Christopher Egerstrom, an eighth-grader at Spangdahlem Middle School, ponders a math question during the countdown round of a MATHCOUNTS state competition March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany. Egerstrom won both the individual and countdown round titles and he'll move on to compete in the national math competition in Washington, D.C. in May. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Christopher Egerstrom, an eighth-grader at Spangdahlem Middle School, ponders a math question during the countdown round of a MATHCOUNTS state competition March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany. Egerstrom won both the individual and countdown round titles and he'll move on to compete in the national math competition in Washington, D.C. in May. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Justin Keller, an eighth-grade student from Ankara, works on a math problem during a MATHCOUNTS state compeition March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany. A total of 52 middle school students participated in the state competition for Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe and the Pacific. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Caleb Bavlnka, an eighth-grade student at SHAPE, listens to a math question being read during the countdown round of the state MATHCOUNTS competition for Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe and the Pacific on March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany. Bavlnka's second place finish earned him a trip to the national MATHCOUNTS competition in Washington, D.C. in May. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Rita Cook, an eighth-grade student at Robinson Barracks Elementary/Middle School, was one of 52 middle school students who participated in the state MATHCOUNTS competition for Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe and the Pacific. The competition was held March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Spangdahlem Middle School's Josher Quevedo, an eighth-grader, works to solve early round math problems at the state MATHCOUNTS competition for Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe and the Pacific. The competition was held in Wiesbaden, Germany on March 28, 2013. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Andrew Constable, a middle school student at Vicenza, finished fourth in the MATHCOUNTS state competition for Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe and the Pacific March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany. Constable is one of four students at Thursday's event who earned the right to advance to the MATHCOUNTS national competition in Washington, D.C. in May. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
''Mathletes'' gathered in Wiesbaden, Germany, on March 28, 2013, to participate in the MATHCOUNTS state competition for the Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe and the Pacific. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Matthew O'Connor, a seventh-grader at SHAPE, works to solve a math problem during a MATHCOUNTS state competition March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany. O'Connor, along with teammates Caleb Bavlnka, Samantha Diwa and Lizzie Hobbs, captured the overall team title at the event. SHAPE is coached by Gale Cannon. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
The "Nerd Herd" students from Robinson Barracks Elementary/Middle School work on a problem together during the team round portion of the MATHCOUNTS state competition for DODDS schools in Europe and Pacific held in Wiesbaden, Germany on March 28, 2013. Members of the self-dubbed "Nerd Herd" said the team moniker won out over "Math Ninjas". (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Christopher Egerstrom, an eighth-grader at Spangdahlem Middle School, shows off his first place trophies for the individual and countdown round portions of a MATHCOUNTS state compeition held March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany for DODDS students from Europe and Pacific. Egerstrom will move on to the national MATHCOUNTS competition in Washington, D.C. on May 10. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
Linsey Goodrich (left) and Faith Flynn (right) from Schweinfurt Middle School work on math problems during the early rounds of a state MATHCOUNTS competiton held March 28, 2013, in Wiesbaden, Germany. A total of 52 middle school ''mathletes'' competed in the state competition for Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe and the Pacific. (Mark Patton/Stars and Stripes)
WIESBADEN, Germany — “Nerd Herd” T-shirts, Albert Einstein ties and discussions of complex math problems over pizza — the middle school “mathletes” gathered to test wits were calculatingly serious.
Students from Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Europe and Pacific were participating in the annual MATHCOUNTS competition, a national middle school coaching and competitive program that promotes mathematics achievement. In addition to DODDS, the program exists in all 50 U.S. states.
“Everyone likes to do something they’re good at,” said Rita Cook, an eighth-grader at Robinson Barracks Elementary/Middle School. “Since we’re good at math, we enjoy doing it.”
Her teammate, seventh-grader Lily Brewster, agrees.
“I’m not great at sports, but I feel accomplished whenever I solve math problems,” she said.
The top four individual placers at Thursday’s competition earned the chance to compete in the MATHCOUNTS National Competition in Washington, D.C.
The DODDS state competition showcased the mathematical mettle of 52 students from 10 schools in Europe as well as Seoul American and Osan Middle Schools in South Korea and Yokota Middle School in Japan. The Pacific schools and students from AFNORTH, who were on spring break, took their tests remotely and turned in their results prior to the competition in Europe.
Students participated in four competitions during the day, each presenting its own set of challenges.
The Sprint Round challenged students to solve 30 problems in 40 minutes. It was followed by the Target Round, in which calculators were permitted and students attempted to solve pairs of multi-step problems testing mathematical reasoning.
A Team Round and “Jeopardy”-style Countdown Round, which had students competing head-to-head with buzzer in hand, concluded the day.
“The world is changing more to STEM [science, technology, engineering and math], so if you can do math, it’s more beneficial for your career and the world,” said Vicenza, Italy, eighth-grader Anuk Dayaprema, MATHCOUNTS competitor and three-time European PTA Spelling Bee champion.
The top four individuals who will go on to compete at May’s national competition were: first-place finisher Christopher Egerstrom from Spangdahlem Middle School in Germany; second-place finisher Caleb Bavlnka from SHAPE Middle/High School, Belgium; third-place finisher Jonas Kundsen from Osan; and Andrew Constable from Vicenza Middle School.
They’ll be coached by SHAPE’s Gale Cannon, whose squad won the team competition. Rounding out the top three team finishers were Ramstein Middle School and Osan.
Egerstrom, an eighth-grader, captured both the individual and countdown round trophies on Thursday. He’ll be making his second appearance on the national stage after finishing in second place at last year’s state contest.
The Spangdahlem math whiz described last year’s national competition as “cuckoo,” adding that he met a student who had taken AP calculus in the third grade. No matter the outcome in May, though, he’s sure he’ll enjoy the trip.
“Two plus two is kind of boring, but when you have square roots and radicals, it gets more fun,” Egerstrom said.
