Girls’ Schools do not take NSMQ seriously as Boys’ Schools-Prof. Elsie Effah Kaufmann

Renowned Quiz Mistress of the National Science and Math Quiz(NSMQ) fame, Prof.Elsie Effah Kaufmann has revealed why no Girls’ School has won the competition before.
 
According to Prof Kaufmann who is also a senior lecturer at the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Ghana, the Girls’ Schools do not take the NSMQ seriously as compared to the Boy’s Schools.
 
Explaining her point in an interview with Roselyn Feli on Joy Prime on Thursday, Prof.Effah Kaufmann said she was disappointed and quite unhappy no Girls’ School had won since its inception in the past 23 years.
 
She noted that even though there had been some improvement in how female contestants behave in the competition compared to the past where they were mostly shy or scared to answer questions, the lack of seriousness is a cause to worry.
 
“Yes I’m disappointed, it makes me quite unhappy to talk about it, I don’t think it’s a matter of competence, the girls are competent,” she said.
 
Assigning some reasons, she said, “The Girls’ schools do not take this competition seriously as the Boys’, because if they did, I would see them do some of the things the Boys’ schools and the Mixed Schools do.”
 
Prof Effah Kaufmann revealed that the schools that have consistently done well in the Quiz have a pipeline of contestants, they start their selection even before they get to the final year.
 
“They have a team in the first year, second year and third year, who sit in the crowd calculating, getting themselves ready, which is not done by some of the Girls who only wait to finish their Mock Exams before selecting their contestants,” she noted.