Tuesday, 14th October 2008
Scots MEP welcomes Euroquiz winners
Scots Tory MEP, Struan Stevenson, welcomed Scotland’s winning Euroquiz team, a five-strong team of Primary 6 pupils from Edinburgh Academy Junior School, to the European Parliament in Brussels today (Monday 13th October 2008).
On a visit to the school earlier this year, Struan promised the youngsters a trip to Brussels if they were successful in the Euroquiz, run by the Scottish European Educational Trust and sponsored by Standard Life. Happily, they went on to win this year’s quiz, beating off stiff competition from West Kilbride Primary School in the final.
Adair Wood, Patrick Christie, Alasdair Gillies, Peter Jacobs and Saul Melvin-Farr were joined by one parent each and their team coach Colin McCloghry on an overnight trip to see for themselves the workings of the European Parliament. They also had the opportunity to meet with the EPP-ED President and MEPs as well as attend a Working Group meeting.
Welcoming the team to Brussels, Struan Stevenson said:
“I was delighted to hear that the Edinburgh Academy Junior School team had won the Euroquiz competition and that they were able to take up my offer of a trip to the European Parliament.
“The Euroquiz competition is a great initiative, encouraging children to understand more about the European Union, the role of an MEP and the workings of the Parliament.
“The team’s high level knowledge on European matters is staggering at such a relatively young age – apart from putting many adults to shame, I just hope I have the answers to all their questions!”
Colin McCloghry, teacher and team coach at Edinburgh Academy added:
“I’m incredibly proud of our team. They worked hard and thoroughly enjoyed learning all about the European Union and enjoyed the experience of competing against schools from all over Scotland.”
The Scottish European Educational Trust is a registered charity aiming to provide information about Europe and the European Union to schools, colleges and universities through various educational programs, of which Euroquiz is one.
Primary 6 pupils from schools throughout Scotland competed in 25 regional heats with the regional winners going through to a national final. This year’s final took place in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament and was broadcast live over the internet.
The 25 regional winners answered three rounds of questions, with the top two teams competing in a ‘University Challenge’ style buzzer round. Questions ranged from ‘what currency is used in Slovakia?’ to ‘when did Greece join the EU?’ to ‘which country was awarded the George Cross for Gallantry?’
