The motor vehicle strike notwithstanding, the regional finals of ‘The Handwriting Wizards 2017’ contest organised by The Hindu In School and BIC Cello India at Navajeevan Bethany Vidyalaya, Nalanchira, here on Friday was testimony to schoolchildren’s resoluteness. Of the 135 students who had qualified for the final round from Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam districts, 70 turned up despite the motor vehicle strike.
Waiting for the students in both junior (classes 4 to 6) and senior (classes 7 to 9) categories was a passage on former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. It did not take long for the students to copy the passage on sheets provided to them in their best hand. The competition was adjudged by Jayachandran V. and Abhilash Das, faculty members at the College of Fine Arts here.
The judges had a tough time deciding the three winners in each category, particularly in the junior one.
Winners
Chandana B. Biju of Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Kunnumpuram, bagged the first prize in senior category. Feba Achankunju of Vimala Hridaya ICSE, Kollam, came second, and Punchiri Krishna of L’ecole Chempaka International, Sreekaryam, came third in the senior category.
In the junior category, Gowri Nandana S. of L’ecole Chempaka came first. Adithyan M.S. of Cordova Senior Secondary School, Ambalathara, won the second prize, and Ahna Sajeer of Vimala Hridaya ICSE, Kollam, came third.
Important skill
The prizes were given away by S. Jyothi Sankar, General Manager, BSNL. In his address, Mr. Jyothi Sankar said the skills of writing and speaking were both important. Possessing knowledge alone was not enough; it was important to express it. Written communication was as important as oral communication. Be it old manuscripts, in the time of typewriters and shorthand, or computers and mobile phones of today, handwritten matter, be it a note or an examination, continued to be significant. English particularly afforded an advantage in terms of speed as it had fewer characters. Emphasising the aesthetics of writing, he urged the students to write in an attractive fashion, legibly and with clarity, while focussing on aspects such as grammar and spelling. He also urged the students to excel in whatever they did.
School administrator Fr. Thomas George who was the guest of honour called on students to appreciate their hands which were an expression of oneself and a way of embracing others, besides holiness in religions. “The handwriting competition is not just to find out how good one writes, but is also a way to appreciate our hands and thank God for giving us the gift of hands.” Hands, he said, could be used as an expression of love or hate, a means of creation or destruction, a means of holiness or something impure. What one did with them was in one’s hands, he said. Principal Shahna Renjith said handwriting was very important as it reflected one’s personality and character.It helped in building relationships, be it on an answer paper or a greeting card. The handwriting competition was not about winning or losing, but about participation, she reminded the students.
The event was presented by BIC Cello India. Navajeevan Bethany Vidyalaya was the venue partner. Ambrosia the Classic Bake House was the snack partner. As many as 16,000 students from 22 schools participated in the school round of the contest.
