VP opens Asian Physics Olympiad

PEKANBARU, Riau: A total of 120 senior high school students from 19 countries participated in the sixth Asian Physics Olympiad, which was opened here on Tuesday by Vice President Jusuf Kalla (not by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono as reported earlier).

The week-long event ending on May 2 is being held at the campus of the Riau Politeknik University.

The organizing committee said that certain nations had not sent teams due to concerns over security and natural disasters.

The vice president said in his opening speech that the physics olympiad should serve as an encouragement for Indonesian students to learn more about science, particularly physics, so that Indonesia could catch up with other countries in this particular field.

He also criticized teachers and school masters who are more interested in pushing students to achieve passing grades rather than focusing on quality education. -- Antara