BY: JULIET METTLE-EDMONDS
In education, 350 young minds have been celebrated for their outstanding mental arithmetic skills at the 14th UCMAS National Competition. The event took place at the Pentecost Convention Centre in Kasoa in the Central Region.
Three hundred and fifty students from 140 schools across the country went head-to-head in a fast-paced display of mental agility.
Using the Universal Concept of Mental Arithmetic System – or UCMAS – participants solved 200 arithmetic problems in just eight minutes, relying on abacus visualization and rapid calculation techniques. The competition tested their speed, accuracy, critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and creativity.
Some students say UCMAS has boosted their confidence, improved their mathematics performance, and sharpened their abilities in other academic areas.
Caroline Acquah-Danstil, Area Manageress for UCMAS at Effiduase Asante Mampong, emphasized the transformative effect the initiative has had on pupils.
She acknowledged that while UCMAS is predominantly active in private schools, efforts are underway to collaborate with the government to extend the program to public basic schools.
Girish Gurbani, Managing Director of UCMAS Ghana, reflected on the organization’s fruitful relationship with the Ghanaian government since 2007.
The Managing Director of UCMAS Ghana, Mr. Girish Gurbani, commended the government for supporting the program since its introduction in 2007. He said this year’s theme – UCMAS: A Requisite Medium for Training 21st Century Students to Solve Global Challenges– reflects the need for education to keep pace with the demands of a changing world.
‘He noted that despite UCMAS’s strong ties with private institutions, successive governments have consistently supported the initiative from the former Education Minister to the present administration’.
UCMAS, a global brain development program headquartered in Malaysia, now operates in 83 countries. The next international competition is set for December in Georgia, where Ghanaian students are expected to compete against their peers from around the globe.
The event not only celebrated academic achievement but also reinforced UCMAS’s mission to equip young learners with the cognitive tools needed to thrive in a rapidly evolving world.
This years’ National Competition was themed’ “UCMAS: A Requisite Medium for Training 21st Century Students to Solve Global Challenges’.
