Temasek JC wins first place and $4,000 cash prize at ST's What's The News? quiz competition

Straits Times

23-05-2025

Temasek Junior College was crowned champions of at the finals of the ST What's The News? competition at NUS University Cultural Centre on May 23. ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
SINGAPORE - While others were stunned, the four-member team from Temasek Junior College (TJC) were praying for the question on newly elected Pope Leo XIV's first words when he first appeared in public in Vatican City to be given to them.
Rayner Ng, 16, said: '(The Pope's quote) had come out in ST's daily reports. I read about it from there and so, we answered correctly (when it was redirected to us).'
In the past few weeks, the team of four from TJC had made reading the news a daily habit. Their efforts paid off, when they emerged the winner at The Straits Times' current affairs quiz competition on May 23.
Temasek Junior College students answering the redirected question on Pope Leo XIV correctly during the short answer question round at the finals of the competition at NUS University Cultural Centre on May 23.
ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
'It was more about applying what we had learnt in our day-to-day lives in this competition,' said one of the team members, 16-year-old Guo Yatian.
Both excited and surprised to have won the competition, the team expressed their gratitude to the teachers and friends who had supported them throughout their journey. They took home a $4,000 cash prize for coming in first.
The schools that finish second, third and fourth won $3,000, $2,000 and $1,000 respectively.
Presbyterian High School students during the multiple choice question round at the finals of the competition at NUS University Cultural Centre on May 23.
ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
What's The News?, is an interschool interactive quiz competition organised by ST as part of its 180th anniversary outreach, and is supported by the Ministry of Education (MOE). The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) is a partner.
The preliminary round kicked off in April, where more than 6,000 students across 50 schools participated individually in an online current affairs quiz.
Following an intense competition during the semi-finals on May 21, which featured four telematch games, four schools entered the finals – Presbyterian High School, Outram Secondary School, St Joseph's Institution and TJC.
The finals were held at the event's campus partner, the National University of Singapore's University Cultural Centre.
Temasek JC came in first, followed by St Joseph's Institution, Outram Secondary School and Presbyterian High School.
Students answering questions during the quickfire multiple choice question round at the finals of the competition at NUS University Cultural Centre on May 23.
ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
On a stage modelled after a television game show set, the four finalist teams were pitted against each other in a game show. Students were given three challenges with a focus on current affairs.
Teams first competed in a rapid fire multiple choice round consisting of ten questions.
Their critical thinking and presentation skills were then tested in the next round, when students had 15 minutes to create one slide showing their answer to questions on different future trends in areas like healthcare and jobs. They had three minutes to present their answers.
The final round was a trivia quiz where teams took turns to pick questions worth varying number of points based on their difficulty levels. Topics ranged from environment and health to sports and pop-culture.
Ourtram Secondary School students during the presentation round at the finals of the competition at NUS University Cultural Centre on May 23.
ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
The Outram Secondary School team said they were extremely nervous coming into the finals.
'As a neighbourhood school, we were not expecting to be standing up here (on stage at the finals)' said one of the teammates when asked by the host Rishi Budhrani how they were feeling during the competition.
Nonetheless, the team showed their worth, scoring the most points in the quick fire questions round.
When asked about their biggest takeaways from the competition, Outram Secondary School student Kara Ringling, 15, said: 'I feel that in our generation, primary, secondary and JC schoolers, they find news very uninteresting. It's just something that is seen more as a task rather than something they could do in their leisure time.
'This competition has really opened our eyes that news can actually be interesting and something fun.'
ST editor Jaime Ho speaking to attendees at the finals of the competition at NUS University Cultural Centre on May 23.
ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
ST editor Jaime Ho said : 'The finals today were a capstone to our event for young audiences as part of The Straits Times' 180th anniversary, and, really another milestone for our work with some of the youngest of our audiences.
'From Day 1, the participants showed just how ingenious, critical, and thoughtful they were. While I'm sure the students took away some lessons about the news from this experience, we also learnt a lot from the students.'
He added: 'They taught us about how young people want to be reached and what makes them sit up and take note. It's also given us a chance to introduce contemporary issues in a more friendly way to those who may have found it quite daunting in the past.
'This event was one of my favourites of the ST180 events, and we hope we can bring it back year after year in some form. I'd also like to thank our various partners for helping us bring this event to life.'
St Joseph's Institution students during the presentation round at the finals of the competition at NUS University Cultural Centre on May 23.
ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
Mr Kangtai Zhong, assistant director of planning and development at the DrugFreeSG office , said: 'ST's aim of encouraging youth to think critically about current affairs whilst having fun aligns with our approach at CNB DrugFreeSG Office.
'We aim to equip youth with essential life skills and critical thinking abilities, enabling them to learn more and think more about the world we live in, specifically about the issue of drugs, so that they can grow into their roles as future leaders of our society and advocate for a drug-free Singapore.'
Mr Shawn Huang attended the event on May 23 in his capacity as the outgoing senior parliamentary secretary in MOE. He has since been appointed the same role in manpower along with his current finance portfolio.
ST's What's The News competition 'promotes media literacy and raises awareness on current affairs among our students', he said . 'Participants get to analyse news stories and understand complex global issues through interactive and fun activities. This not only sharpens their critical thinking skills but also encourages our youth to become more discerning and engaged citizens.'
Mr Huang encouraged students to keep on learning.
'Be curious in your pursuits, and wherever you travel to, whomever you interact with, always ask good questions,' he said. 'Most important of all is when we come together in such competitions, is to make good friends, because in the future, all of you will be working together to build the future of Singapore.'