After the success of our inaugural competition last year where we focused on developing students’ independent learning skills, we are delighted to announce our newest and latest competition, One Big Question About the World Around Me – just in time to celebrate teachers on World Teacher Day.
The Competition
What’s the biggest question your students can think of about the world they live in?
Your role is to get students to come up with the biggest question they can think of about something that is important to them. Then, they need to answer it! The question could be about something related to their society, country, way they live, nature, climate, religion, equality or politics! It should be something the students are passionate about, so they care about the answer, providing their opinions and facts. They might not know the answer to their question straightaway, but they can research it!
Any age group can enter, as different age groups will have different priorities.
Students will be able to use any format to present their question and answer: audio/video recording, poem, song, dance – the choice is theirs and they can be imaginative! They can also enter in groups, pairs or individually.
How do you enter?
Step 1: Register for the competition
Step 2: To celebrate World Teacher Day, we are providing access to our new course ‘Asking Questions in the Classroom’ for free for a limited amount of time. It focuses on everything to do with questioning from what a question is, the difference between open- and closed-questions, how to form higher-level thinking questions, encouraging students to create their own questions, strategies to gather together answers and how to feedback to students whether their answer is right or wrong.
Step 3: Upload competition entry by Friday 14th February 2025.
Step 4: Our judges will shortlist the best entries from all the submissions.
Step 5: The winner will be announced during Commonwealth Week in March 2025 on celebratory virtual get together. Date to be confirmed.
Why enter?
Do you want to improve students’ knowledge and understanding of the world around them and the people in it? By encouraging them to ask questions, we can help them to challenge ideas or initiate debate when they believe something is wrong. Students will also become more inquisitive learners and think more deeply. They can take ownership – rather than teachers asking all the questions, students can decide what they want to learn and become more confident with their voices.
Also, receive:
- A trophy and certificate for finishing 1st or 2nd
- T-shirts for students and teachers for finishing 1st, 2nd and 3rd
- Access to free Teach2030 courses for teachers at your school
- Skills to improve your teaching by taking the Asking Questions course linked to this competition – and you’ll receive a certificate for completing it!
Winners will be featured on our websites and social media!
During the next few months, we will be posting extra content that supports teachers and students as they complete the competition, so keep your eyes open for them!
Good luck! Any questions, please feel free to email [email protected]
So, what are you waiting for? Register today!
