Local students are learning math and having fun while doing so at the Rice University School Mathematics Project (RUSMP) Preparing for Success programs.
The programs are designed for high school students entering Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II or Precalculus courses, allowing them to strengthen their mathematics backgrounds through a problem-solving approach and develop important concepts and skills they will need in the upcoming school year.
These two-week programs are led by RUSMP’s award-winning master teachers — Rice alumni Pei How Chin, Gail Hamilton, Joanna Papakonstantinou and Richard Parr, along with Sandra Wallace — who possess a wealth of experience in these subjects. These popular programs together with the three-week Preparing for Success in Calculus, which takes place in June each year, provide rich mathematical experiences for students in a relaxed setting on the Rice campus.
“The Rice University School Mathematics Project bridges the mathematics community at Rice with math education in Houston and surrounding areas in K-12 education, preparing students and providing rich professional development programs for teachers,” said Papakonstantinou, co-teacher of the Preparing for Success in Algebra II and Preparing for Success in Precalculus programs.
RUSMP offers numerous K-12 courses, camps and programs across the Houston area for students to experience the joy of learning math with others. Papakonstantinou said these programs are also important in making sure students aren’t missing out on important content and topics within subjects they may not have mastered during the academic year.
“During the school year, there is not always time for students to delve deeply into topics,” Papakonstantinou said. “So during the summer programs, we look for ways to enrich students, prepare them for success in their future courses and also fill any gaps that they may have.”
During the first day, students take a questionnaire to see if there is anything in their math history they don’t feel comfortable with and need to brush up on.
“It’s a wonderful learning environment where they feel comfortable asking questions,” Papakonstantinou said.
With an array of puzzles, riddles, games and competitions intertwined in the daily curriculum, Papakonstantinou says students are kept engaged throughout the learning process.
“You don’t want to give students another worksheet, but we do it in the guise of a competition, so they’re actually doing something to compete — a healthy competition with other people,” she said. “Unfortunately during the school year, there is not always time for these fun extensions.
Students have an opportunity to explore concepts beyond the fundamentals and to challenge themselves in creative ways.”
Lauren Spivey, a rising junior at St. John’s School in Houston, has attended the RUSMP Preparing for Success camps two summers now, looking to improve her math skills to prepare for her future courses.
“It’s been very helpful,” Spivey said. “There were things that I hadn’t quite covered in Geometry or Algebra I or that hadn’t quite caught on to the concept of, and this camp has helped shore up that missing knowledge. Every single day, I’ve had at least two or three things that I can come away with like ‘I did not know that before.’
“It’s also quite cool to actually be on a college campus. And the (faculty) have all been lovely. It’s just great to be able to learn from people with college experience.”
DJ Skaggs, a rising junior at Houston Episcopal High School, said one of his favorite factors of the camp has been connecting with other students and making friends to learn with.
“I have friends from my grade in the room with me, but I met another student named Omer,” Skaggs said. “He’s so intelligent, and I definitely ask him a lot, like ‘Am I doing this correctly? Is there another way to do this?’ He definitely allows me to grow, and that’s been great.”
Skaggs said he has also enjoyed the atmosphere of Rice’s campus.
“Because I’m a junior, I’m definitely looking at colleges, and being on a college campus really allows me to see what it’s like,” he said. “Even for the college students who are just here studying — watching them navigate the campus really gives me an insight on how life is like here at Rice.”
That has been a common theme among many of the attending students, Papakonstantinou said.
“When the students come on campus, their eyes are wide open,” she said. “They’re so excited to be here that they get here early just to be working in this environment before the class even starts. They envision themselves here, and for some of the students, that drives them to aspire to be Rice students when they finish high school.”
To learn more about Preparing for Success and other RUSMP programs, visit rusmp.rice.edu.