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SCMP Reporter

Stumped by the sample questions in the  Australian Mathematics Competition, Hong Kong's deputy secretary for education and manpower  Chris Wardlaw said he had nothing but admiration for the  students who  completed the real test.

Mr Wardlaw, who presented the top four local students with medals and prizes for their achievements in the 2005 competition, invited them to help him answer the questions.

'They are too difficult for me,' he said at the awards  ceremony held at the Royal Pacific Hotel  on March 30.

Twenty-one other  students were also  awarded prizes.

The competition, which started as a local event in Australia in 1978, expanded into an international event for high school and secondary college students in 1992.

The 2005 competition, held last August, attracted 500,000 students from 37 countries and regions, including over 6,000  students from 61 secondary schools in Hong Kong.

Professor Peter Taylor from the non-profit Australian Mathematics Trust which administers the competition,   said he was impressed by Hong Kong students' performance.

'Though there was no perfect score in Hong Kong this year, participants' overall mathematics ability is still competitive,'  he said.

'The competition tests not only students' mathematics knowledge, but also their ability to apply the knowledge and skills in the real world.

'It strengthens students' ability to solve problems and work out unforeseen situations. When they are employed by various institutions in the future, maths can offer a basis  for problem identifying and analysis.'

Mr Wardlaw said he was not surprised Hong Kong students had done so well because the city has a strong tradition in mathematics.

Competitor Lau Cheuk Fai, 15, from Munsang College said, 'There were over 20 students in my class participating in the competition, and I was the only one to get a prize.'

A frequent contestant in maths competitions, he has participated in the Hong Kong Mathematical High Achievers Selection Contest several times and won a silver medal last year. He  also participated in the Hong Kong Mathematics Olympiad at the weekend and will be in the Pui Ching Invitational Mathematics Competition finals next Saturday.

Ni Xiao Chun, 16, from St Paul's Co-education College said it was no surprise to meet familiar faces at the prize giving because they often met each other in different mathematics competitions.



Local maths brains win medals