 9.
Among the
students from 27 schools from Metro Manila and nearby
provinces who aimed at becoming the champion this year, a
senior student of Saint Stephen’s High School in
Manila emerged as grand winner.
Kevin
Jonathan Dy received a cash prize of P30,000. His coach,
Tom Chu, received P15,000.
Dy bested
Hanz Martin Cheng of
UNO
High School
in Manila and Stephanie Anne Oliveros of Philippine
Science High School in Quezon City at the grand finals.
Dy’s
victory came after he nailed the last question in the
Great Challenge Round, giving him a three-point advantage
over Cheng’s nine points.
Hosted by
Angelo Palmones of dzMM and Ruby Cristobal of SEI, the
live quiz show gave more pressure on the contestants with
millions of radio listeners and TV viewers as their
audience.
But
despite that the math wizards were quick in answering the
math questions, most of the time giving their answers less
than a minute after a question was aired, BusinessMirror
observed when it watched the quiz on TV.
Dr. Ester
B. Ogena, director of the DOST-SEI, said the Pinoy SciTek
Challenge inculcated in the students skills that would
enable them to be alert and think quickly within a time
constraint.
“With this
quiz show, students develop their competitive skills,
especially as they wit it out with a lot of contestants,”
she said in a press release.
Ogena said
the program, which ran for three months and aired live on
dzMM and SkyCable Channel 26 every Sunday at 4:30 p.m.
from December 9, 2007 to March 9, 2008, was a successful
means in developing science and mathematics awareness in
the country.
“The
program showed that we have a growing population of
educated manpower. A lot of listeners of this program are
students graduating from high school, in college or higher
level of education as shown by the hundreds of texters
answering our on-air questions,” she said.
With the
support of the Mathematical Society of the Philippines and
the ABS-CBN Foundation, Ogena said the contest is also an
effective way of encouraging students to venture into the
realm of science.
“We are
promoting science and technology through this popular quiz
show to hone the mathematical abilities of our students
because math is a foundation for science. It is not only
useful in our school work but also in our daily life,” she
added.
The Pinoy
SciTek Challenge winners were chosen each week with three
schools sending one student each to compete, where one
champion is declared. The competing schools were composed
of public, private and science or science-oriented high
schools.
After
three weeks, a monthly competition was held where one
winner emerged. The monthly winner automatically qualifies
for the grand finals.
The three
monthly winners got a certificate of recognition and
P10,000 each, while their coaches got P5,000 each.
Qualifiers in the weekly round got a certificate of
recognition and P5,000 each, while their coaches got
P2,500 each.
In the
previous season, Deneris Ramos, a senior student at the
Governor Ferrer Memorial High School in Cavite, outdid
other high-school students in physics, chemistry and
information technology. | 
