Quezon students set for UP Oroquieta’s 27th Intellectuals’ Quiz

By Jay B. Laurino LUCBAN, Quezon — As students confront pressing national issues inside and outside the classroom, the University of th...

By Jay B. Laurino

LUCBAN, Quezon — As students confront pressing national issues inside and outside the classroom, the University of the Philippines Oroquieta will hold the 27th Intellectuals’ Quiz (IQ) on January 31, 2026. Bringing together junior and senior high school students from across Quezon Province, the competition turns academic knowledge into a platform for critical engagement with real-world challenges.

Quezon Province has long served as a strong base for academic competitions and student-led initiatives, with schools actively participating in regional and national scholastic events. The Intellectuals’ Quiz continues this tradition by providing Quezon students a venue to test knowledge, sharpen critical thinking, and engage with issues that directly affect their communities.



Guiding this year’s activities, the competition adopts the theme “SIGWA: Sa Pagbalikwas ng Masang-api sa Binabakbak na Haligi,” shaping its academic and creative components and prompting participants to examine challenges facing communities. The theme places the quiz within real social and development issues, highlighting unequal access to basic services and public resources that affect everyday life.

According to 27th Intellectuals’ Quiz head Alexa Gabrido, the theme connects academic excellence with conditions faced by communities. She said the quiz encourages students to move beyond textbooks and apply knowledge to social issues.

The Filipino term SIGWA, associated with a strong surge or storm, represents awakening and collective action. The theme emphasizes the role of young people in questioning social problems and joining discussions that drive change.

Quiz co-head Krystel May Salayao said the competition challenges students to examine current issues through learning, analysis, and creative work. She added that the quiz helps participants connect classroom lessons with experiences in their communities.

Now in its 27th year, the Intellectuals’ Quiz stands as a long-running academic event that promotes critical thinking, social awareness, and student participation. The competition features 12 sub-events, giving students several ways to demonstrate knowledge, analytical skills, and creativity.

The events allow junior and senior high school students to compete, build confidence, and apply learning in active settings. The sub-events combine academic quizzes, written and spoken challenges, and creative activities that test knowledge, communication skills, and creative thinking across disciplines.

Team-based quiz rounds cover general knowledge, current affairs, science, mathematics, logic, history, and language, emphasizing accuracy and speed. Individual events, including essay writing and analytical exercises, allow students to explain ideas clearly and engage with the year’s theme.

Educational committee head Sherna Sahilan supervises academic content to ensure fairness, relevance, and appropriate difficulty. The committee reviews and organizes questions across all sub-events to maintain balance and consistency.

Teams advance through elimination and championship rounds that increase in difficulty across preliminary, semifinal, and final stages. A point-based system determines rankings, while tie-breaker questions settle close scores under strict time limits.

The Department of Education divisions of Lucena City and Quezon Province endorse the event, allowing schools to count participation as part of their academic enrichment activities. Christian Danganan, President of UP Oroquieta, said the endorsement strengthens the quiz’s role as an educational platform that supports learning beyond the classroom.

Beyond competition, the Intellectuals’ Quiz promotes active nation-building by encouraging informed thinking, social awareness, and community responsibility, with SIGWA framing intellectual pursuit as civic action. As the event approaches, UP Oroquieta urges schools, teachers, and students to follow official updates on its platforms, with details on registration, schedules, and mechanics to follow.