In April of 1966, 15 girls traveled from New Orleans to South Florida to participate in the very first National Invitational Academic Games Tournament. One of those young ladies was Doris Voitier, the current Superintendent of St. Bernard Parish Public Schools and a huge proponent of Academic Games.
Five decades later, hundreds of the best and brightest students from the metro area continue to compete in these games. Recently, 236 students from schools across St. Bernard Parish gathered at the Maumus Center in Old Arabi to take part in the first game of the tournament season — Propaganda.
Propaganda tests students’ listening and critical thinking skills, as well as their understanding of persuasion techniques. For four rounds various scenarios and advertisements are presented, and the players have to analyze the content for different techniques of persuasion like Faulty Analogy or Wishful Thinking. Players then “wager” on their answer, using a Bold or Cautious designation. A correct Bold Answer generates more points, while an incorrect one creates a negative score.
When the scores were tallied, the following winners of the Propaganda tournament were announced.
Learners Division:
- 1st Place–Jack McMullin
- 2nd Place–Tyler Bauer
- 3rd Place–Rhiannah Feagin
- 4th Place–Athena Rockwell
- 5th Place–Addilyn Morales
Elementary Division:
- 1st Place–Enzo Martin
- 2nd Place–Chelsea Netter
- 2nd Place–Wyatt Scully
- 3rd Place–Yan Lu
- 3rd Place–London White-Stein
- 4th Place–Jade Jamhour
- 5th Place–Madyson Harris
Middle Division:
- 1st Place–Kevin Roussell
- 2nd Place–Maya Dufrene
- 2nd Place–Brennyn Holiday
- 3rd Place–Alyana Tobin
- 4th Place–Jenna Jamhour
- 5th Place–Christian Miller
Junior Division:
- 1st Place–Kimberly Quintilla
- 2nd Place–Tania White
- 3rd Place–Selina Li
Senior Division:
- 1st Place–Ava Volante
- 2nd Place–Coby Barrow
- 3rd Place–Brandon Jackson
Tournament organizer Gena Asevado said competitors must blend skill and strategy.
“Playing Academic Games forces you to think creatively, critically, and quickly. It teaches you to adapt to different situations, which is very helpful.”
Asevado said she was happy to have students compete in person again and looks forward to the rest of the season which includes three other games: the history-based game, Presidents; and the two math games – OnSets and Equations.
The Academic Games Leagues of America (AGLOA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to developing “Thinking Kids” of character, excellence, and integrity.
For more information about Academic Games or this year’s national tournament, visit https://www.agloa.org/.
You must be logged in to post a comment.