With eight states down and six more to go, those behind the RHB-New Straits Times Spell-It-Right challenge are on their own steep learning curve, writes NURJEHAN MOHAMED.

Pat (right) with Penang primary school champion Lim Ann Huey and RHB northern regional director Yeoh Beng Hooi. This is something Malaysia needs, says Pat.

THIS weekend marks the midway point of the inaugural RHB-New Straits Times Spell-It-Right (SIR) challenge.

Sixteen primary and secondary school champions from eight states are now getting ready for the national championship in August.

It is still early days, but the SIR organisers have already gained valuable insights into how the project is developing.

NSTP marketing director Pat Wahid says SIR has gone beyond the expectations of the organisers, making them look at it more seriously than before. "When we first thought of this, it was supposed to be a component of NST's corporate social responsibility programme.
"But from the response we've been getting from parents, students, teachers and even adults not involved in the programme, this is something that Malaysia needs," says Pat.

The next step, she adds, would be to strengthen the programme and include more people in future. "We welcome anyone who has ideas and opinions on how we can support the improvement of English usage in the country," she says.

NST associate editor and content committee chairman Rehman Rashid has also been gratified by the students they are seeing in the contest.

"I had hoped that through this competition we would find these prodigies," he says. "And my fondest hopes seem to be borne out."

Spelling is a special skill, he adds, and those who can do it well are determining the calibre of the contest as a whole.

"The turnout could have been better but this is the first time this is being done, so hopefully there would be better response in subsequent years," he says.

Newspaper in Education (NIE) manager Mary Chandapillai says that since the competition started, the department has been receiving calls from teachers wanting to know more and if their schools can still participate. "We are finding there is a lot of interest in something like this," she says.

Although the Ministry of Education encourages teachers to do their own spelling contests in each state, nothing on this scale has ever been undertaken in Malaysia.

"It is an excellent project for so many reasons," adds Mary. "As it grows bigger, the standards will also be higher."

NST deputy chief news editor Balan Moses says the programme has proven that English is still very much alive among Malaysian students.

"There have been some exciting discoveries about the potential of Malaysian pupils, many of whom have revealed themselves as gems in the rough who just need a bit of polishing," he says.

Moses is confident that the new talents emerging from the contest will give currency to NST's efforts to rekindle love for the English language among youth.

New Sunday Times associate editor A. Kathirasen has been impressed by the excitement of participants and their teachers at the challenge, and is surprised by the standards he is seeing.

"For instance, in Terengganu, some religious schools did quite well, which I was not expecting," he says.

Sunday People editor Theresa Manavalan agrees: "These kids are good."

"Our education system can't be half bad if we are getting students like these," she says.

That there are good schools, teachers and students in the country is a reassurance emerging from the competition.

"This contest has attracted school children whose merits may not be based on popularity," Manavalan says.

"And that's great."

At its core, says education editor Faezah Ismail, the goal of SIR is educational — to encourage young Malaysians to cultivate the art of spelling, expand their vocabularies, and enhance their knowledge of and enjoyment in the English language.

"I am excited that parents and their children are rising to the challenge," she says.

SIR is heading to City Square, Johor Baru, Johor on May 10 and 11.