JEDDAH, 9 May 2007 — The General Talent Competition (GTC) organized by the Jeddah chapter of the Muslim Educational Society (MES) of India has become a major annual event attracting a large number of students and their parents.
“We have successfully completed the first two stages of this year’s competition,” Dr. K.A.K. Abdullah, president of MES’s Jeddah chapter, told Arab News. He added that the GTC has been instrumental in broadening the knowledge of students and instilling a competitive spirit in them.
“The objective of the GTC is to select the most talented Indian boy and girl, each from three categories of students from the lower secondary, secondary and higher secondary schools,” the president said.
More than 2,000 students were selected to attend the contest after conducting a preliminary examination at eight international schools in the city last month. Indian students, who are not studying in Jeddah, are also taking part in the competition.
In the second stage of the competition, more than 200 students took part in a written quiz, a geography test (identification of locations on a map of the world) and an essay writing competition that were held for both boys and girls at the International Indian School last Friday.
Ten students who score the highest in each category shall be selected to proceed to the next stage, where contestants will be asked to speak extempore for three to five minutes on a topic.
Farhatunnissa, vice principal of the International Indian School in Jeddah (IISJ), inaugurated the contest for girls and praised the MES for holding the contest. “The GTC is a good opportunity for Indian students to prove their talents,” she added.
She said that IISJ students had performed well in past MES talent tests. “The GTC is significant for our students as they don’t get the opportunity to participate in such contests like their counterparts in India,” she pointed out.
Meera Christopher, a Class XII student of IISJ, is taking part in the GTC for the fifth time and has won the most talented girl title three times. “The GTC gives an idea of how competitive exams are held. More over it’s a good exposure altogether,” she said.
Abrar Ahmed, another participant from IISJ, believes that the GTC offers a good platform for youngsters to showcase their skills. For her the stage interview, which is held on the final day, is the best part of the whole competition. “I am sure that these contests will help us a lot to attend job interviews with great confidence,” she added.
Dr. Abdullah Moopan, former president of the MES local chapter, called upon students to make use of the annual competition, saying it would enrich their knowledge, motivate them to enhance their skills and abilities and prepare them to face life’s challenges.
The winners selected as the most talented Indian boy and girl from each category will be awarded a shield, a certificate and a gift. Individual winners of various contests will also get certificates and gifts.
The MES, which is a Calicut-based organization, plays a vital role in promoting education among Muslims of India. It currently runs more than 10 first grade colleges, an engineering college, a medical college and a large number of senior secondary schools and vocational training institutes.
