Newswise — On November 19, hundreds of middle schoolers will converge on the historic campus of Virginia Military Institute, as they have one weekday in November for each of the past three years. They will fill the college’s Hall of Valor with their youthful energy and bellow a countdown in unison: “Ten, nine, eight. . .”
On the “go” that will come after “one,” the students will fall silent, pick up their pencils, and begin a 25-question, 40-minute math test: the American Mathematics Competition 8.
One of an array of contests the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) offers the pre-college set, the AMC 8 caters to the youngest test-takers—students in grades 6, 7, and 8—and falls closest to the beginning of the school year. Its administration kicks off a season that brings contests pegged at the tenth and twelfth grade levels in February and continues with a series of invitational competitions culminating with the United States of America Mathematical Olympiad in April and the International Mathematical Olympiad in July.
In 2012, 152,691 students worldwide participated in the AMC 8, according to MAA Director of Competitions Steve Dunbar. Sitting for the test at their own schools or at nearby colleges or universities, youngsters tackled problems about making hamburgers, sharing slices of pizza, and counting the legs of animals at the zoo. They ordered fractions and compared areas and combined discounts. One declared purpose of the AMC 8 is “to demonstrate the broad range of topics available for the junior high school mathematics curriculum.”
The competition also aims to “promote excitement, enthusiasm, and positive attitudes towards mathematics,” and Virginia Military Institute (VMI) mathematics professor Randy Cone has run with that idea. With the support of his dean and assistance from math department colleagues and community volunteers, Cone has ensured that taking an AMC test—VMI administers not only the AMC 8, but the AMC 10/12 as well—at VMI is an all-day event. After taking the test and enjoying a box lunch, students are treated to math talks by VMI faculty and cadet-led tours of the college’s grounds.
While past years saw between 200 and 300 students descending on VMI for the AMC 8, Cone was already reporting 840 registrants more than two weeks out from this year’s event. VMI has chosen not to cap registration, Cone explains. “We feel like if our communities are really starving for these kinds of positive math experiences, we want to engage them.”
About MAA AMCFor more than 60 years, students across the country have taken up the challenge of America’s longest-running and most prestigious math contests, the American Mathematics Competitions (AMC). Every year, at thousands of schools in every state, more than 350,000 students are presented with a set of questions rich in content, designed to make them think and sure to leave them talking. Dedicated to strengthening the mathematical capabilities of our nation’s youth, the AMC program identifies, recognizes, and rewards excellence in mathematics through a series of national contests.
About MAAThe Mathematical Association of America is the largest professional society that focuses on mathematics accessible at the undergraduate level. Formed in 1915, the association members include university, college, and high school teachers; graduate and undergraduate students; pure and applied mathematicians; computer scientists; statisticians; and many others in academia, government, business, and industry who are interested in the mathematical sciences.
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