'Spelling Bee' takes off in Chittagong

The first-ever English spelling competition "Spelling Bee" was launched by Champs21, an initiative of The Daily Star, at a hotel in the port city yesterday to help school students enhance their English language skills.
Titled "The Daily Star Spelling Bee - Powered by Horlicks", the contest will kick off on February 1. Students of class VI to class X from both English and Bangla medium schools are eligible to take part in it.
Speaking as the chief guest at the launching ceremony, Editor and Publisher of The Daily Star Mahfuz Anam urged all to learn English considering it not only a language but also a part of developing skills. He also urged all to learn English through entertainment.
This competition will bring an opportunity for the students to be recognised nationwide, he said, adding that The Daily Star will take the initiative to recognise the best teachers throughout the country in future.
“The teachers are extremely unrecognised despite the fact that they work hard,” Mahfuz Anam said.
Students will look forward to this spelling competition after two to three years as it is expected to be one of the most popular programmes throughout the country, he said.
As the competition proceeds, more students will be involved with this programme and the students would be able to overcome their "fear of English" through practice, he said.
The education-based programme has three phases--online round, divisional round, and TV round. A contestant must undergo the rounds to reach the top. Channel-i will telecast the TV round. British Council is the knowledge partner of the contest.
Detailed information about the competition format and rules of participation is available on www.champs21.com