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Photograph by Michele Tjin
Students tested their knowledge of culture, history and geography at Redwood Middle School's first geography bee with oral and written answers. Eighth-grader Patrick Fitzsimmons was the runner-up.
Myron wins geography bee with A-plus effort
By Michele Tjin
Quick. Pro-democracy demonstrations in Kathmandu and the surrounding countryside resulted in the king transferring power to the Parliament in which Asian country in 2006?
Stumped? Eighth-graders Myron Zhang and Patrick Fitzsimmons weren't. The boys were the last two standing at Redwood Middle School's geography bee, and each wrote down Nepal on their white board.
"That is correct," said Josh Henig, the moderator.
Applause broke out in the audience. About 200 students and parents were on hand to cheer on Myron, Patrick and the other eight atlas-minded students who participated in the inaugural event at Redwood on Jan. 26.
"This is a good alternative to your classroom work, where the onus is on grades," said Henig, a Redwood core teacher. "This is purely based on enjoyment."
The students in the school geography bee got there because they won the preliminary rounds held in their classrooms or after school. They relied on their map-reading skills and knowledge of culture and world events for oral and written questions.
Myron was named the school winner because he knew that Nigeria, an OPEC country in West Africa, is known for its oil reserves and is one of the largest producers of oil in the world. For his efforts, Myron took another written test after the event to determine if he is one of the top 100 geography students in California who will make it to the state championships in Sacramento later this spring.
Henig got the idea to hold a geography bee after seeing one at a school in San Francisco where he taught three years ago. Students at Roosevelt Middle School didn't particularly pay attention in assemblies, but they were taken in by the idea of a geography competition. One of the students, who was a ward of the court and was homeless for most of his life, even finished in the top five in Sacramento. Henig thought it might be worth it to bring the event to Saratoga.
"With geography, listening to the questions in the bee is another way to learn," he said. "You don't have to be graded on an assignment in order to learn."
Students at Redwood get their dose of geography mostly through the school's history curriculum. For some, the geography bee was a fun extracurricular activity where there were no grades hanging in the balance. Eighth-grader Amalie MacGowan spent two hours the night before reviewing her continents and countries, paying particular attention to Canada, Europe and South America.
"I just like studying maps. It's fun," said Amalie, who was knocked out in an earlier round.
As luck would have it, she knew the answers to questions asked of the other students, but not the one directed at her, which dealt with the geography of New England. Still, she was happy that she got as far as she did, and so were her friends, who mobbed her when the event concluded.
"There's always someone who is better than you," Amalie said.
Patrick's favorite subject is history, which paid off for him. It's like a big story to him, he said, and his knack for understanding atlases and knowing north from south on maps didn't hurt, either.
"I usually read the maps and tell my mom which direction to go," he said.
Henig said he's received a positive reaction to the geography bee from the staff, and there is interest in repeating the event next year. Registering the school for the national spelling bee, which holds similar elimination rounds at the local level, is another possibility. While Henig says he is no geography whiz himself, he does his best to stay informed.
"I'm interested in the world and curious about world events," he said. "As you hear the questions, you think, 'do I know the answer?' "
