A team of four QE boys has been placed second in the country in the Top of the Bench Chemistry competition – the best-ever result by a QE team.
Sanchit Agrawal, of Year 11, James Tang, of Year 10, and Year 9’s Bashmy Basheer and Nico Puthu were narrowly beaten by King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys, Birmingham, in the final of the prestigious competition organised by the Royal Society of Chemistry, which took place at Loughborough University. They received £15 Amazon vouchers and certificates and the School received a silver plate.
“This is a great performance at a very high level of competition,” said Second Master Colin Price, who paid tribute to Science teacher Dr Elizabeth Kuo for her role in supporting the team’s participation. “It’s very gratifying to see the preparation work paying off so clearly; it was an excellent opportunity for these boys.”
The team overcame 19 schools in the regional round, winning through with a score of 90% and tackling both individual and team questions. In the final, a series of short, factual tests and practical, problem-solving team exercises provided a rigorous examination of the boys’ chemical knowledge.