Lise Mortensen (15), Lea Valsø (16), Gaute Gårder (16) and the team’s reserve Tobias Gjelseth (15) from Nordland can now call themselves the smartest 10th graders in the country. – It is quite sick, says a shocked Gårder. The gang from Alstad junior high school in Bodø made a big impression when they won the class quiz 2023. – It’s always nice to win, says Mortensen. It is the first time a school from Northern Norway has won the Class Quiz. It was about time, say the winners. – It’s great that we took the first victory for Northern Norway. We are proud to represent Nordland, says Valsø. The four pupils are delighted with the victory and thought it was nice to be involved and see how the program was produced. – We are quite proud of ourselves for doing so well, says Gjelseth. Gaute Gårder (16) Lise Mortensen (15), Lea Valsø (16), and their reserve team Tobias Gjelseth (15) is proud of Photo: JULIA MARIE NAGLESTAD / news Tough competition This year over 650 junior high schools from all over the country took part. And in the final, Alstad faced five other junior high schools from several different counties. After the first rounds in the final, it was the students from Alstad ungdomskule, Fløysbonn ungdomskule from Viken and Sunnland skule from Trøndelag who went on to the final sprint. – They were difficult to beat as it was so jammed, says Valsø. The students from Bodø agree that the competition in the final was tough. – I think they were worthy opponents. They were very smart, says Mortensen. These schools were in the final this year Photo: JULIA MARIE NAGLESTAD / news Sunnland school from Trøndelag St. Svithun school from Rogaland Ringshaug junior school from Vestfold and Telemark Alstad junior school from Nordland Fløysbonn junior school from Viken. Ra youth school from Vestfold and Telemark, But at the end of the final, not everything went according to plan. Mortensen was unlucky and tapped the screen twice in the quick round. Something that caused him to accidentally hit the right answer very quickly. – The fact that I accidentally printed twice was perhaps what made us win. It was good, says Mortensen. – Tried to get us to reveal the result The final was recorded some time ago, and the four students have had to keep it a secret since then. It has been a challenge. Especially when the classmates at Alstad are anxious to know the result. – They have tried to get us to reveal the result by accident. But I have tried not to fall for their tricks, says Valsø. Lise Mortensen, Lea Valsø and Tobias Gjelseth say their classmates at Alstad junior high school have tried to get them to reveal the result. Photo: Sunniva Grimstad Hestenes / news The prize is a private concert for the junior high school organized by news. There will be other artists such as Peder Elias. He won Spellemann 2022 for this year’s international success, and has been very successful in both Norway and South Korea. What is the class quiz? The class quiz is a national knowledge competition for pupils in the 10th grade. Competition starts with quiz rounds on district radio around the country. One and one participated here. Over 650 youth schools are participating from all over the country and in the end six of them will meet for a final in Oslo. The winners of the class quiz get a private concert for all the students at their secondary school. Sky high level Program manager Selda Ekiz says that the victory of the young people from Alstad is well deserved. – It was very exciting. It’s often jammed in the class quiz finals, because it’s the best of the best who come through, she says. She also believes that it was time that a team from Northern Norway won the competition. – I think it is very good. In the past, we have had many strong candidates from the north of the country, but who have not quite reached the top. So it was time. Program director Selda Ekiz says the level of the students who took part in the final this year is sky high. Photo: JULIA MARIE NAGLESTAD / news Ekiz is happy in her job as presenter of Klassequizen and enjoys getting an insight into what interests 15- and 16-year-olds. And the knowledge level of the young people this year has been sky high, according to the programme’s leader. – There’s a lot I probably couldn’t answer, but they did. They deliver much better than what I feel I could have managed myself. Ekiz says that she notices that the class quiz has become more popular among young people, and more people want to sign up. – I have received many messages from pupils in the ninth grade who say they would like to be involved. It is nice that there is so much commitment from pupils at the secondary school, she says. She therefore urged everyone who is in ninth grade and who wants to sign up to contact their teacher. – The initial rounds will already start in the autumn. It’s a great chance to show what you can do and experience something new, says Ekiz.
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