Math competition can be one of the most enjoyable and valuable experiences in mathematics for many students. As a former math competitor while in high school, and now as a high school math teacher, I have seen many students who have become much more interested in mathematics due to their experiences in competition.

When I was a high school student, I was not much interested in athletic competition. I found myself much more interested in my academic courses than in Phys. Ed. Consequently, I never considered trying out for the football team or the basketball team; instead, I focused my time and energy into an academic area that was of special interest to me - the math team.

There are many benefits of athletic competition - learning to work as a team player, the discipline of preparation for a game, and providing an outlet for the competitive person - these are all given as strengths of athletic competition. Well, I have seen these same benefits show up in math competition.

Team Player
In my experiences in competition in the Maine Association of Math Leagues I have found an extremely good balance between individual performance and team performance. Yes, there is a strong emphasis on how an individual performs, however, just as important is the performance of the school. When a school is recognized with a team trophy, we are in effect recognizing all the team players. While preparing for a math meet, a real sense of camaraderie develops - a desire for students to help each other understand the material. Additionally, the team round competition forces students to learn to work together. As a student in high school, I recall spending significant time in practices working as a team on the team round. It was important for us to learn our teammate's strengths and weaknesses - to know that David was especially good at Geometry, while Sally could handle any quadratic equation that came her way, and no matter what the hardest problem on the round was, we could count on Chris to be able to solve it. Knowing these things about fellow students helped me develop a real appreciation for their abilities, and it also gave me a person to go to when I was struggling with one of those types of problems myself.

Discipline
Just as in athletics, a student who is going to perform well at a math meet must be disciplined in their preparation. One would not expect a coach to choose his starting lineup for the basketball game tonight from the students in a Phys. Ed. class, without any additional preparation. Likewise, for a student to do well in a math meet requires significant additional preparation. Sometimes that preparation can be frustrating. Many times students will find themselves struggling for hours with one set of problems. Some students want to give up after 5 minutes and be shown the solution. However, the real value comes for those students who spend the time struggling with a problem. For them, when they finally crack the problem 2 days later, there is an incredible sense of accomplishment, as well as a renewed commitment to solving the next problem more quickly.

A student who works consistently at solving these problems, year after year, will find that they are able to solve harder and more complex problems. They also develop a habit of sticking to a problem until they solve it - one of those qualities that we all like to see in students, and one we find that we don't see as often as we would like.

The Competitive Person
Many people have a competitive streak of some type running through them. Unfortunately, not all of these people are particularly athletic in nature. Math Team provides an easy outlet for that competitive edge. For those who say there is not real competition in a math meet, I would invite you to attend the Maine State Math Meet. Imagine having an ice arena full of 900 plus students, who are all working in absolute silence for a 12-minute round. Then, when the answers are read, you will hear and see both the elation of students who solved the problem correctly, and the disappointment of those who missed it. And, as often as not, those who missed the problem will be asking their neighbor how to do it, so that they will not miss it again.