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Figuring out the name of a major port along the Salt River in Arizona might pose as a difficult question for the average person. But for students like Jacob Pfund, the answer comes quickly and easily: Phoenix.
Pfund, 11, was the sixth-grade winner of Raymond J. Fisher Middle School's National Geographic Bee, held in December at the Los Gatos school. The seventh-grade winner was Jonathan Katz, and the eighth-grade winner and overall school champion was David Alexander. Alexander was followed closely by runner-up eighth-grader Sam Katz, who is no relation to Jonathan Katz.
The students were tested, using materials prepared by the National Geographic Society, with a heavy emphasis on United States geography, as well as on cultures, religions and economies from around the world.
About 40 students from 39 history sections in sixth, seventh and eighth grades were initially named classroom champions, after taking a written test and scoring well. During the elimination round of the bee, those 40 students took a test composed of 10 questions; they could only answer one question incorrectly.
Pfund's mother, Laurel, and other parents watched the anticipation and excitement of the students build during the course of the competition. She said her son has always enjoyed studying geography, but she was amazed by the difficulty of the questions.
"I could not answer any of them," she said.
The remaining 12 to 15 students went on to a "bee round" during which they responded orally to questions, using a progressing process of elimination. One champion was named from each grade level, in addition to the overall school champion. Since the competition, Fisher history teacher Barry Siebenthall, who teaches seventh and eighth grades, said Alexander has taken a written test that has been submitted to National Geographic. The results of the test will decide whether he'll be representing Fisher at a state geography bee in Sacramento on April 2.
If Alexander should win the Sacramento bee, he'd go on to contend for the national title on May 2526 in Washington, D.C. The first-place winner of the national competition will be awarded a $25,000 college scholarship, with lesser rewards for second- and third-place winners.
"I think his chances are very good," said Siebenthall, the history department chairman. "At the competition [at Fisher], he answered with such confidence. He definitely stood out."
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