QE mathematicians have qualified for the knockout stages of a prestigious regional competition.
“The Hans Woyda Mathematics Competition is renowned for being highly intellectually demanding; to be successful, boys have to be adept at applying a wide range of mathematical skills under time pressure,” said Mathematics teacher Geoff Roberts.
The aim of the annual contest is to get students of differing ages discussing and working co-operatively to solve mathematical problems which push the borders of the syllabus.
The initial group stage of the competition involves 64 teams from across the South Eastern Region; each school competes against three other local schools in a round-robin format.
The QE team of Nitharsan Sathiyalingham, of Year 9, Bhavik Mehta, of Year 11, Gabriel Gendler, of Year 12, and Rahul Mukerjee, of Year 13 (pictured below, left to right), go through to the next stage after comprehensively beating Highgate School, Channing School and St Michael’s School in the group stage.
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“To win against three very strong schools, and indeed achieve the highest score of all 64 schools competing in round 1 and the second highest in round 2 in the group stage, is highly pleasing and an excellent achievement by the boys involved.”
The format requires aptitude both in mental mathematics and in the use of a calculator; it involves individual and team questions. The boys are now anticipating the knock-out stages later in 2013.