Ghana has been enthralled with the National Science and Maths Quiz (NSMQ) for over thirty years. The quiz, which started out as a simple inquiry on a tennis court at the University of Ghana in 1993, has developed into one of the most popular academic events in the nation.
It is a showcase of the country’s greatest young minds, a significant platform for advancing science and math education among senior high school students, and a unifying force that cuts over ethnic and regional barriers.
It is worth acknowledging the superb work the organisers of NSMQ have done. Under the visionary leadership of Mr Kwaku Mensa-Bonsu, the intellectual acumen of late Prof Marian Ewurama Addy, and now the rigorous hands of Prof Elsie Effah Kaufmann, the competition has helped demystify science and mathematics for many young people.
It has created national role models, encouraged thousands of students, especially girls, to pursue science programs, and fostered healthy rivalry among schools.
However, admiration requires honesty. Beneath the glittering trophies, the dramatic tie-breakers, the bragging rights, and the iconic presence of its Quiz Mistress Prof. Elsie Effah Kaufmann lies an uncomfortable truth: the NSMQ is not an equal playing field.
Dominance of the few
After 30 competitions, only 11 schools from the ranks of Ghana’s elite category A schools have emerged as champions. Just four elite schools, PRESEC Legon, Prempeh College, Mfantsipim School, and St. Peter’s SHS, account for 66.7% (20 out of the 30 trophies).
The numbers are staggering; this is not a reflection of the distribution of talent in Ghana. It is a reflection of the distribution of opportunity, resources, and structural advantage.
Structural factors behind the dominance
The elite (Category A) schools that dominate the NSMQ have advantages that competitors can only dream of. These Category A schools benefit from a number of advantages that contribute to a self-perpetuating cycle of achievement, including strong alumni networks and historical legacy.
Elite schools frequently benefit from strong alumni associations. These networks offer financial support, mentorship, training tools, and, on occasion, guidance from former candidates who are intimately familiar with the competition.
Over time, this generates institutional knowledge and a pipeline of expertise that newer or less resourced schools cannot match.
Human Resource Advantage. Just like in every field, there are teachers who are excellent in what they do. Prestigious schools are often able to attract and retain some of the country’s most experienced science and
mathematics teachers through their prestige, better compensation packages, and their urban locations.
Stability in staffing allows these schools to build strong quiz programmes year after year. In contrast, teachers in many under-resourced schools frequently seek transfers, making it difficult to sustain long-term academic programmes such as NSMQ training teams.
Student selection mechanism
Because of their reputation, Category A schools attract many of the highest-achieving pupils in the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE). The school placement system also disproportionately assigns top-performing BECE pupils to Category A schools.
The end outcome is a loop in which powerful schools recruit strong students, who reinforce the school’s supremacy.
Institutionalized quiz culture
Many elite schools run year-round quiz preparation programmes. Some even begin identifying potential contestants early in their secondary school journey. Outgoing contestants train incoming teams, creating a continuous cycle of knowledge transfer.
In addition, schools located in major urban centres often have easier access to alumni in universities or professional fields who can support training.
Schools in rural or less resourced areas rarely have access to such support systems.
The seeding advantage
Perhaps the most contentious benefit is the seeding mechanism.
Schools who have performed well in prior contests are seeded and advance to the Round of 16. This means that seeded colleges may only need to win four or five contests to win the championship, whereas unseeded institutions may have to compete in up to seven.
They encounter less tiredness and fewer prospects for early elimination; they arrive after lesser institutions have been eliminated.
While seeding protects top performance from early elimination, it also strengthens the dominance of historically successful schools.
Finally, the one-off elimination is not reflective of a school’s preparation or excellence. Schools spend the whole year preparing, going through different trials across regions, only to be eliminated in just a single contest, which could be influenced by a lot of factors. Schools should
have at least three contests before their elimination is determined.
These structural advantages are not abstract. It plays out every year.
What We Lose by Maintaining the Status Quo.
Realistically, only these elite Category A schools can win the NSMQ championship. If the current structure remains unchanged, Ghana risks missing out on several important opportunities: First, we may never see the full breadth of intellectual talent across the country if only a small
A group of schools realistically compete for the title.
Second, communities across Ghana may lose important moments of inspiration. Consider the impact if kids from smaller communities saw their local schools compete successfully on national television.
Third, the long-term legitimacy of a “national” competition may be called into doubt if the majority of schools believe they have little prospect of succeeding.
A Proposal for Change that Brings True Equity: The Two-Divided System
If the problem is structural, then the solution must likewise be structural.
Drawing inspiration from football leagues around the world, where clubs compete in divisions based on their resources and have pathways for promotion and relegation, I propose a significant restructure of the NSMQ into a division system.
Gold division (Premier Tier)
This would include the strongest schools, such as Category A institutions and promoted teams from the lower division, or seeded schools for a start.
All teams would start from the same stage, competing in group rounds before progressing to the knockout stages. The champion of this division would remain the overall NSMQ champion.
Green Division (Challenger Tier)
This division would include schools from Categories B, C, and D, as well as newer entrants.
Schools would compete within this division, with the opportunity for the top teams to gain promotion to the Gold Division in the following year.
Similarly, the lowest-performing teams in the Gold Division could be relegated.
Such a structure would create meaningful competition at multiple levels while preserving the prestige of the top tier.
How this addresses current inequities
1. Creates Space to Celebrate Excellence at All Levels. Schools that currently exist early, often demoralized by lopsided losses to giants, would have something tangible to celebrate: a trophy, a promotion, a successful season.
Their achievements would be recognized nationally
2. It creates meaningful competition for all schools
An under-resourced school cannot realistically dream of beating PRESEC Legon. But they can dream of winning a Green Division 2 trophy. They can dream of earning a promotion. They can dream of building toward greatness over the years, just as football clubs do in leagues around the
world. It will also strengthen natural rivalries among similarly-resourced schools.
3. Solves the Seeding Advantage Problem
Under the division system, every school in each Division competes in the same number of contests. No more free passes. Progress must be equally earned, demonstrating merit rather than relying on historical status.
Addressing potential concerns
I anticipate several objections and offer responses:
Objection: This would dilute the prestige of the NSMQ.”
Response: The Premier League’s prestige is not diluted by the existence of the Championship. If anything, the promotion battle makes the Premier League more compelling. Gold Division will remain the pinnacle; Green Division becomes a pathway to reach it.
Objection: Category A schools deserve their advantages; they earned them.
Response: Individual students and teachers at Category A schools work exceptionally hard, and their achievements deserve recognition. But systemic advantages, alumni wealth built over decades, preferential placement of top students, and historical head starts, are not earned by current competing students. They are inherited. Our competition should measure current excellence, not historical privilege.
Objection: It would be logistically challenging to run two competitions.
Response: Primetime Limited has expanded from 32 to around 174 schools. They have exhibited exceptional organizational skills. I am confident that with adequate planning and stakeholder participation, two divisions are possible. Green Division leagues might feed into Gold Division national championships, distributing the logistical load. Secure sponsorships for the Green Division, positioning it as an investment in Ghana’s future STEM potential.
The objection is that people may regard Green Division (Division 2) as second. To address this, consider using Gold, Premier, Championship, or Green Division instead of Division 1 and 2. Market Green Division (Division 2) vigorously; celebrate Green Division victors with the same media attention as Gold Division (Division 1), while emphasizing the promotion road.
The organizers must dedicate specific channels or time slots to Green Division; stream the contest online, and highlight Green Division finals on main channels.
CONCLUSION: A CALL TO ACTION
The NSMQ has evolved many times since its creation in 1993. The competition has expanded from just 32 schools to about 172 and now reaches audiences both on television and online.
The world has evolved since 1993, and our understanding of equality, opportunity, and structural disadvantage has grown.
We now understand that talent is dispersed equitably throughout Ghana, but opportunity is not.
It is time to move past the question of whether underfunded schools can compete with Category A institutions. They cannot, not equitably, consistently, or without fundamental reform. Instead, we should ask: How can we build a system in which every school can compete meaningfully and every accomplishment is recognized?
The brilliance of Ghana’s youth is everywhere. A competition that celebrates that brilliance more broadly could inspire even more students to pursue science, innovation, and discovery. And that would be a victory for Ghana as a whole.<
