Preparing Girls for Mathematics Olympiad

In this article, we present the subproject Mathematics Olympiad that integrated the project Encouraging Girls in Exact
Sciences, Engineering, and Information Technology, at the University of Caxias do Sul. The referred subproject
contemplated both planning and execution of workshops to prepare students for Mathematics Olympiad and was
developed by a girls’ team of undergraduate students, guided by university instructors, and assisted, in the initial stage, by
an exchange student from University of Verona, Italy. For the planning of the workshops, the students raised recurring
themes in Brazilian Mathematics Olympiad for Public Schools and carried out diagnostic evaluations to identify difficulties
of co-executing schools’ students. The workshops were developed based on the active learning strategy “Challenge in
Groups” for the resolution of questions and problems already applied in Brazilian Mathematics Olympiad for Public Schools.
At each meeting, the number of the group members was reduced, so that little by little the students could be able to work
individually. After this stage of preparation, the girls ‘team of undergraduate students selected new questions and assisted
in the organization and conduct of mini Olympiad (Phase 1) with a classificatory nature. Five public schools from the UCS
coverage region participated, with all students interested and divided by levels: Level 1 for 6th and 7th grades and Level 2
for 8th and 9th grades of Elementary School, and Level 3 for High School. The three students with the best performance at
each level went on to Phase 2, representing their schools at the University of Caxias do Sul Mathematics Olympiad 2019. In
Phase 2, the undergraduate students sought questions from previous Olympics of greater complexity to challenge and
highlight the best students with gold, silver, and bronze medals, and their schools with first, second and third place trophies.
In developing this important study and engagement project for the co-executing schools’ students, the undergraduate
students also collaborated to develop autonomy and self-confidence in the co-executing schools’ students, encouraging
them to participate in OBMEP.