Olympiads in Year 1-4

As this is my first time writing an article for Collegetalk, here’s a brief introduction about myself. I’m Gloria, and will be in Year 5 in 2011. After looking back at the past 4 years of my life at NUSHS, let me share with you a little about taking math and science Olympiads and NUSH Olympiad trainings in the lower years (Yr 1-4). (Beware: Long article ahead)

Olympiads for Yr 1-4 is a relatively new phenomenon, with the exception of the Singapore Mathematics Olympiad (SMO). The math Olympiad ‘is the largest and oldest mathematics competition in Singapore’ (quoted from website), having started in the mid-1950s under a different name. The Singapore Junior Physics Olympiad (SJPO) held its first competition in 2008, and the 1^st Singapore Junior Chemistry Olympiad (SJChO) was held in 2010. Most students take the SJPO and SJChO in Year 3 and 4, though there are a few Year 1s and 2s who take part as well. There is no junior biology Olympiad as of yet. (Not that I know of at least.)

You may be asking yourself why you should waste you precious time participating in and training for these Olympiads. The first reason will be that you really like that subject and you want to stretch your brain with intellectually demanding questions. Chances are, most people don’t take Olympiads for this reason. The second reason is that you want to see how well you fare nationally. The third is that you want some embellishment on your graduation transcript. There are also a million other reasons, like my-friends-are-taking-it-so-I-shall-too, but the one casual reason I find the most compelling is that there is simply no reason not to. There is always no harm trying.

Math Olympiad

I believe that most NUS High students will be familiar with math Olympiads, since there are many held in primary school. The SMO offers similar questions but of a higher difficulty, covering more topics of course. For the junior section, while topics like trigonometry is not necessary, knowledge of these topics are useful. For the senior section, topics like calculus is deemed not necessary, but once again are useful. There are 2 rounds, the first being a 2-3 hour paper of 35 MCQ and short-response questions, the second round being a 2-3 hour paper of 5-10 long questions. (I’m not sure of the exact number or the duration; please correct me.) The second round, which is the special round, involves long explanation question and proving questions.

Our school offers math O training from Year 1 to Year 4, covering topics ranging from Geometry, Permutation and Combination, Sequences, and many more. An external trainer from NUS conducts these lessons, and from past experience the modules are centered on practicing past Olympiad first round questions. However, I think (this is purely my opinion) the rigorous training is helpful for SMO prep as it trains your mind to think the SMO way (the more unorthodox way). Even if it doesn’t help in SMO, it has helped me in normal math modules as well, as some topics do overlap, or are taught ahead in Math O classes. For the year 2009, one has to take a selection test to take the Year 1 module, and the following modules are by invite only (the Year 1 module is a prerequisite).

Physics Olympiad

The next oldest junior Olympiad is the SJPO. The SJPO syllabus covers the usual secondary school physics syllabus, including but not limited to Mechanics, E&M, Thermal Physics and Thermodynamics, Optics, Oscillation and Waves etc. It also includes some Relativity, Quantum Mechanics and Atomic Physics. However, no calculus is needed. There are also 2 rounds, the first round and the special round (only shortlisted students participate in the special round). The first is an MCQ round, 50 MCQ questions in 90 minutes. The questions are not especially hard, especially for our school students. The second round is a theory round with 8-12 long questions. This year, around 1200 students participated, 17 received gold medals, 41 received silver medals and 47 received bronze medals. There are also honorable mentions given out.

Our school offers training for Physics O from year 3 onwards. Depending on your cohort, the first module is offered in Yr 3 Sem 1 or 2. For my batch, the first module was open to anyone, and around 60 people applied (half of which dropped out halfway). The following modules were by invitation. From what I understand, the batch after mine had their first module by invitation only, while the next was open to all. However, I’m just going to talk about my own experience. Year 3 Sem 2: Purely mechanics module. It was pitched at an extremely high level and many people lost faith. I understand that the level was pitched down after our year, so don’t worry about dying in that module. Year 4 Sem 1: This was some rigorous preparation for SJPO, which is held in August. It covers every topic of the SJPO syllabus, except for mechanics. Year 4 Sem 2: Purely mechanics again, mostly in preparations for the SJPO special round. (This was what I had experienced, there may be changes here and there, but all topics will be covered in at least one module.) Be warned- some of these modules are not for the faint-hearted, and do not expect to pass the tests of the modules.

Chemistry Olympiad

I have had the least experience with this Olympiad, and have not undergone any of the training for this Olympiad. This Olympiad also has 2 rounds, but the special round, unlike the SJPO’s, is a practical round. The first round is MCQ and is held in May. (However, as this is the 1^st year it has been held, I do believe that there may be changes to when and how it will be held.) The questions are also not especially challenging for the first round, but they do require a certain amount of critical thinking. There are also some questions that are knowledge-based: I still vaguely remember the last question which totally stunned us all- who won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 19xx for some discovery I can’t recall. A lot of topics are covered- the usual year 1-4 curriculum (physical chemistry, periodic table, a little quantum chemistry, redox, equilibria, thermodynamics etc.), and organic chemistry as well. The 2^nd round, being a practical round, is much fun. This year, students are grouped in threes (with students from your school), and 5 practicals need to be finished in 3 hours. These include QA, Buffers, Chromatography, and Titration for 2010. There were around 200 awardees (for bronze, silver and gold medals) from around 2000 participants this year. Merit awards are also given.

I did not attend our school’s Chem O training modules, so whatever is included here is based on my classmates’ experiences. The Chem O training begins in Year 4, while some Year 3s may be invited to sit in or take up the training as well. The module in Sem 1 is offered to all, and is a prerequisite for the subsequent module in Sem 2. The curriculum mirrors the modules covered in core chemistry modules, but they are more in-depth and delve into more complex stuff (sometimes university-level stuff). There are also practical lessons as well. However, since SJChO questions are MCQ, in my opinion these training modules are more for the SChO. For those who had entered the practical round this year, special training sessions in the lab were held as well.

Conclusion

There are many Olympiads out there and it doesn’t hurt to take one. (Fees can be deducted from Edusave, so cost should not a big concern.) Hence, let me end this painfully long article (you survived!) right here and now. :) And Happy New Year!