SHPE - Fall 2007 - (Page 52) PROGRAMS & SERVICES Science Bowls Expand with Continued Success T hree SHPE-sponsored teams recently participated in Regional Science Bowls organized by the U.S. Department of Energy. The DOE’s National Science Bowl (NSB) encourages high school students to excel in mathematics and science. By raising the visibility of academic achievement in math and science, the program has succeeded in plac- Arjun Kavi, David Ouyang, Korok Chatterjee, Roy ing young people on par with their Zumwalt (coach), Vinay Ramasesh and Alan-Michael Vargas of the Texas Academy for Math and Science. peers who excel in athletics. The contenders attend science seminars in preparation to compete in a verbal forum, solving technical problems and answering math- and science-related questions. The regional and national events encourage student involvement in math and science activities, improve awareness of career Coach Judith Martinez with contenders options in science and technology, and Frances Rodriguez, Andrea Pagan, Godohaldo provide an avenue of enrichment for aca- Perez, Eduardo Archilla and Noelia Alemar. demic science achievement. The SHPE Regional Science Bowls engage high school students in an enticing, challenging and competitive environment to motivate and heighten their interest in math and science. The fast-paced competition is an intense and fun “Jeopardy”-style, round-robin, single elimination and/or Mission students (back row) Daniel Quiroga, double elimination tournament. Teams Jonathan Fernandez, (front row) Robert Viñacomposed of four members and an alter- Marrufo and Armando Garcia with their advisor Andrew Waxman (far left). nate are challenged to answer a range of multiple-choice and short-answer ques- Rico) was new to the Science Bowl, the tions in math, chemistry, biology, physics, team won one of the seven round robin matches against the team from the Virgin earth science and general science. The winning team (participants and Islands and came close to winning several coach) from the SHPE Regional Science other rounds. “The students enjoyed the Bowl received an invitation consisting of a whole Science Bowl experience,” said coach complimentary four-day trip to complete Judith Martinez, “especially Eduardo at the DOE National Science Bowl, hosted Archilla, who is a senior and hopes to be back next year. We have a lot of work in Washington, D.C. This year, in addition to the Regional ahead of us, but we learned much from Science Bowl at the University of Texas at this experience.” It was also the first time that Mission Austin, SHPE was proud to sponsor an additional two competitions at New Mexico Early College High School (El Paso, State University and the University of Texas) participated in the competition. The Puerto Rico, Mayagüez. The ultimate goal is all-freshman, all-Hispanic male team won to host one in each of SHPE’s seven regions. one of the seven round robin matches. It Sixteen schools participated in the also placed second overall in the Puerto Rico competition, doubling what Interactive Science Discoveries (ISD) of was initially expected for its premiere on their division, which tests each team’s abilthe island. Although el Colegio Catolico ity to work as actual scientists and engiNotre Dame High School (Caguas, Puerto neers, applying scientific reasoning, meas- urement and analysis to solve a problem for which they only have minimal information. The students are already developing a science club specifically for the purpose of preparing for next year’s competition and are working to establish a SHPE Jr. chapter at their school. “We are all very proud that this all-freshman team advanced to the national competition,” said coach Andrew Waxman. “These four young men had a wonderful experience in Washington, D.C., and they are very enthusiastic about defending their regional title on their home turf, as we are looking to host the next regional competition.” In addition to placing fifth overall in the ISD of their division, the Texas Academy for Math and Science (Denton, Texas) successfully reached the double elimination tournament by winning six of the seven round robins. It was one of the 16 teams (two from each division) that advanced to the double elimination round. Unfortunately, the team lost the first two double elimination games, one of which was to the fourth place team from Miami Palmetto High School. The TAMS team received a $1,000 check for their school’s science department. “They actually coached themselves,” admitted the team’s coach, Roy Zumwalt. Demonstrating the team members’ focus and determination, they entered, competed and won regionally, only informing the TAMS staff when they needed a chaperone to accompany them to the national competition in Washington, D.C. “The goal of the National Science Bowl has been to increase interest in math and science among high school students,” said Sue Ellen Walbridge, NSB coordinator. “With SHPE’s participation and partnership, there were two additional regional events (New Mexico and Puerto Rico). In 2008 we are looking forward to an additional three high school regional events. Additionally, The Department of Energy is delighted that SHPE regionals will also expand to the middle school science bowl. We are pleased that this endeavor is helping us to broaden the science bowl in areas of the country that have not had it.” In 2008, high school competitions will be added in Miami, Chicago and New York City, and additional middle school competitions will take place in El Paso, Texas, and Fresno, California. For more information on the DOE National Science Bowl, visit http://www. scied.science.doe.gov/nsb/media.htm. I SHPE R Fall 2007 52 http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/nsb/media.htm http://www.scied.science.doe.gov/nsb/media.htm
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