PY Awarded at SIMOC

This year, TISB PY students went global and participated online in the Singapore International Math Olympiad Challenge (SIMOC). On 24 July, they joined a total of 1907 students from 25 different countries, who took part in three different categories of events: the Math Olympiad Contest, Mind Sports Challenge, and Math Master Mind Competition. Out of the participating PY students, eight were rewarded with 14 gold, silver and bronze medals in the various events. We got in touch with Ms Padma, who organised this year’s SASMO and SIMOC, to find out more about the competitions and what they mean. We also heard about the experience from some of the students who were in the competition.

SIMOC is not only about winning medals. It is about the whole lot of learning and experiences that children take back with them – Ms Padma, PY Teacher and Mathematics Subject Leader

The SIMOC offers a high level of competition and team work. Students taking part were the gold, silver and bronze winners from this year’s SASMO, SMKC, AMO and students who had secured high distinction and distinction in DOKA 2020. The three contests categories in the SIMOC requires a deep understanding of mathematical concepts and higher order thinking skills to answer questions and creatively solve problems. “It refines their thinking, approach, focus and the way they look at Mathematics as a subject”, says Ms Padma, who has been in charge of organising the SASMO and SIMOC this year, as part of her role as Mathematics Subject Leader. In this way, the events develops students’ ability to enjoy mathematics, it encourages creative thinking and builds participants problem-solving skills, while boosting confidence in comprehending, reasoning and solving complex problems while applying them in real life. 

The SIMOC also promotes a culture of international understanding, sharing and learning among students from different countries. The team challenges, Maths Master Mind and Mind Sports, had students team up with other contestants from all over the world. “This gives global exposure, helps the child to develop 21st century skills”, says Ms Padma, and highlights how working with others you meet for the first time, develops collaboration skills. These skills are not about formulas and getting the right answer. “It is mainly about the ability to analyse a real-life problem, start from first principles, work collaboratively within a stipulated time frame and arrive at the best possible solution among many solutions possible”, explains Ms Padma and stress that although medals are motivating, SASMO and SIMOC is about developing one’s skill set.

What have the students got to say?

“I feel very happy to be a winner in the SIMOC competition. I really think that winners can help other people who want to do maths, and I strongly believe I can do it too and I also feel very excited for that” – Kartikeya, Grade 2, gold in Maths Olympiad, and bronze in Maths Master Mind.

“It feels amazing winning against so many contestants from 25 countries. The effort was definitely worth it. Leading the team in both the team competitions was challenging as we were randomly grouped with students from different countries. But, it was fun and I learnt a lot. I will keep working towards earning more awards in future and make my parents, teachers, school and my country proud.” – Avanish, Grade 4, silver in Maths Olympiad, bronze in Maths Master Mind, and bronze in Maths Mind Sports. 

“It feels great to be a winner in SIMOC after putting in a lot of effort and hard work. During the entire summer holidays I spent one hour every day. I felt happy when all the hard work paid off. Next time I am hoping for a perfect score” – Hari, Grade 5, gold in Maths Olympiad, and silver in Maths Mind Sports.

“It feels very satisfying to make my parents and the school proud. In hindsight, I feel no tiredness for working hard. I am highly driven to go above and beyond and am looking forward to achieve more in the upcoming tournaments” – Ishaan, Grade 5, silver in Maths Olympiad, and bronze in Maths Mind Sports.

“I feel super good because I had put a lot of effort for preparing for SIMOC during summer vacation. I also realized that as I started practising, all the questions that seemed very tough at the beginning became easy to solve. The new experience to do a team event with children from other countries was amazing. Being a team leader for the team rounds was exciting. I absolutely enjoyed it. I really look forward to more such competitions” – Aryav, Grade 5, silver in Maths Olympiad, and bronze in Maths Mind Sports.

“It feels very good to be a winner in SIMOC, but I feel that you can always do better. I want to say thank you to my teachers for helping me get here. I feel proud to have done this for TISB” – Ayaan, Grade 6, bronze in Maths Olympiad.

Shaurya from Grade 2 was awarded silver in the Maths Olympiad; and Aditya from Grade 7 received bronze in the Maths Olympiad.