Israeli students win silver and bronze at computer science Olympiad
High school students from Israel have won silver and bronze in a computer science Olympiad held in Kazan, Russia; competing against teams from 81 other countries, this win brings the number of science Olympiad medals won by Israelis in competitions around the world to 14.
The Israeli delegation to Russia included four students; Tomer Arad from the Rupin Student Village in Emek Hefer who won silver, Liran Markin from the Vitzo Nahalal high school who won bronze, Noam Ta-Shema from Ironei Daled in Tel Aviv, and Ron Solan from HaRishon High School in Herzliya. Solan also participated in the chemistry Olympiad, where he won silver.
Dr. David Ginet from Tel Aviv University was the students’ coach.
The event, which was held in the Russian city of Kazan, saw 81 countries participating. China took first place, Russia second and the United States third.
The computer science Olympiad took place over two days. Each student had five hours to fix three computer algorithms, many of which required high level mathematic problem solving skills. The solutions the students came up with were then fed into a computer system, thereby giving the contestant an immediate result.
Head of Information and Computer Technology for the Ministry of Education explains how the students are picked to participate in these international competitions.
“ It’s an ongoing process which begins by taking note of students who are performing at a high level in various subjects (computer science, chemistry, math, and physics), and pass a placement test. Those who pass the tests become part of the team which trains together for more than a year. In the end, between four to eight students are chosen to represent the country. The Ministry of Education invests a lot of money in these international science Olympiads, and the students are exposed to (mathematical, physics, chemistry, and computer science) equations which are a lot tougher than what they would be exposed to in high school – complex equations which require the student to be able to answer them under pressure, and requires a lot of training and practice.”
Education Minister Naftali Bennett praised the Israeli delegation for computer science: “Time and again Israeli students make international achievements which bring respect and pride for the State of Israel for science competitions. To succeed and win in a field which is also a hobby for the students is the formula for success. In the next year we will continued in the national program to strengthen the teaching of mathematics so that more school children throughout Israel will be exposed to the wonders of science.”
Hong Kong , Zurich and Tbilisi
During the last month four science Olympiads took place around the world which ended on Saturday with the completion of the computer science competition. The students from Israel won no fewer than 14 medals. In the competition which took place in Hong Kong and China the Israeli mathematics team clinched six international medals: three silver and three bronze. The international math Olympiad included 109 countries, and ended with Israel in 22nd place.
In the competition which took place in Switzerland, the Israeli team won four medals in physics: three silver and one bronze. The international Olympiad in physics included 87 countries with Israel finishing in 19th place and third among the western countries. In the competition which took place in Tbilisi in Georgia the Israeli team won two medals in chemistry, one silver and one bronze. This competition included 66 nations out of which Israel finished in the top 20 (there was no official ranking) and second in the western countries.
