When the curtain came down on the 9th annual Courts Reading Competition, the Lodge Village Government School recorded its first victory.
Seven students competed for the title of “Champion Reader” but it was Jonneil Stowe of the Lodge Village Government School that emerged overall winner. Jonneil recorded the first win for her school since the inception of the competition in 2009. Among other prizes, she has won the opportunity to represent St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the regional leg of the competition in St. Lucia next year.
The students competed in 2 categories. They read a narrative titled The Deductive Mr. Horsefly, followed by a news item with the caption Never Give Up. Jonneil amassed the highest scores for the reading of the narrative, while Ethan Balcombe of the St. Mary’s R.C School was adjudged best reader of the news item. In the overall results, Ethan placed second, 3 points behind Jonneil, and Christian Joseph of the Kingstown Preparatory School came in third.
Speaking at the competition, Senior Education Officer for Curriculum, Aldia Gumbs-Dyer, thanked Courts St. Vincent Ltd for its commitment to the education sector. Dyer said: “….the business of education is a mammoth one and so we are truly honoured to have at our side corporate groups like Courts St. Vincent Ltd and the many others that have joined with us in the quest to achieve our goals.”
The annual Courts Reading Competition was introduced in the OECS in 2009, to promote literacy and to engender and encourage among students the love for reading.
Senior Manager at Courts St. Vincent Ltd, Michele Samuel, seized the opportunity to show the link between the digital devices available at Courts and the idea of literacy in a digital world. Samuel emphasized the importance of reading and how much reading and literacy have been affected in this digital age. Samuel shared this quote with the gathering: “Devices are not dangerous for literature. Persons are dangerous for literature”.
The finals took place on Wednesday 13th December at the Peace Memorial Hall in Kingstown.
Apart from the opportunity to represent St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the regional leg of the competition (St. Lucia), Jonneil Stowe of the Lodge Village Government School has won herself and her school some cash compliments Courts, and she already has a plan! Congrats on winning the local leg of the Courts OECS Reading Competition, Joneil. Now, let's bring it home!