SINGAPORE CHEMISTRY OLYMPIAD

The overall result of the 20th Singapore National Chemistry Olympiad 2008 is out. <Results>

The SChO is jointly organised by the Singapore National Institute of Chemistry (SNIC), Chemistry Department of National University of Singapore and the Ministry of Education. The inaugural Singapore Chemistry Olympiad was launched in 1989 and has been an annual event since then. The competition is open to JC 1 students. It consists of a theory test and a practical test, each of approximately 4-5 hours, taken over two days.

The yearly SChO culminates with the Prize Presentation Ceremony in early December. Medals (Gold, Silver and Bronze) and certificates are warded. There are 3 categories of awards. The Best in Theory, Best in Practical and the Best Team which is based on the top 3 scores chalked up by students of the JC.

The Singapore National Olympiad Council promotes and oversees activities related to the Singapore National Olympiads and International Olympiads. The council comprises members from the National University of Singapore, National Institute of Education, A*Star, Ministry of Education and the professional associations viz. Singapore Institute of Physics, Singapore National Institute of Chemistry, Singapore Mathematics Society and Singapore Institute of Biology.

The IChO is a competition where students below the age of 19 years compete against each other in intellectual prowess in Chemistry. Intellectual skills such as analysis, deduction, induction, problem-solving and decision-making are needed. Besides pitting their knowledge and skills against their academically talented counterparts from other countries, students also interact with their counterparts and university lecturers.

The International Chemistry Olympiad has been held annually since 1969. Each country sends a team of 4 students and 2 delegation leaders. (The IChO competition is organised on the same line as the IPhO). It consists of a theory test and a practical test, each of approximately 4-5 hours, taken over two days. A programme of visits and social events is also organised for the participants. Awards for the IChO are given to individual participants rather than to a team. There are four classes of awards: Gold, Silver, Bronze and Honorable Mention.

Singapore first participated in the IChO in 1988. Since 1990, we have been participating annually in the IChO.

Every year, the team to the IChO is selected through two rounds of tests. At the first round, about 150 students will participate in the SChO. Based on their performances, about 25 students are selected for the rigorous training for each Olympiad. The group is co-trained by JC teachers and NUS/NIE lecturers. The training programme comprises lectures, problem solving tutorials, practical lessons and tests. These training sessions are usually held on Wednesday afternoons from Feb to May of each year, including 1 week of Intensive training during the March school holidays and June vacations. The final 4 students are selected based on merits – performance in the tests and undergo 2 weeks of intensive training (inclusive of 1 week of residential training in NUS) during the June vacations.

The NUS leader for the IChO is the chairperson of the organising committee. He/She is also the co-ordinator of the International Olympiad training team comprising NUS and NIE lecturers and JC teachers. The Team Leader and the Deputy Leader for the IChO are usually a lecturer from the National University of Singapore and a JC teacher respectively. The leaders from the JCs have helped in the training of the respective teams for a period of 2 consecutive years.

From 1988 to 2009, Singapore has sent 82 students to the International Chemistry Olympiad. Our teams’ performance is creditable and commendable for a small country. Our students have won a total of 79 medals. The breakdown is given in the table below.

	IChO
No. of Olympiads Singapore participated	21
Awards	.
Gold	15
Silver	30
Bronze	34

Singapore’s performance in the 1998 30th IChO is the best over the years, scoring 2 Gold and 2 Silver medals. Singapore is ranked 2nd (by medals) and is tied with Korea. The second best performance was in 1994 and 2009, where Singapore scored 2 Gold and 2 bronze medals and was ranked 4th.

Past and future International Chemistry Olympiads

• The 41st IChO will be held in Cambridge, England in 2009.
• The 40th IChO will be held in Budapest, Hungary in 2008.
• The 39th IChO will be held in Moscow, Russia in 2007.
• The 38th IChO was held in Gyeongsan, South Korea, July 1-11 2006.
• The 37th IChO was held in Taipei, Taiwan, July 16-25 2005.
• The 36th IChO was held in Kiel, Germany, July 18-27 2004.
• The 35th IChO was held in Athens, Greece, July 5-14 2003.
• The 34th IChO was held in Groningen, The Netherlands, July 5-14 2002.
• The 33rd IChO was held in Mumbai, India, July 6-15 2001.
• The 32nd IChO was held in Copenhagen, Denmark, July 2-11 2000.
• The 31st IChO was held in Bangkok, Thailand, July 4-11 1999.
• The 30th IChO was held in Melbourne, Australia, July 5-14 1998.
• The 29th IChO was held in Montreal, Canada July 13-22 1997.
• The 28th IChO was held in Moscow, Russia, July 14-23 1996.
• The 27th IChO was held in Beijing, China, July 13-20 1995.
• The 26th IChO was held in Oslo, Norway, July 3-11 1994.
• The 25th IChO was held in Perugia, Italy, July 11-22 1993,
• The 24th IChO was held in Pittsburgh and Washington, USA, July 11-22 1992.
• The 23rd IChO was held in Łódź, Poland, July 7-15 1991.
• The 22nd IChO was held in Paris, France, July 8-17 1990.
• The 21st IChO was held in Halle, German Democratic Republic, July 2-10 1989.
• The 20th IChO was held in Espoo, Finland, July 2-9 1988.

	promote an interest in Chemistry,
	provide an opportunity for academically inclined Chemistry JC students to pit their knowledge in Chemistry and spar against each other,
	identify a pool of students who are talented in the Chemistry discipline for training for eventual selection of a national team to represent Singapore in the International Chemistry Olypiad (IChO).

	identify and challenge students who are talented in the Chemistry discipline,
	foster friendly international relations among students and teachers from different countries, and
	share information on educational issues and practices throughout the world.