Students from three Northern Territory schools have received second place honours in two categories at the Australasian Pacific Final of Tournament of Minds held on the Gold Coast last weekend.

Territory students competed against 69 teams from schools across Australia, New Zealand and Thailand. Students from Nakara Primary School received honours in Language Literature and students in a mixed team from Darwin Middle and High schools received honours in Science Technology.

The team from Darwin Middle and High schools also won the prestigious Spirit of Tournament of Minds medal, awarded for the students’ ability to undertake the program fairly and respectfully.

Principal of Darwin Middle School Marcus Dixon said “I am very proud of the students and staff involved in the tournament and congratulate them on achieving such a fantastic result.”

“The passion of our students and their pursuit of excellence is clearly articulated by this outstanding result and our teachers should be commended for their ability to ignite the enthusiasm of our students in such an important field of study,” Mr Dixon said.

Tournament of Minds is a national problem solving competition for students from primary years through to Year 10. Students in teams of seven complete challenges in three separate categories – Science Technology, Engineering Mathematics and Language Literature.

Principal of Nakara Primary School Britany Roestenburg said “I am so proud of our students who have all been working incredibly hard in preparation and represented the Territory to a very high level.”

“It has been a great opportunity to expand and reward their creative thinking and to stimulate a spirit of inquiry and a love of learning. The students have learnt a lot from this experience and have benefited from interacting with students from across Australasia,” Ms Roestenburg said.

Tournament of Minds is an opportunity for students with a passion for learning and problem solving to demonstrate their skills and talents in an exciting, vibrant and public way.

The tournament aims to help students develop enterprise, creativity and time management skills, and the discipline to work collaboratively within a competitive environment.

Programs such as Tournament of Minds provide students with the opportunity to enhance career-enabling science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) skills.

Media contact: Kat Acampora – 0401 119 215