DOHA: Eighth grade students of Awsaj Academy in Doha have beaten off tough competition from 199 schools in Qatar to claim third prize in a national research contest.
Sponsored by Supreme Education Council (SEC), the Seventh National Student Scientific Research Competition provided opportunity for the schools to showcase students’ independent research and creative innovation abilities.
Forty entries were selected at the initial stage and eight teams shortlisted at the final stage.
Conscious of food security issues in Qatar, three students from Awsaj, a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), impressed the judges with their project ‘The Effect of LED Lighting on Lettuce Growth’.
Their success is the latest in a long list of accomplishments by hundreds of young minds in QF schools, many of whom have participated at local and international scientific competitions during the last academic year.
Peter Corcoran, Executive Director, Qatar Foundation Schools, said: “Educational and research programmes at QF schools aim to nurture students’ curiosity about the world, prompt them to think independently and ask critical questions about why things work in relation to other things.
“The main aim is to encourage students to generate new thoughts rather than just recite knowledge, and these skills will serve them as they head off to university and pursue their lives as adults.”
Among students who have benefitted from this holistic approach to education are Abdulla Al Subaiey, Mohamed Khalid Al Thani and Abdulla Saad Al Kaabi from Awsaj.
As part of preparations for the competition, they experimented with various levels of lighting to produce the largest amount of lettuce day and night during the academic year. They presented their findings at Awsaj’s annual Environmental Fair and then participated in the competition.
Awsaj is the only school of its kind in Qatar. It focuses on getting the best out of children with learning challenges by focusing on their areas of aptitude.
In the academic year 2013-2014, Qataris constituted 92 percent of its 338 students.
The Peninsula
