Sakura Mya
Earlier this March, a number of dedicated students represented Saint Maur in the annual KPASS Math Field Day which was held at Zama International School. Participants eagerly took part in three categorised contests, all of which not only tested the math skills, but also teamwork, precision and even… athleticism!? Such creative aspects in addition to math provided both fun and knowledge. Participants were seated according to their assigned groups with people of different schools and grades. From the very beginning, chatting amongst peers who shared a common interest, there was no moment where you could find it once “disinteresting”.
The first contest was an individual one where you had to answer as many questions out of twenty five in total in a limited time of sixty minutes. Participants were provided with a bubble sheet, and there, you were to choose your answer from a-e. Say you had no idea how to even begin solving a question; a guessing game of 20% chance is walking on a tightrope indeed! The grade 9 and 10’s had the same set of questions while the 11 and 12’s were provided another set that is more challenging. Questions varied from geometry to functions and with just one set, could mathematics be summarized as a whole. In just an hour, ideas are to formulate quickly, and correctly, or else, this first round would be difficult.
The second contest was more about laughs than stress, or actually, laughing from stressing. It was called the “Tech Challenge” and students were provided with a package of spaghetti and one, single piece of tic-tac and were asked to create the tallest structure possible. Then, a ping pong ball has to be able to stay on top, too. Different groups had varying approaches working with just a piece of gum and fragile uncooked strings of noodle. However, everyone had a goal: to create the strongest base possible so the spaghetti tower wouldn’t collapse. Around the hallroom, bases of all shapes and sizes were to be observed; square and triangular bases were most common but there were also ones that were cone-like. Either way, if your structure wasn’t stable, you’d have to strive to make sure it didn’t topple over. It certainly wouldn’t help if your hand was trembling due to uncontrollable laughter and your time of forty-minutes was coming to an end. Jokes aside, the tallest one of all had a height of 57 cm!
Last but not least, comes the “Energiser Round” where the groups used teamwork and strategy to solve math problems. There had to be one runner in each group and what they had to do was run to the assigned teachers to go receive a math paper with three questions and come back to the table so the group solved it. They then had to run back to them when once you were done solving, where you will receive yet another paper. This goes on and the maximum points you could get was eighty. Participants could skip a paper too if they wanted to move on. It is undecided still whether it was stamina or your algebraic ability that could win you this round.
Many of the Saint Maur students placed in the top positions for all the rounds. Xingyang (G12) was one of them, and being an avid math lover, had placed 1st in all of Grade 12 for the first test paper contest. “Doing these types of problems has always been enjoyable for me, and being able to meet other mathematicians who share the same interest is nice,” he says. That was his enjoyable aspect. As for the tough aspect, he says that the Tech round was another challenge adding on to the original one, having to work with new people who had various ideas to present. Nevertheless, it was all entertaining. His advice for the other students who aspire to excel in math competitions can be summarized in one word: practice. He believes that the sole mastery comes from the act of consistent training which is truly admirable.
Another Saint Maur student that made it to one of the positions was Yunseo (G9), who placed 3rd also in the first individual contest. The most interesting question she thought was solving the algebra composed with trigonometric ratios. “I spent plenty of time on solving it, but after I figured out how to solve it, it was so simple that I was so invested”. There were few problems that she found challenging and those were the geometric problems. “Even though I took excessive time on analyzing, I was not able to solve those.” Nevertheless, the most exciting aspect to her was when she was awarded for her performance. “I was happy to be recognized for the efforts I had put in.” Her advice would be to practice as well and even review specifically for geometric problems because they are very likely to appear in these contests. She also thinks that the past competition papers have helped her build an even better foundation which is why it is never a bad idea to take a look at them.
Big congratulations to Xingyang and Yunseo, as well as other Saint Maur participants who ranked in the other two categories (in groups)! A mention to Mr. Ito and Mr. Martin as well who had made this Math Field Day possible for us and the chance for these talented mathematicians to be recognized.
Sakura Mya