Hong Kong Mathematics Olympiad
Encyclopedia
Hong Kong Mathematics Olympiad (HKMO) is a Mathematics Competition held in Hong Kong every year, jointly organized by the Hong Kong Institute of Education
and Hong Kong Education and Manpower Bureau. At present, more than 250 secondary school
s send teams of 4-6 students of or below Form 4 to enter the competition. It is made up of a Heat Event and a Final Event, which both forbide the usage of calculator
s and calculation assisting equipments (e.g. printed mathematical table
). Though it bears the term Mathematics Olympiad, it has no relationship with the International Mathematical Olympiad
.
s to participate. Since 1983, the competition is jointly conducted by the Mathematics Department of Northcote College of Education and the Mathematics Section of the Advisory Inspectorate Division of the Education Department. Also in 1983, the competition is formally renamed as Hong Kong Mathematics Olympiad.
, and in Kowloon
, New Territories
East and New Territories
West respectively. It comprises an individual event and a group event. Each team sends 4 contestants among 4-6 team members for each event.
In the Heat Individual Event, each contestant have to solve 10 problems independently in 40 minutes. Only answers are required, and 1 mark is given for each correct answer. Therefore, each school may earn 40 marks at maximum in this event.
In the Heat Group Event, the four contestants from each team have to solve 10 problems together in 20 minutes. Each team shall hand in one answer sheet only. Similar to the Heat Individual Event, only answers are required, and 1 mark is given for each correct answer. Each school may earn 10 marks at maximum in this event.
In other words, a contesting school may earn 50 marks at most in the Heat Event. The top 40 may enter the Final Event.
in Tai Po
. It comprises 4 individual events and 4 group events. Before the real events start, there is a mock event which carries no marks. Each team may send any 4 students for the individual events, and any 4 students for the group events. For every events, only answers are required.
There are 4 questions in each Final Individual Event. The questions have to be solved by alternate contestants independently, and no discussions are allowed. For each event, the questions are interrelated, i.e. to solve the second question, the answer of the first question is needed, and to solve the third, the answer from the second is needed, etc..
There are also 4 questions in each Final Group Event, which may be interrelated or not. The four contestants shall complete each event together, and discussion is allowed.
For each event, 5 minutes is given. There are timekeepers to report the time taken used for each team in each event. The detailed scoring method is:
(A) Score for Accuracy
(B) Multiplying Factor for Speed
(C) Bonus Score
If all answers from a team in an event are correct, 20 marks are given as a bonus.
The score for an event is equal to (A)×(B)+(C). The honour of Champion, 1st Runner-up and 2nd Runner-up are given according to the total score earned in eight events.
Hong Kong Institute of Education
The Hong Kong Institute of Education is one of eight subsidised tertiary institutes under the University Grants Committee of Hong Kong. It is the only one dedicated to teacher education....
and Hong Kong Education and Manpower Bureau. At present, more than 250 secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
s send teams of 4-6 students of or below Form 4 to enter the competition. It is made up of a Heat Event and a Final Event, which both forbide the usage of calculator
Calculator
An electronic calculator is a small, portable, usually inexpensive electronic device used to perform the basic operations of arithmetic. Modern calculators are more portable than most computers, though most PDAs are comparable in size to handheld calculators.The first solid-state electronic...
s and calculation assisting equipments (e.g. printed mathematical table
Mathematical table
Before calculators were cheap and plentiful, people would use mathematical tables —lists of numbers showing the results of calculation with varying arguments— to simplify and drastically speed up computation...
). Though it bears the term Mathematics Olympiad, it has no relationship with the International Mathematical Olympiad
International Mathematical Olympiad
The International Mathematical Olympiad is an annual six-problem, 42-point mathematical olympiad for pre-collegiate students and is the oldest of the International Science Olympiads. The first IMO was held in Romania in 1959. It has since been held annually, except in 1980...
.
History
The predecessor of HKMO is the Inter-school Mathematics Olympiad initiated by the Mathematics Society of Northcote College of Education in 1974, which had attracted 20 secondary schoolSecondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
s to participate. Since 1983, the competition is jointly conducted by the Mathematics Department of Northcote College of Education and the Mathematics Section of the Advisory Inspectorate Division of the Education Department. Also in 1983, the competition is formally renamed as Hong Kong Mathematics Olympiad.
Format and Scoring in the Heat Event
The Heat Event is usually held in four venues, for contestants from schools on Hong Kong IslandHong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...
, and in Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...
, New Territories
New Territories
New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory. Historically, it is the region described in The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory...
East and New Territories
New Territories
New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory. Historically, it is the region described in The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory...
West respectively. It comprises an individual event and a group event. Each team sends 4 contestants among 4-6 team members for each event.
In the Heat Individual Event, each contestant have to solve 10 problems independently in 40 minutes. Only answers are required, and 1 mark is given for each correct answer. Therefore, each school may earn 40 marks at maximum in this event.
In the Heat Group Event, the four contestants from each team have to solve 10 problems together in 20 minutes. Each team shall hand in one answer sheet only. Similar to the Heat Individual Event, only answers are required, and 1 mark is given for each correct answer. Each school may earn 10 marks at maximum in this event.
In other words, a contesting school may earn 50 marks at most in the Heat Event. The top 40 may enter the Final Event.
Format and Scoring in the Final Event
The Final Event is usually held at the Hong Kong Institute of EducationHong Kong Institute of Education
The Hong Kong Institute of Education is one of eight subsidised tertiary institutes under the University Grants Committee of Hong Kong. It is the only one dedicated to teacher education....
in Tai Po
Tai Po
Tai Po is an area in the New Territories of Hong Kong. It refers to the vicinity of the traditional market towns in the area presently known as Tai Po Old Market or Tai Po Kau Hui and the Tai Wo Town on the other side of the Lam Tsuen River, near the old Tai Po Market Station of the...
. It comprises 4 individual events and 4 group events. Before the real events start, there is a mock event which carries no marks. Each team may send any 4 students for the individual events, and any 4 students for the group events. For every events, only answers are required.
There are 4 questions in each Final Individual Event. The questions have to be solved by alternate contestants independently, and no discussions are allowed. For each event, the questions are interrelated, i.e. to solve the second question, the answer of the first question is needed, and to solve the third, the answer from the second is needed, etc..
There are also 4 questions in each Final Group Event, which may be interrelated or not. The four contestants shall complete each event together, and discussion is allowed.
For each event, 5 minutes is given. There are timekeepers to report the time taken used for each team in each event. The detailed scoring method is:
(A) Score for Accuracy
| Individual Events | Score | Group Events | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| correct in (i) | 1 | Any 1 answer correct | 2 |
| correct in (ii) | 2 | Any 2 answers correct | 4 |
| correct in (iii) | 3 | Any 3 answers correct | 7 |
| correct in (iv) | 4 | All answers correct | 10 |
(B) Multiplying Factor for Speed
| Time Taken | Multiplying Factor |
|---|---|
| Within 1 minute | 4 |
| Within 2 minutes | 3 |
| Within 3 minutes | 2 |
| More than 3 minutes | 1 |
(C) Bonus Score
If all answers from a team in an event are correct, 20 marks are given as a bonus.
The score for an event is equal to (A)×(B)+(C). The honour of Champion, 1st Runner-up and 2nd Runner-up are given according to the total score earned in eight events.
Past Champion (1992-2011)
- 1992: New Territories Heung Yee Kuk Yuen Long District Secondary School
- 1993: Clementi Secondary School
- 1994: King's College
- 1995: Tsuen Wan Public Ho Chuen Yiu Memorial School
- 1996: Mongkok Workers' Children School (Secondary Section)
- 1997: Queen's College
- 1998: Diocesan Boys' School
- 1999: SKH Bishop Baker Secondary School
- 2000: La Salle College
- 2001: Yuen Long Merchants Association Secondary School
- 2002: King's College
- 2003: La Salle College
- 2004: Bishop Jubilee School
- 2005: La Salle College
- 2006: Cheung Chuk Shan College
- 2007: La Salle College
- 2008: La Salle College
- 2009: La Salle College
- 2010: St. Paul Co-educational College
- 2011: St. Paul Co-educational College
See also
- List of mathematics competitions
- Education in Hong KongEducation in Hong KongEducation in Hong Kong has a similar system to that of the United Kingdom, in particular the English education system of Hong Kong was modernised by the British in 1861. The system is often described as extremely competitive by global standards....
- Hong Kong Institute of EducationHong Kong Institute of EducationThe Hong Kong Institute of Education is one of eight subsidised tertiary institutes under the University Grants Committee of Hong Kong. It is the only one dedicated to teacher education....
- Hong Kong Mathematical High Achievers Selection ContestHong Kong Mathematical High Achievers Selection ContestHong Kong Mathematical High Achievers Selection Contest is a yearly mathematics competition for students of or below Secondary 3 in Hong Kong. It is jointly organized by Po Leung Kuk and Hong Kong Association of Science and Mathematics Education since the academic year 1998-1999...
- International Mathematics Olympiad