OVER the past 10 years the St Elizabeth-staged M&M Mathematics Competition has engendered intense, yet healthy, mathematical rivalry among the partcipating schools.

For most of those years, traditional high schools have taken the top three spots, but in the last two years, the so-called non-traditional institutions have been

Aimed at inspiring children to love the subject and improve their performance, the competition initially found that the traditional high schools took the top three positions. However, the non-traditional schools had never accepted the notion that first, second and third places in the competition are the “divine province” of traditional high schools.

“Although The Hampton School and Munro College have held on to the first and second spots respectively over the years, Black River, STETHS (St Elizabeth Technical High School) and Maggotty have sometimes missed out [just] marginally in challenging them for the second and third spots,” said Dr Randolph Watson, coordinator of the competition.

Watson continued to say that “between 2010 and 2012 we have witnessed a forward and upward movement among the non-traditional schools. We have had individual students from these schools challenging the traditional schools for the top prizes. In 2009, for instance, Lateisha Daley of Lacovia (High) scored a healthy 92 per cent for the second place at Grade 11”.

Daley was the recipient of a full scholarship to Church Teachers’ College where she now majors in mathematics and computer technology.

This year, Doneil Parker of Newell High School scored a commendable 85 per cent in the Grade 11 category to cop the third place prize for his school, proving that, once motivated, all students can excel at mathematics.

The competition continues to enjoy success in the parish, with the assistance of the various instructors, and hopes to expand the programme islandwide.