15/09/2023

Olympics for teachers seeks partners in Brazil.

A group of teachers from China visited IMPA this Friday (15). Accompanied by José Puppim, from Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV), they presented the Olympiad for Mathematics Teachers of Secondary Education (OPMbr) , which seeks partner institutions in Brazil. Xingfeng Huang, professor at Shanghai University; Ruoxi Ding, researcher at the Teacher Education Centre of UNESCO (TEC) and at Shanghai University; Guoyoung Hu, vice-director of TEC UNESCO; and José Puppim, OPMbr Advisor, were received by IMPA's general director, Marcelo Viana, and by the deputy director and coordinator of OBMEP (Brazilian Mathematics Olympiad for Public Schools), Claudio Landim. FGV professor Paulo Cezar Pinto also participated in the meeting.

IMPA possesses vast expertise in scientific olympiads. Created in 2005, OBMEP encourages the study of Mathematics and helps identify young talents in the discipline. This year, in its 18th edition, more than 18 million students from all over Brazil participated in the first phase of the competition. The institute is also responsible for the OBMEP Junior Olympiad, aimed at students from the 2nd to the 5th grade of elementary school. This year, the competition had more than 4.2 million participants.

Furthermore, IMPA is also recognized for its work in teacher training, such as the Professional Development Program for High School Mathematics Teachers (PAPMEM) . PAPMEM has contributed to improving the training of high school mathematics teachers throughout Brazil.

“IMPA has an immediate interest in all issues concerning mathematics in Brazil, and teacher training is among the most important. The opportunity to participate in an initiative like this, which involves China, a natural strategic partner of Brazil, is particularly interesting,” highlighted Marcelo Viana.

“Shanghai has an excellent performance in mathematics in PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment), while Brazil is among the last in the ranking. We have much to learn from them. Primary school teachers in China are divided into categories and are promoted based on the improvement of their students' performance in national exams. A model that could be adopted in Brazil,” highlighted Claudio Landim.

The Brazilian Mathematical Olympiad (OPMbr) aims to stimulate the teaching of mathematics in Brazil and contribute to improving the quality of education. The goal is for the winning teachers to be awarded a gold medal and an international trip to learn about the educational system of one of the top ten countries ranked in mathematics by the PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment). For more information, see the official announcement .

The group is visiting other institutions in Brazil and will also participate in the 6th National Symposium on Mathematics Teacher Training, giving a lecture on mathematics education in Shanghai, China.