Sunday, February 07, 2010

GARFIELD, MARSHALL, GRANADA HILLS TIE IN ACADEMIC DECATHLON SUPER QUIZ

by Howard Blume | LA Times/L.A. NOW

February 6, 2010 |  8:31 pm -- The Super Quiz portion of the local Academic Decathlon competition resulted in a three-way tie for first place. Sharing top honors were Granada Hills High in the San Fernando Valley, Marshall High in Los Feliz and Garfield High east of downtown.

The Super Quiz is only part of the competition, but it takes place in public with the excitement of a game show. All three schools scored 59 out of a possible 60 points.

Sixty-four teams from the Los Angeles Unified School District competed in the event at the Roybal Learning Center, west of downtown. Schools from other Los Angeles County districts compete in a separate event.

This year’s topic was the French Revolution. Other parts of the competition include questions about art, economics, language and literature, math, music, science and social science. Total results will be announced Thursday. The top teams travel to Sacramento for the state competition in March.

Garfield’s success is a particular point of pride for the school, which was defined last fall as among the worst in the district and therefore eligible to be taken over by outside operators. A final decision on future reforms at that school is scheduled for this month.

Marshall has twice won the national Academic Decathlon. Its team was especially hardworking this year, even meeting 60 hours a week over the winter vacation, including on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

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