Soulprints - Amyline Quien Ching

Modern Day (Math) Warriors

It is not everyday that people find their life’s passion. While others flounder, seeking their place in this world, others need no life maps to find their destined paths.

While solving math equations might be a fate worse than death for some, for junior math whizzes Jose Fernando Obillos, Abdel Hadi Mohammad Isa, and Mark Revelo, it is the best thing since the abacus. Toddler Jose recalls how he would always play with numbers. “Unlike other children, I enjoyed number games.” It wasn’t until later though that he realized his talent in navigating through the intricate world of Mathematics. “Math would always have the highest grade in my report card,” he confides. And like a regular trooper, he made sure he developed that little talent through training and practice. Having parents who do not deal with numbers in their professional life, he is a bit perplexed on where he got the “number genes”. “I think I got it from my grandfather, who was also good in Math,” he said. For Abdel, number equations seem to be a relative part of his gene pool. “My father, being an engineer, is very good in Math” Like Jose, Abdel’s gift became evident at an early age. “In grade two, I was already joining math contests in school. It was only in grade 4 that I started training under MTG,” he recalls.

Creaming the Crop

Joining the 1st Asia Intercity Teenagers Mathematics Olympiad in Fuzhou City, China was both the culmination of a lifelong dream and the start of a journey fraught with thorns and, to borrow one Amazing Race term, “roadblocks”. Going for the home stretch is certainly not a walk in the park. “We had to go through a lot to get to the finals,” reveals Jose, a sophomore at the Philippine Science High School Southern Mindanao Campus. Of course, the phrase “going through a lot” was putting it a tad mildly. According to Coach Judee Bacus, the students had to survive one elimination round after another before they were given the golden ticket so to speak. “To even join the MTG [Mathematics Trainers Guild] training, one must be able to pass a qualifying test.” Students, who have been training at different MTG centers all over the country every Saturday, were chosen to represent their provinces in the national level by virtue of their performance in the final examination. From a pool of 600 math wizards, only 30 elementary students and 30 high school students will be selected to represent the country in China. “Having just one contestant from our school is already an honor. To have three is more than we could ever hope for,” Ms. Bacus proudly mentions. According to PSHS-SMC Director Rosita V. Fundador this is not only a triumph for their school but also for Mindanao. “These students represent the divergent culture in Mindanao. These are Christians and Muslims working together. They will not only compete in China but they will also be ambassadors of understanding to other Asian youth.”
Training and preparations, however, did not end there. As if throwing their leisure time down the drain by studying the laws of Mathematics on a Saturday (several Saturdays for that matter) is not enough, they also had to sacrifice one summer vacation ensconced in classrooms with only numbers for company. “Jose and I spent the summer training in Manila while Abdel trained in the Zamboanga center,” tells Mark, who won the Excellence Award, which is equivalent to fourth place. Not that they are complaining of course. “We actually need to add more training days for international questions,” says Abdel, who is clearly not satisfied with the two months allotted for them. “Some of the questions were pretty advanced. We have not taken it up here,” he continues. According to Ms. Bacus, there will be questions that will be totally foreign to the students. “Our Mathematics here is far behind compared to Hong Kong, which has a good curriculum. Philippine Science [High School] has remained competitive but what about other schools?” Filipinos are very talented. Unfortunately, most are not given the chance to develop their talents.

On the Battleground

Jose, in his customary candid self said to his coach, “Ma’am, I’m afraid to go to China.” And who wouldn’t? Being suddenly thrusted into the international arena is enough to send shock waves into anyone. To say the least, the contest was quite nerve wracking. “I was so nervous that I slept for 10 minutes during the contest just to relax for a while,” Jose confesses with a quick smile. Though they have already prepared for the worst, nothing comes close to the real thing. “My main fear is to suffer from mental block. I was always psyching myself up to concentrate on the problem,” he goes on to say. In the individual level, the students were given two hours to solve 10 questions for the first round and 7 difficult questions for the following round, in which they were required to show their solutions to the judges. Although two hours may seem long enough to compute for everything, the questions were so tricky that it wasn’t enough. “One of the things that my parents told me before I left is not to cram, else I will panic,” relates Jose. Parents of Mark had the same idea when they told him to treat each question seriously. The format in the group level is more or less the same except that questions are distributed to a four-student team. “MTG told us to give the easy questions to the most capable and distribute the hard ones to the others. This way, we could get the most number of points,” explains Abdel. Since all the questions, whether easy or difficult, are given weighted equally, it is practical to concentrate on quantity rather than on the level of difficulty.

It was not all number computations, time pressures and frayed nerves though. Before the contest, the students were toured around Fujian. “I had a great time at Wuyishan, where we hiked until our feet hurt,” Jose exclaims. Abdel shares the same favorite spot. “We climbed the Great King Tip and the Roaring Tiger Peak. It was tiring but well worth it,” his excitement written all over his countenance. A cultural show was also held after the contest where each foreign delegate was asked to perform a local dance to a crowd of onlookers. “It was fun doing the fiesta dance even though I am not much of a dancer,” Jose recalls.

Undoubtedly, their Chinese connection will hold fond memories. “We may not have placed the way we planned to but we left there already winners. I met a lot of people, visited different places, and had the time of my life,” Jose relates. But more than the lecture on pop culture, the experience also made them realize some things about themselves. “Suddenly, it dawned on me that I could do it. I had the ability to solve difficult math questions and go head to head with foreign delegates. I believe more in myself now.” Their newfound confidence will definitely serve these math warriors well in the coming years. For the contest may have ended. But life has barely begun.

The road to greatness is laden with both roses and thorns. And though roses may make the journey a little brighter, it is the thorns that make it shine.

posted by Amyline Quien Ching @ 12:30 AM