Torbay 3rd in the UK Maths Challenge South West Final
The Maths faculty have entered teams into the UK Maths challenge for many years now and we have always done very well. This year we really excelled coming third out of 26 schools some of which are the most respected in the southwest region. What is amazing about this achievement is that the students who took part needed consoling because they had not won. This shows the confidence and determination that our students have. Its only a matter of time before we are first with that attitude.
To celebrate we all had homemade brownies in the Maths faculty and the students will receive their certificates in our end of year assembly.
Angelina, one of the students who took part, tells us all about the experience of taking part in this amazing event.
Speaking of math, the first impression people have is that its hard and sophisticated with questions which will take hours or years to solve. However, when you fight with it side by side and treat it like a friend you will soon found out that Math is just a little cute kitten who pretends to be horrible.
That’s why I decided to participate in the UKMT Group Challenge. This is also how I view Math. In this article, I just want to briefly share some of my thoughts after taking part in this competition.
UKMT, one of the most popular mathematical challenge in the UK having thousands of teenagers taking part in the competition. The group challenge is different from the individual one. Apart from bringing more fun into the game while you are sharing ideas and solving problems together, it amazes you how a group of 4 people who are from different regions of the world can work together and solve hard math problems.
It was a fine morning, we signed up at the hall and waited at a square shaped table. 25 schools’ elite from Devon were sitting around us, each looks particularly proud. However, in some way, I have a feeling that we will be better than them. Our team was too good to admit that we are going to lose the first ten places.
Group Round, Crossnumber, Shuttle, Relay, we finished them as soon as possible to earn extra marks. The overall feeling was not bad with some pity emotion as a few small mistakes can be avoided and the team can work a bit more effectively. While approaching towards the end, I found out our last round was not good enough to get us the first and a tense depressed atmosphere spread across the room very quickly.
Third place in Devon would not be a bad result at all. Nevertheless, being ambitious means going to London as the best of Devon is the final goal. On the other hand, enjoying the journey and having fun was the most important part, isn’t it? If I have another chance, I would more than happy to do this again and got our school in the final challenge in London.