"It's not much of a spectator sport; you need to get involved," declared Mathematics lecturer Barry Ferguson when describing the Math Olympiad to be held at the Bermuda College on April 25.

Mr. Ferguson, a lecturer at the University of Waterloo, Canada, has created the papers and will be the chief marker for the Olympiad, organised by the Center for Talented Youth. He explained that the Olympiad: "Gives students an outlet to explore Mathematics, challenge themselves and show an aptitude for Maths outside the classroom."

Students from Grade 5 to 12, that is, aged 10 to 17 years, are offered a grade-appropriate paper comprising questions that make them think mathematically, and put together ideas to solve problems. Competitors are not tested on a body of material they are supposed to have mastered, as in a traditional exam, but are required to access knowledge from across the range of Mathematics they have experienced, pulling together concepts from different areas to solve problems.

"It's not an exam," Mr. Ferguson insisted, but more of a critical-thinking challenge.

Each paper offers a range of questions, beginning with multiple-choice answers. The problems become progressively more challenging, and the paper ends with two or three questions which require the competitors to present their rationalisation for what they have done and how they came up with their answer.

Time for the Olympiad is limited to one and a half hours; competitors need to arrive at the Bermuda College venue at 1pm, and the competition begins at 1.30pm.

"Competitors are able to see some of the fun stuff, see that you can have fun doing Maths," explained Mr. Furgeson. "They get a chance to meet other students who have a like aptitude and similar enjoyment of Maths. They can find inspiration to do even better, and the confidence to try harder."

The awards ceremony follows the Olympiad at 6pm on the same day, and provides an opportunity for the scores of competitors to socialise. In the past up to 200 young people have competed for the top prize of a laptop or the cash equivalent, donated by ACE Limited. There are prizes for the top 10 competitors in each age group, so more than the three medals awarded in the Olympiad's namesake.

l For more information about the Olympiad, and prep workshops contact Mrs. Riquette Bonne-Smith at the Center for Talented Youth, cty@tbinet.bm or 296-7259.