Aldi received the highest total score from the five judges, 464, for his work written and presented, titled “Climate Village, a Real Solution.”

Report by Yarmen Dinamika, Editor: Nur Nihayati, Banda Aceh

SERAMBINEWS.COM – Muhammad Aldi, a student at SMA Negeri 1 Bireuen, won first place in the 2024 Environmental Opinion Article Writing Competition for Senior High Schools and Vocational High Schools in Aceh. Aldi received the highest total score from the five judges, 464, for his work written and presented, titled “Climate Village, a Real Solution to Facing Climate Change in Aceh.” Second place went to Khansa Kamila Nourman from SMAS Darul Qur’an Aceh with a score of 456.5 for her work, titled “Endowed Forests, Solutions and Inspiration for the World.” Third place went to Nasywa Difa Batuah, a student at SMA Negeri 1 Lhokseumawe City, with a score of 455.5 for her work, titled “Gen Z’s Hands, Hope and Earth Disasters.”

In addition, two of the ten finalists were declared favorite winners: Nurul Aina, a student at SMAN 1 Matangkuli, North Aceh, with a score of 449.5 for her work entitled “Reviving Ancestral Traditions; Meuseuraya for a Better Environment.” Next, Zahra Thusita Dhia from SMAN 7 Banda Aceh City received a score of 446.5 for her work entitled “Trash to Treasure: Unique Creations from Used Materials.”

The winners were announced during the Sports Education Seminar commemorating the 65th Anniversary of the Regional Education Day on Monday, September 2, 2024, at 2:00 PM WIB (Western Indonesian Time) in the Aceh Education Office Hall. Kurniawan, Aide de Camp (ADC) to the Aceh Education Office, announced the winners, representing the jury.

The judges for this competition included Sulaiman Tripa (writer and lecturer at the Faculty of Law at Syiah Kuala University), Yarmen Dinamika (journalist for the Serambi Indonesia daily and advisor to the Aceh Menulis Forum), Risman Rachman (writer and former Deputy Director of Walhi Aceh), Irwan Saputra (Public Relations Staff at the Aceh Education Office), and Raja Mulkan (HaKA Foundation Staff).

Initially, 282 opinion articles were submitted to the committee. After a Turnitin plagiarism checker, only 139 works qualified for the judging round. After the judging, ten works advanced to the final round. The finalists were invited and facilitated to travel to Banda Aceh to present and answer questions from the judges. The final event was held in the Jeumpa Hall of the Mannheim Hotel, and was opened by the Head of the Aceh Education Office, Marthunis DEA.

Marthunis congratulated the finalists, who came from various regencies/cities in Aceh. “Congratulations to the finalists. You are the best. And this is the culmination of our literacy skills,” said Marthunis. He reminded the finalists not to be disappointed or discouraged if they did not win this competition. “Please participate in other competitions in the future. We will expand the number of opinion writing competitions and other written works,” Marthunis added. This year’s competition carried the theme “Sustainable Environment” with five sub-themes to choose from, including waste management, climate change, the dangers of illegal wildlife trade, and environmental education in schools.

During the prize presentation on Monday afternoon in the Aceh Education Office Hall, the Head of the Aceh Education Office, Marthunis ST DEA, presented the prize to Muhammad Aldi, the first-place winner. The first-place winner received Rp2,500,000, the second-place winner Rp2,000,000, and the third-place winner Rp1,500,000. The favorite winners each received Rp500,000. In addition, each winner also received a certificate, trophy, plaque, and merchandise.

The Head of the Aceh Education Office, Marthunis, assessed that this opinion writing competition was significantly beneficial for improving students’ reasoning skills, analytical and critical literacy skills.

This article was previously published, read the full article at: aceh.tribunnews.com