South Africa’s Mathematics education is notoriously poor, and benchmark comparisons show how far behind we are against our peers. A 2020 research report highlighted that, “…the data shows that South African students consistently scored in the bottom three countries for a range of tests”.
This is certainly a worry because Maths is important for many careers. “More and more, Mathematics is being seen as an invaluable asset in all fields and it opens many doors to future career prospects,” explains Lauren Paillard, Head of Mathematics at Herzlia High School. “Pupils learn crucial skills such as critical thinking and problem-solving skills in the Maths classroom, which are valuable skills for any line of work, but they are particularly important for work in fields such as medicine, engineering, finance, data science, and AI and Machine Learning.”
While the national situation may be dire, there are some teens who are bucking the trend. These are the Maths boffins who recently showed how their love of numbers took them to the top at the University of Cape Town’s Mathematics Competition. The top learners were announced at a prize-giving event held on 21 September.
A number of local Jewish children took top honours in the competition. Grade 11 learner at Hout Bay International School, Aaron Epstein, did particularly well, as did a number of Herzlia students. “All of the pupils who participated in the UCT Maths Competition this year performed outstandingly,” says Lauren.
Evidence of this is that three Herzlia pupils were placed in the top 10 of their age groups. Matt Carroll and Daniel Gad came 2nd in the
Grade 12 Pairs Competition and Liam Baruch came 5th in the Grade 9 Individual Competition. In Grade 9 Liam Baruch made it into the A team, Levi Gluckman the B team and Zachary Rosenberg the C team. Grade 12 Matt Carroll made it into the C team.
Herzlia’s Liam Baruch is certainly making his mark in local Maths circles, despite only being in Grade 9. With a string of accomplishments already credited to his name – including achieving a top 10 placing in the South African Maths Olympiad, representing South Africa at the Bulgarian International Maths Competition in July this year, and coming 3rd in the Jewish High School Maths League, with students from three different continents competing – Liam is passionate about the subject. “What fascinates me most about Maths is the impact it has on our everyday lives: from the encryption behind the electronic devices we use, to geometry that GPS technology relies on, and even in structural engineering – it’s all connected to Maths in some way,” he explains.
For those with the ability and interest in Maths, bright careers await. Both Liam and Matt Carroll are keen to study actuarial science, and Liam has also shown interest in the fields of computer science and mechatronics.
While Herzlia Grade 12, Daniel Gad, is not sure about a career choice, he has some thoughts about possible routes to take. “I want to get into the tech industry,” he says, “and biomedical engineering interests me because it’s a way to use problem-solving skills to develop solutions to improve people’s lives and their health. And software engineering also appeals to me because I am passionate about coding, and working on big projects to improve or develop systems like AI and Machine Learning seems interesting to me.”
• Published in the November 2023 issue – Click here to start reading.
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