Maths Olympiad calls high school learners to sign up

First held in 1966, the Olympiad has for the past 10 years been organised by the national office for maths, the South African Mathematics Foundation (SAMF) and is being sponsored by Liberty and the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA).

The queen of all sciences

© Kostyantine Pankin – 123RF.com

Prof Johann Engelbrecht, Executive Director at the SAMF says: "Mathematics has, through the ages, been seen as the queen of all sciences. Everything in existence is supported by mathematics and the prosperity of a country is highly dependent on the state of mathematics in the country."

According to Engelbrecht examples of careers in mathematics include, but are not limited to engineering, statistics and the most recent development, biology. He says that DNA analysis, for instance, is a mathematical theory and that even finger prints and retina scans need mathematics for the classification. This makes biological mathematics one of the most exciting careers that will play a major role in the field of science in the next century.

Participation in the SAMO (and other SAMF programmes) ultimately prepares a learner for tertiary education. The type of mathematical problems that participants are faced with during each round of this Olympiad is very similar to what can be expected at University level. Engelbrecht strongly recommends that all learners who plan to further their education at University take part in the Olympiad from an early age. "Our learner development programmes start at Grade 4 and the majority of past winners of the high school Olympiad have been taking part in our programmes since they were 10 years old," he says.

The first round of the SAMO will be taking place on 12 March at each individual school; the duration is one hour and the school can schedule its own time. First round parcels consisting of the final instructions regarding round one, the question papers, answer sheets, solutions and certificates will be couriered as soon as the SAMF receives the school's entry form.

The entry fee is R24 per learner for schools in South Africa and schools with more than 100 entrants can enter at a reduced fee of R20 per learner. Learners at Dinaledi schools can enter free of charge since their entry fee is supported by the Department of Basic Education.

Schools and teachers who wish to enter can contact the SAMF by telephone on 012 392 9362 or send an e-mail to az.ca.fmas@ofni. The entry form is also available online at SAMF.ac.za.