04/11/2022

'There is a social structure for studying,' says Landim.

Claudio Landim visita escolas na região Norte

It was during a visit to the northern region of the country, in October, that the deputy director of IMPA and general coordinator of OBMEP, Claudio Landim, learned the story of Luccas de Souza Mendes and Gabriel Pereira Silva Avilar, gold and silver medalists in OBMEP in 2021, representing the state of Amazonas.

Students at the Benicio Penna Municipal School, located in Boca do Acre, prepared for the exam using a YouTube channel known for solving questions that have already appeared in previous editions of the second phase of the Olympiad. The material is made available online by OBMEP itself.

The initiative of these young people increased the unprecedented number of medals and honorable mentions won by Amazonas in last year's edition of the Olympiad: 1508 award winners.

"What's interesting is that the mother of the gold medalist, who says she doesn't understand anything about math, sits next to him and follows his studies. This is a characteristic of medalists: there's always a social structure encouraging study, and they themselves aren't aware of it. I was hoping to find a differentiating factor that would justify these new medals, and that's what I found," said Landim, who also highlighted the personal effort and the presence of the school principal, who encourages student participation in the Olympiad and works to ensure everyone has access to the program.

Following their achievements, Luccas and Gabriel joined the OBMEP's PIC (Junior Scientific Initiation Program), which offers advanced mathematics classes in weekly meetings with teachers to those awarded by the Olympiad, in addition to providing scholarships for students from public schools.

In Acre, another student caught the attention of the OBMEP coordination: Kalel Lucena da Silva, from the São José school in the municipality of Cruzeiro do Sul. The student won bronze, silver, and the long-awaited gold medals in consecutive editions, in 2021. Since 2005, the state has accumulated three gold medals. The last two were achieved recently, last year and in 2019.

" This clearly shows changes in OBMEP in the region, and mathematics has this effect: for some, it can be fun through problem-solving," Landim highlighted.

The teacher makes the difference.

The deputy director of IMPA and coordinator of OBMEP also learned about individual actions by teachers in the state that have made a difference in the lives of students focused on OBMEP. One example is Professor Jacqueline Fernandes, who worked hard to show students that the benefits of the Olympiad went beyond the awards. Her arrival at the Almirante Barroso and Danilo Correia schools in Boca do Acre ensured a greater number of awards for the students.

“The Danilo Correia school had a low IDEB score, but excellent students. It was simply a matter of motivation. I did everything I could there, we studied in groups, online, on Saturdays and holidays, and these students always responded very well. In 2021, half of the students who took the test were honored, and that was very valuable, as they were labeled as students from the worst school. I was very happy with the results; these are students who want to succeed through knowledge,” said the teacher.

Landim emphasized the ability that teachers have to make a difference.

“Specific actions have a huge impact on students' lives and can be replicated. What we see is that it takes that super enthusiastic person who is dedicated to the school. These are sensational actions that awaken the students' motivation and have the potential to change the destiny of these children,” concluded the coordinator, who also visited schools in indigenous villages during the trip.