Extract from The Star Education (5th February 2006)

NINETEEN students from the Alice Smith School (Equine Park) have joined more than 3,800 others and teachers from more than 200 schools worldwide at the 5-day XXXVIII International Model United Nations (Thimun) Conference in The Hague (Netherlands).

Alice Smith School students Niall Walsh and Zoe Randhawa will be making the opening speech as ambassadors at the UN General Assembly, representing the Marshall Islands and Uruguay respectively.

The conference this year is focused on the "Promotion on Gender Equality" and students from Alice Smith Years 10, 11 and 12 will be discussing solutions to help women gain a better education, more civil rights, improved access to the labour market, and to be considered equal with men on all issues.

The Model United Nations agenda is adapted from the UN's actual schedule, allowing students the reality of debating the same critical issues that are being handled in the General Assembly, the Security Council, the International Court of Justice, the Disarmament Commission, the Environment Commission and the Human Rights Commission.

The Hague International Model United Nations is the largest Model United Nations conference in the world.

Meanwhile, more than 30 Year 7 to 9 students took part in the final of the Alice Smith KS3 Performance Poetry Challenge held at the new Borders (bookshop) outlet at The Curve, Damansara.

V Magazine editor Teh Ming Li and Alice Smith Principal Nik Bishop were the judges of the poetry challenge which has been a focus of English study at the school.

The poetry challenge is aimed at promoting literature as well as encouraging academic competition.

The winners of the Year 9 category were Nik Muir, Tom Drayton and Michael Quigley performing the poetry Not My Best Side by U.A. Fanthorpe.

In the Year 8 category, Frederick Tan was the winner while Natalia Kakko, Sophia Binder and Makissa Smeeton won in the Year 7 category.