16/04/2018

OBMEP may include two more series, says minister.

The Minister of Education, Rossieli Soares da Silva, announced, during a visit to the Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA) this Monday (16), the start of studies for the extension of the Brazilian Mathematics Olympiad for Public Schools (OBMEP) to students in the 4th and 5th years of Elementary School.

IMPA is already running a pilot program for the Olympiad with students from both grades, revealed IMPA's Director-General, Marcelo Viana, at the meeting. Held since 2005, OBMEP covers students from the 6th to 9th grades of elementary school and all three years of high school. Viana told the minister that the institution has "the dream" of bringing the mathematics Olympiad to the first segment of elementary school (1st to 5th grade).

The possibility of further expanding the reach of OBMEP, which in this 14th edition has just enrolled 18.2 million students, excited the minister. The Mathematics Olympiad is the largest and most important scientific competition in Brazil.

“Perhaps we will incorporate [the proposal] for 2019. We will put it on the table for discussion. We have a good work agenda for the coming days,” commented Soares da Silva, who, accompanied by the director-general and the deputy director, Claudio Landim, toured the IMPA headquarters in Horto (southern zone of Rio de Janeiro) and also visited the land where the institution's new campus will be built.

At the end of the visit, the minister wrote an enthusiastic text in IMPA's Golden Book. For Soares da Silva, the Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics is a "Brazilian pride".

“Visiting the headquarters of IMPA, a research institution that is a benchmark for Brazil and the world, a source of Brazilian pride that delights and inspires millions of Brazilians, myself included. The presence of this institution in basic education will bring to Brazil the best in mathematics education. Pride!”, wrote the Minister of Education.

The director-general invited the minister to participate, on August 1st, in the opening ceremony of the ICM 2018 (International Congress of Mathematicians), at the Riocentro convention center, in the western zone of Rio de Janeiro.

Rossieli Soares da Silva visited IMPA accompanied by advisors and the director of TV Escola, Fernando Veloso. In addition to Viana and Landim, the minister was welcomed by a group of managers, researchers, and staff from the institution.