Math Team’s Membership Multiplies
The math team relaxes before the Downtown Invitational at Stuyvesant. Photo Credit: Erin Ho
By MAYTHA CHOWDHURY and FAEZAH CHOUDHARY
Math team is not just for nerds! It’s a place where you can hang out in a friendly atmosphere where everyone is welcome to embrace their love for math and explore competition.
The math team was formed again this year after the request of Zalata Sukhan ’19, who is now a co-captain of the Midwood team along with Xin Yan Qiu ’19.
Sukhan explained, “I went to the math department to ask if Midwood had a math team, and they told me to go ask Mr. Peterson.”
Qui said, “We gained enough students through posters, walking into classrooms, and just spreading the word.”
Eventually the team had enough participants to request a team.
Mr. Albert Peterson, the math team coach, said, “Last year there was a group of students who were interested, so since the students wanted it, I had no problem because I love math.”
The math team was popular siz years ago, he said, but itsoon it “fizzled out to nothing. Hopefully, this time it will be successful.”
The Math team is “different from Regents class,” said Tina Chen ’19. “We print questions from previous competitions and practice those, making it easier to tackle competition math problems.”
Chen encourages all grades to join.
“We want to make this club bigger,” she said. “And we want it to continue after we graduate.”
Math club is not just about low stakes competition, learning, and socializing. Club members feel it helps build their future. A lot of jobs require the knowledge of math.
“I want to become an engineer, and engineering mainly requires math and science,” said Jason Mai ’19. “So, I felt like the math team could further my abilities to be successful in what I want to do.”
Mr. Peterson said, “While competing on the math team, you are also building a resume. It opens new opportunities in college acceptance.”
Math team is not just about winning.
Sylvia Chen ’19 said, “The club isn’t stressful at all. It’s more fun than you think.”
The students work in groups, so not only are they working on math they are also “building a friendship and bond,” said Mr. Peterson. “It’s more about the bond than the actual competition. It’s something valuable.”
Jodan Gong ’19 said, “Doing math with my friends and learning is the best part. When you learn in an environment you feel comfortable in, it makes you feel more confident.”
Mr. Peterson said, “You don’t have to love math to join this team. Just come down and hang out with math nerds and solve math problems like puzzles and patterns.”
The next competition is going to be an individual American Mathematics Competition this February. There will be another one in the spring.
If you are interested in learning more about math and embracing your love for math then stop by the meetings every Thursdays period 9 in room 151.