Student science contest winners announced
JAKARTA (JP): The Ministry of Education and Culture announced the winners of this year's National Young Scientist Contest yesterday.
Muhammad Hamdani, a high school student from Wonosobo, Central Java, took first prize in the ministry-sponsored contest, with his paper entitled The Use of Light Dispersion to Measure the Concentration of Solution.
Junior school student I Putu Kusuma Negara from Bali and Faisal, a high school student studying aviation technology here, won the second and the third prizes respectively.
In addition, the ministry also gave a special prize yesterday to the youngest participant in the contest, sixth-grader Dian Qur'ania Rachmawati from Yogyakarta. The 11-year-old girl studied the healing effect of jungking -- creatures similar to crabs -- on jellyfish stings.
"I'm so happy I won. I never thought I could," Dian told Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro, who called her up on stage during his speech.
Dian cried after presenting her study last week, because she felt that she could not answer the questions posed by the panel of judges.
Except for Dian, the rest of the 25 participants of the competition, which was held for students in the 12-19 age group, were junior and high school students. Among the criteria for winners were the contestants' knowledge of the subject matter, authenticity and creativity.
The ministry also announced Dian Amalia from Selong, West Nusa Tenggara and Sonny Hendra Ermando Lumban Toruan from Cirebon, West Java as the country's model female and male junior high school students.
Model students at the high school level were Amalia Dewi Naulita Pane from Tanjungkarang, Lampung and Surachmat from Cirebon, West Java.
Ideal teachers were also announced yesterday. They were Siti Kholifah of Kediri, East Java in the kindergarten category; and Imam Mahfud of Ponorogo, East Java and Usep Kuniadin from Garut, West Java in the elementary school category.
Haryanto, a teacher from Grobogan, West Java was named model teacher in the junior high school category, while Wagiman Hasjim from Mojokerto, East Java won for model teacher in the senior high category.
The ministry also announced winners of a writing contest on education. The first prize went to Mundiharno for his article, entitled The Teachers' Training Institute (IKIP) and the Market Condition in Education Sector, published in Suara Pembaruan daily.
The second prize went to Samsul Wahidin for his article Professionalism of University Lecturers, published by Suara Karya daily, while Mursal Esten took third place with Decentralization of Culture and New Information Centers, published by Kompas daily.
All contest winners were invited to attend the Independence Day celebration at the Presidential Palace tomorrow. (31)