According to the Asia Book of Records and India Book of Records, ClassAct 2022 holds the record of maximum participation in an online school quiz
New Delhi (India), February 3: ClassAct 2022, The Hindustan Times Republic Day Quiz has been officially declared by the Asia Book of Records and the India Book of Records as the record holder for the ‘Maximum Participation in an Online School Quiz’. It saw record participation of students from 32 countries across five continents in its Preliminary round on 23rd January and concluded with a thumping success in Grand Finale on 26th January 2022. This only goes to say that quizzing has been able to retain its own place in the minds of today’s youngsters despite tough competition from other forms of edutainment. This record-breaking quiz was hosted by the most celebrated quizmasters of the country, Dr. Navin Jayakumar and Avinash Mudaliar.
“I have never seen a quiz of this large a turnout in my entire life. We have seen participation of students from countries like Guatemala and Ethiopia, countries which were only answers for us in quizzes. This is not a winner-takes-it-all quiz. We wanted to completely change that entire format and encourage students from across the globe to participate,” says Mr. Mudaliar.
ClassAct 2022, The Hindustan Times Republic Day Quiz, announced 80 quizzing champions: 40 overall winners and 40 champions from the Junior Category (Grades I-V). Here is a snapshot of the top 10 in each category and what they stand to win. ClassAct 2022 had a total of 1.50 lakh worth Amazon gift vouchers that were up for grabs. Additionally, 25 viewers from the audience also got a chance to participate and win exciting Amazon vouchers.
For the winners, the quiz proved to be a truly unique experience. Speaking to HT School, Pranjali Mishra, the topper of the Grand Finale of ClassAct 2022, said, “This is the first time that I have participated in an international quiz.” This Class VI student from Delhi Public School, NOIDA thoroughly enjoyed it. “I found the question on baby shark to be fun during the Finale while the one about Taj Mahal was the most interesting one.”
Many participants found the Grand Finale to be more challenging than the Prelims. Sanjay Senthilnathan who stood second in the Finale of the quiz, said, “The questions in the Grand Finale were tough. However, the manner in which they were presented by the quiz masters made all the difference for me. They kept us motivated throughout the contest. My biggest takeaway from ClassAct 2022 has been the fact that it has motivated me to participate in more quizzes now.”
According to the Arush Aroh, who grabbed the third spot in the Grand Finale, what set ClassAct 2022 apart from others in the ilk was the way it was conducted. “The hints shared by the quiz masters were so helpful that even if someone knew 5% about the topic, they would be able to get to the answer. I also gathered quite a few fruitful insights during the whole process,” he said.
The junior champions from the Prelims also seemed to be equally thrilled. Bhuvana Kumar Gopal, who was the topper in this category, said, “It was very encouraging and a great learning opportunity for me.” Echoing a similar spirit, Dhruva Meghashyam Shirodkar, who grabbed the 3rd position in the junior category, said, “It’s actually my first solo quiz and I feel really good about coming third in it.”
THE FORMAT
ClassAct 2022 was a one-of-its kind opportunity for budding quizzers of Grades 1 to 12 to put their general knowledge, resourcefulness and logical reasoning to test. This online quiz, hosted by Mr. Mudaliar and Dr. Jayakumar, was divided into two rounds: Prelims and the Grand Finale. While the preliminary round was asynchronous and hosted on Quizizz, an online assessment platform, the final was live and conducted on both Zoom and Quizizz.
The screening process for the Prelims and the Finale was completely automated. The Quizizz platform auto-calculated the rank based on the speed and accuracy of all the students who attempted the quiz. Basis this ranking, 175 finalists were chosen and thereafter, 40 winners each from the final round and the Junior Category (Grade I-V) of the Prelims. The Grand Finale started from 3 PM on 26th January with a welcome speech and introduction of the quizmasters. In order to help budding quizzers hone their skill, Dr. Jayakumar explained the answers of the Prelims questions before the quiz commenced. The final round actually started from 4 PM. Immediately after the Grand Finale, 40 junior champions from the preliminary round were announced and the list of the top 40 finalists was out this Saturday. They are available on the official page of ClassAct 2022, The Hindustan Times Republic Day Quiz.
PARTICIPATION: A SNAPSHOT FROM INDIA AND THE WORLD
As already mentioned, Class Act 2022 saw record breaking participation in its preliminary round. There were registrations from as many as 50,611 students of Grades 1 to 12, from all over India and the world including 32 countries and 5 continents. The total count of students who participated in the Prelims was 19,625. For the Prelims, highest number of registrations was witnessed from grade 5: 4,998. Students from more than 32 states registered for the event. While Delhi can boast of the highest number of registrations from students, the two states that also saw massive participation include Maharashtra and UP. Together, they account for 36,432 registrations, that is above 70 per cent of the total number. Total number of registered students from Delhi was 20,201 and the figures for Maharashtra and UP were 8153 and 8078 respectively. Other parts of the country with significant shares of registration include Haryana (3486), Punjab (2783), Jharkhand (1793), Tamil Nadu (1086), Rajasthan (742), Chandigarh (719) and Bihar (643).
Globally, the highest number of registrations were seen from United Arab Emirates, United States, Singapore, United Kingdom, Nepal. Canada, Indonesia, Kuwait, Bangladesh, Uzbekistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Australia and Belgium were among the other countries from where significant registration numbers were witnessed.
Another feather in the cap of this landmark quiz contest was the fact that the Prelims saw more participation from women than men, a not-so-common scenario in the Indian scenario. Close to 60 per cent of registrations were seen from girl students, while the percentage of boys was slightly above 40.
As far as the Grand Finale is concerned, top 175 finalists were from 21 states. The highest participation was seen from Delhi (46), Maharashtra (36) and UP (23). Haryana and Tamil Nadu are among the other states from where significant participation was witnessed. Also, maximum students who participated in the final round were from Grade 9 (16%). High percentage of participation was also seen from Grade Grade 10 (15.43%), Grade 11 (12.57%), Grade 12 (11.43%) and Grade 8 (11.43%).
EASIEST AND TOUGHEST QUESTIONS
The Grand Finale comprised of 30 questions including multiple-choice questions (MCQs) and type-in ones. While some questions were easy-peasy, some were a bit tricky. The most correctly answered question was:
This watch (a visual was shown) from a comic series gets attached to a boy named Benjamin Kirby Tennyson who cannot take it off. It allows him to transform into ten different alien species, each with its own unique abilities. The watch is also part of the design of the logo of the series. Which series?
The answer was Ben 10. Fifty three per cent participants answered it correctly.
On the other hand, the least correctly answered question was:
This window at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge celebrates which former student (a visual was shown)? Give the last name only.
The answer was John Venn. Only 13 per cent participants could answer this correctly.
In the Prelims, there was a total of 50 questions. In this round also, students found some questions easy and some, a little difficult. The most correctly answered question was:
Which two colors of paint should you mix to get the color orange?
The answer was red and yellow. About 56.5% students got it right.
The least correctly answered question, on the other hand, was:
This country’s flag contains its biggest export (arrow in flag and images on left), which shares its name with a trick in soccer, in which a player rolls the ball between an opponent’s legs. Which country in the Americas?
The answer was Grenada. Only 5.6% students could answer it correctly.
