Pioneers Take TEAMS

Sophie Dai, Staff Writer

 Similar to the pioneers who first settled America, the Pioneer math team “settled” the TSA TEAMS (Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics, and Science) competition by winning first and second place.  This year, the TEAMS competition was held for the first time at The College of New Jersey on Saturday, March 22, and the Pioneer math team was only one of the teams that stepped into this “untrodden territory”.  Knowing it was their “manifest destiny”, the Pioneer math team, which comprises two teams, the Senior-Junior team and the Sophomore team, crushed their opponents and placed.  

The senior team, which includes Seniors Anna Westerhous, Jeffrey Paine, Shreyas Ramanujam, Mark Hays, and Andrew Scharf, Junior Ilse Swedens, and Sophomore Lloyd Goldstein, placed first on the 11-12th grade level.  The sophomore team, which includes Sophomores Sophie Dai, Amulya Mummaneni, Caelynn Hogarth, Mingyao Xiao, Kaitlyn Chan, Sambavi Prakasam, Kevin Dackow, and Matthew Scharf, placed second on the 9-10th grade level.  This achievement wasn’t easy; these Pioneers had to overcome obstacles in order to achieve their victory.

The TEAMS competition consists of two parts.  In the first part of the test, teams were given eighty multiple choice problems to complete in ninety minutes.  Team members could collaborate with each other to complete the problems.  These problems involved math at different levels, ranging from Algebra to Calculus, and also included some aspects of Chemistry and Physics.  All problems revolved around one primary theme, urban infrastructure, which is a major issue today.  Last year, America received a D+ average on their report card for urban infrastructure.  Problems in part one came from the categories electrical grid, green space, pollution control, sustainability, transportation, Virtual Reality for urban design, and water and sewer systems.

“Our team found part one of the test rather challenging because it involved math and engineering concepts we had never been exposed to before,” said Sophomore Chan.

The multiple choice portion was only one of the obstacles the Pioneer teams had to tackle. In the second part of the TEAMS competition, teams were given five essay prompts and required to write responses to each in ninety minutes.  The essay topics were about the categories in part one, but Virtual Reality and pollution control were not included.  Teams had to write essays about solutions to problems, advantages and disadvantages of solutions, and what factors must be considered when creating solutions to engineering problems.  There was also one essay that involved computing math problems.  Team members were allowed to collaborate with each other, use background information given in part one of the competition, and additional print resources they brought to the competition room.

“I think the hardest part of the essay portion was trying to incorporate information into the essay while simultaneously trying to sound creative and interesting,” said Sophomore Prakasam.

The awards ceremony took place in the competition rooms.  After completing part two of the competition, teams glanced nervously at the proctor who advised the teams who didn’t place to try again next year.  Then, the proctor slowly said the names of the schools who placed third, then second, and finally first. 

At the sound of “New Providence”, the Pioneer team members jumped up with joy and went to receive their trophies.

 

On the bus ride back to school, all team members were enthralled by their great victory.

“Everyone on the bus has a trophy!” said Mrs. Moser, the TSA advisor, “How cool is that!” Trophies and the pride of winning were one of the many things Pioneers gained from this experience.

“Of all the things I gained from this competition, I think that gaining the experience of working with people who I have never worked with before was definitely the most valuable part of the competition,” said Prakasam.

“I had a lot of fun,” said Chan.

The Pioneers’ great victory at the TEAMS competition definitely left behind a legacy: no team is better than the Pioneer TEAMS!