Here’s why average students should also participate in an Olympiad
In today’s world, Olympiads are a regular competitive event that ensure that school-level kids learn and implement knowledge in a fun and engaging way, while grabbing exciting prizes on the way. However, in India, they are still a comparatively newer approach. In fact, they are often misinterpreted and regarded as extra burden on students who already have to deal with a mountain of school syllabus. Fortunately, things are changing, with teachers, parents as well as students seeing their benefits.
Take Hindustan Olympiad for instance. Now in its 8th edition, it is being deemed as one of the largest Olympiads in not only India but also abroad. Meant for students of grades 1 to 12, this contest will focus on not just one subject, but multiple subjects and let students showcase their overall knowledge in academics, that too on a national level. In turn, they will also help them be better prepared for other school-level competitive exams, especially when it comes to average students who often shy away from taking part in Olympiads-like events. Furthermore, they will help them determine their competence levels all the while motivating them to improve not only academics but overall life.
This year the Hindustan Olympiad 2023 will be held from 11th to 19th March. Interested candidates can register here until 4th March. Hindustan Olympiad 2023 is presented by Amrita University, powered by SpeEdLabs and has Oswaal Books as their official book partner. The icing on the cake is of course a detailed assessment report, a participation certificate, not to forget cash scholarships worth INR 50 lakhs.
Olympiads are not lucrative co-curricular activities, nor are they mandatory like school exams. Moreover, the popular opinion is that they are designed only for the best minds. Well, not anymore! Today’s Olympiads, especially the ones like the Hindustan Olympiad, are suitable for students of all efficiency levels, be it the prodigies or the average ones.
Here, we have listed some more reasons as to why an average student too should sit for an Olympiad.
Makes them ready for competitive exams too
Average students often consider that competitive exams such as Olympiads, and later on the likes of JEE and NEET aren’t for them. Why? Because they can’t possibly compete with the best brains of the country. Well, they can’t be more wrong. Participating in an Olympiad from early on can give them the ideal exposure and introduce them well to the world of competition. Moreover, they will also gain confidence along the way and will have a chance to grab tangible rewards including academic scholarship, media recognition and other hampers. In addition, Olympiads play a pivotal role in determining an average student’s aptitude level in core subjects. It takes a dip into the student’s analytical understanding of concepts. Besides, they also get to interact with peer groups and assesss the future competition.
Gives an overall glimpse and grip on the syllabus
Students who are toppers do well in all subjects. But that is never true for average students. This is where Olympiads play an important role. They allow average school kid to take on a carefully prepared exam in familiar subjects as well as difficult subjects, all of them from a fresh, analytical, and competitive angle. This helps them gain valuable insights and helps them demystify the entire school curriculum, thus giving them a better grip on how to tackle it in the long run.
Provides equal opportunities to all
Irrespective of whether a student is brilliant or average, Olympiads are meant for all. After all, the goal is not to discriminate but to make everyone academically sound, so that they can acquire both hard and soft skills and in turn be self-sufficient in the future. Olympiad do exactly that. They help evaluate a student’s calibre in particular subjects going into the depth of his or her logical/ critical thinking. Here, there are all kinds of questions, be it easy, medium of tough – that are meant for all. Moreover, unlike school exams that have bookish questions, the ones in Olympiads have a wider approach. So, this is a chance for students who do not focus on a particular subject but knows bits and pieces about everything to assess their strengths and weaknesses. Guess what this means? It means that Olympiads are the perfect opportunity for any student to show off his or her mettle and score above typical class toppers and turn out to be their equal. Simply put, any student, irrespective of their school-level grades can participate in Olympiads.
Enables average students find ‘their’ calling
A school-goer is often called average not because he or she is bad in academics but because he or she is too confused to understand which subjects, they genuinely like or dislike; which is the perfect domain to shape their careers. Unfortunately, school exams do not allow to step outside the periphery of fixed syllabus and standard questions. So, students often end up looking at a topic just for the sake of studying it, without feeling the urge to explore it further for real-life prospects. This is where Olympiads come into play. They introduce average students to the option of valuing a subject for its own sake, not just scoring marks in exams. In doing so, they often find their actual calling or as they say “subject of interest” and delve deeper into it.