KUALA TERENGGANU: Being located more than 20km from Kuala Terengganu is
proving no hindrance to the English teachers and students of Sekolah
Menengah Imtiaz Kuala Terengganu when it comes to participating in the
RHB-NST Spell-It-Right (SIR) challenge.

The school, which provides alternative education following both the
national curriculum and the teaching of the Quran, decided to start
gearing up for the competition after learning that the state challenge in
Terengganu will be held by the end of April.

"The students came to see me and asked if they could participate in
this challenge," said Rohani Osman, the school's head of English language
teaching.

"I said 'yes', but we must prepare our team first to ensure we will
send the best spellers to win the state title.

"More importantly, we want to take up the challenge that our students
not only excel in Arabic and Quranic studies but also in English
language."

The SIR challenge, jointly organised by the New Straits Times and RHB
Banking Group, is divided into two categories - primary schools and
secondary schools -- and will be conducted in two stages - the State
Challenge and the National Challenge.

As part of the Imtiaz school's preparation, Rohani and her colleagues,
Nozura Rahman and Michael Potere, a Fulbright scholar under the English
Teaching Assistant Exchange Programme, are utilising flash card exercises
in which groups of students write English words on cards and then
exchange them with other groups.

They then take turns not just to spell the words but also to explain
their meanings.

The SIR state challenge is open to 36 schools in each state, and each
school can send a team of four contestants. The nine top spellers will
qualify for the state finals.

The state champion and runner-up in the primary school category will
win RM1,000 and RM800 respectively, while the second runner-up will get
RM500.

The top three schools will be awarded the same amounts.
The state champion and runner-up in the secondary school category will
win RM2,000 and RM1,500 respectively, while the second runner-up will get
RM1,000.

Again, the top three schools will receive equivalent amounts.
The state champions will then compete in the National Challenge in
August.

For further information on the RHB-NST SIR Challenge, look out for
entry forms in the NST from March 1.