St. Luke’s Primary School wins 2022 Kwéyòl Spelling Bee Competition

Lamar Sabaroach, a student of St. Luke’s Primary School has won the 2022 Primary Schools Kwéyòl Spelling Bee Competition.

He outperformed four other students in the competition which was held at the Alliance Francaise on Wednesday.

In third place, with a total of 30 points, representing the Penville Primary was Kia Robert, while the second position was captured by Peniel Innocent of the Woodfordhill Primary.

The other contestants were Radhika Frederick of the Atkinson Primary and Samuel Innocent representing the Christian Union Primary.

Chief Judge, Delia Cuffy- Weekes mentioned some key areas teachers of various schools must pay attention to during the preparation of students to compete in the Kweyol Spelling Bee.

 “Make sure that the children understand that there is one sound for each letter or each letter combination in Kweyol,” she advised. “Make that you acquaint yourselves properly, with the sounds that go with each letter or letter combination so we can help the students to learn better.”

Meantime, the St. Luke’s Primary School congratulated Sabaroche on his outstanding performance at the competition. The school also congratulated Ms. Laurel Peltier for training and preparing Lamar for the competition.

The 12th Edition of the Kwéyòl Spelling Bee was hosted by the Konmite pou Etid Kwéyòl (KEK), in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and the Cultural Division.

The competition formed part of DOMFESTA celebrations and also wraps up a year-long programme of activities to mark the 40th Anniversary of KEK.

Six schools were expected to compete, however one school was unable to send a competitor (Baroness Patricia Scotland Primary) due to Covid-19.

The Kwéyòl Spelling Bee competition was started in 2010 by KEK as a means of promoting the use of Kwéyòl among the student population in a formal education setting. The competition has been keenly contested over the past twelve years. The Paix Bouche Primary School has dominated the competition having won six times. Other winning schools are St.Joseph Primary, Grand Bay Primary, Colihaut Primary, Ebeneeza Primary, and St. Lukes Primary.

Apart from the Ministry of Education and the Cultural Division, support for this year’s competition is being provided by the National Francophonie Commission, Alliance Francaise de la Dominique, Creole Heartbeat, Jays Limited, Fine Foods Inc and FLOW. The last competition was held in 2020.

The competition was not held last year due to the COVID pandemic.

“KEK is quite pleased that the competition is resuming despite the challenging circumstances for students and teachers over the past year or two,” A KEK official stated. “KEK also takes the opportunity to thank all its well wishers and all those institutions and individuals who have supported its 40th Anniversary celebrations and its work over the years and looks forward to continued collaboration and support in the years ahead.”