Sixty seven Delaware students ranging from grades four through eight came together on April 6 to compete for the title of state geography bee champion in John M. Clayton Hall on University of Delaware’s campus. Parents watched with nervous pride as their children correctly answered questions that would have stumped many adults.

Qualifying students from public and private schools across the state were orally tested on their knowledge of geography topics such as physical geography, cultural geography, economic geography, history, science and more. The event was hosted by the Delaware Geographic Alliance, a K-12 geography outreach program of the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment (CEOE).

The goal of the competition is not only to get students interested in geography, but also to make them more well-rounded students capable of success. It is intended to promote geographic literacy in the next generation.

“In an increasingly globalized world, geography matters,” said David Legates, event coordinator and director of the Delaware Geographic Alliance. “People need to know not just where places are located, but why places are located where they are, and how they interact.”

Testing students’ knowledge

Prior to the competition, guest speakers Daniel Rich, director of the University’s Community Engagement Initiative, and state Sen. Bryant Richardson, who represents the southwestern corner of the state, spoke of the importance of the competition and recognized the achievements of all the students participating.

Contestants were divided into four groups for the preliminary competition, where they were awarded one point per question for eight rounds. At the end of this preliminary competition—which included a tie breaker round—the top 10 scorers advanced to the final competition, which was moderated by CEOE professor emeritus Peter Rees. The second-to-last round determined two finalists, who then competed in the championship round, a “sudden-death” round where both participants were asked questions, until one answered correctly when the other did not.

Along with the title of state champion, seventh grader Jeremiah Rayban from the Cab Calloway School of the Arts in Wilmington received a $200 prize, a copy of the National Geographic Concise Atlas of the World, a medal and a trip to Washington D.C. for May’s national championship. The winner gets a $50,000 scholarship. Agni Miraji-Khot, a seventh grader from Alfred G. Waters Middle School in Middletown, took second place, and Anna Nguyen, a sixth grader from John Bassett Moore Intermediate School in Smyrna, finished third.

“The value of the bee,” Rees said after the event, “is primarily to give more notice to the population at large, as well as the schools, about the existence of geography [as an area of study and] to highlight the significance of the discipline.”