American Regions Math League Competition

Iowa City, IA

May 28-31, 2008

Missouri Competition Story

 

I, Dr. Kevin Hopkins (http://www.sbuniv.edu/cosm/Math/Faculty/KevinHopkins.htm, from Southwest Baptist University) had the opportunity to travel to Iowa City, May 28-31, as one of 6 coaches for the 37 member Missouri ARML team (http://math.missouristate.edu/MissouriARML.htm for info on the Missouri ARML, http://math.missouristate.edu/44162.htm for information on this year's team, and http://www.arml.com/ for info on the entire American Regions Math League).  The trip started (for some of us) in Springfield, MO about 9 am.  This is where myself, Patti Blanton (Nixa), and Dr. Yungchen Cheng (Missouri State University-http://math.missouristate.edu/43555.htm ) and ten students (from Nixa, Ozark, Central High School and Bolivar) boarded the bus. 

 

We picked up a student from Salem in Lebanon, and then nine more students (from Columbia and the Kansas City area) in Kingdom City.  In Wentzville, we picked up fifteen more students (from the St. Louis area) and three more coaches, Chip Day (recently retired from McClure North High School), Rick Armstrong (http://users.stlcc.edu/Departments/fvmath/faculty/armstrong/ ) and Anne-Marie Mosher (http://users.stlcc.edu/amosher/ ) (both from St. Louis Community College at Florissant).  Two students met us in Iowa City.

 

We arrived on Thursday evening, May 28, and after checking into the dorms went out for dinner on our own.  Then we did a fun math “get to know you” activity.  The campus is near the Iowa River, which was pretty full and running fast.

 

Dr. Hopkins at the bridge	Eric Hopkins, Bolivar, at the river.

 

Friday was mainly practicing with ARML type questions.  Not all of the students had much experience with questions of this difficulty, so the practice helped prepare students for the contest as well as gave coaches some information on what the final team structure should be.  In the contest, Missouri had two teams of 15 students and the 7 alternates joined with alternates from other teams to form a 12 student team.  After the practice, the team assembled in front of the old capitol building for a team photo.

 

 

Saturday morning we had to be up early for breakfast and to load the bus before testing starting at 8:30 am.  As usual, some of the group took the opportunity to get in some cards.

 

Eric Hopkins, from Bolivar, is on the right

 

The teams took a team test and answered a Power Question (a series of related questions, many with proof components) in classrooms before joining in the student Union ballroom for the individual event (eight questions given in pairs).  After lunch (a box lunch served on the lawn across from the Union), students participated in the relay, Super Relay, and then tie breakers were done before final awards announced.

 

The schedule for the contest	The ballroom before students arrive.
Yes, Missouri had two teams and seven additional alternates participate
The room changed considerable once students came in for their individual tests.
ARML had many sponsors.

 

Teams from all over the Midwest also came to Iowa City.  Chicago had four teams, Indiana had one, Iowa had three, Michigan had two, Minnesota had one, Nebraska had one, Texas had three, and Wisconsin had one team.  So there were over 300 students at the Iowa City location.  While these students were taking tests in Iowa City, there were probably another 800 students taking tests at Penn State, Atlanta, and University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

 

Each team had a special team t-shirt.  Without asking for posed pictures, I tried to get a photo of every team shirt (at least one side of the shirt, although most had both a front and back side design).

 

Chicago	Indiana
Iowa	Michigan
Minnesota	Nebraska
photo not yet available. Texas	Wisconsin

 

 

As far as results go, the Missouri “A team” did well.  My recollection is that they scored 112 points (out of a possible 240).  Just to give perspective, the top score in the nation was 176 points.  Most Missouri individuals got 2-4 questions correct with three scoring 5 or above (out of 8 individual questions).  Again for perspective, across the four regional sites there were only 10 individual scores of 8.  At the Iowa City site, there were about 10 scores of 7 as well.

 

 

In church the next morning (which came VERY early after getting home about 2 am on Sunday morning), I was struck by the words of a chorus we sang, “God will make a way, where there seems to be no way.  He works in ways we cannot see, He will make a way for me.”  In 2000, when a student first asked about the mathematics department at SBU about hosting a math contest, I never envisioned “the ways” that God would work.  SBU has hosted nearly 4400 students at over 30 contest events (see http://users.sbuniv.edu/~khopkins/jan05/history.htm for full history).  He has allowed me to coach students locally the past five years.  He allowed me to expand that to coach about 130 students in camps (first at Summerscape, then at SBU-see http://users.sbuniv.edu/~khopkins/2008mcc.html for info on summer 2008 camp).  This year, He allowed me to be a part of ARML, which I anticipate being involved in for the next few years.  In what other “ways” He will work, I cannot see, but I will continue to trust that He will, indeed, continue to make a way for me.

 

I try to write a "story" of extended professional trips that I take.  I hope it give current and prospective students some insight into the life of this professor.  I try to participate in new things professionally periodically.  I find that new things, that at first may seem uncomfortable, stretch us and cause us to grow.  In the process they help us learn about ourselves and help us appreciate the comforts we do have (which sometimes may seem boring).  For myself, it also helps with my prayer life to realize my lack of sufficiency to deal with all that can come up in new situations.

 

From this trip I also learned that people don't always perform exactly as expected.  On a contest of this level, one can get off on a good start and exceed expectations in terms of number of questions answered correctly.  On the other hand, one can get off to a bad start, get discouraged, and not reach their expectation of performance.  Life can be like that sometimes and learning how to change direction when we get off to a bad start is a very valuable life skill. 

 

Some starts can be so bad, that I believe we need help in turning around.  I believe the Bible teaches us that man, on our own, is so sinful that we can not turn ourselves around on our own.  But Jesus provides a way for us to turn around (repent) and become all He wants us to be if are willing to trust in Him as Lord and Savior.