The Clayton High School Worldwide Youth in Science and Engineering (WYSE) team has exceeded expectations for many years and this year was no different. With subjects including biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering graphics, English, mathematics and physics, students were able to showcase their talents in solving real-world problems. A select group from the Clayton High School student community participated in the competition as both individuals and as a team in up to two of the aforementioned categories.
Having experienced so much success in this competition before, CHS once again proved their dominance in this year’s competition, placing first and qualifying for the sectional competition held on March 8.
Preparing for an event that could consist of multiple-choice questions ranging in length from 30 questions (computer science) to 100 questions (English) is no walk in the park. Students at CHS study multiple tests from up to 10 years ago to aid them in their studying.
Senior Jack Wei, who placed second in the mathematics category, said he prepared for WYSE by “reviewing over three packets from previous years for both of my topics and by getting lots of sleep.”
Junior Adam Rangwala, who placed first in chemistry, said “I prepared for WYSE by doing tests from previous years and I studied the problems that I had trouble on to prepare for the actual test.”
Students who placed in the top five of each category contributed to Clayton’s total team score. This year, Clayton scored 500 points, which is the maximum amount of points one team can earn.
WYSE advisor, Clayton physics teacher Rex Rice, stated that the “well-prepared students who enjoy competition, and are thus willing to do some extra work to be ready to compete in those areas” are the ones who enjoy the most success.
In addition, Rice mentioned that the students’ “success in WYSE is largely due to the top-notch training in the courses they take at CHS in addition to the excellent preparation they had to endure entering the contest.”
In fact, contributors to Clayton’s total team score ranged from seniors all the way down to freshmen. Freshman Omkar Venkatesh and sophomore Jeffrey Cheng placed first and third in mathematics and Biology, respectively; seniors David Behrend and Harrison Garrett placed 1st in engineering graphics and physics, respectively.
Sophomore Jeffrey Cheng said his method of studying was through “preparation of other tests such as the AMC (American Mathematics Competition) and the ACS (American Chemical Association) test.”
In terms of the changes from the District competition to the Regional competition, Rice said that “the questions tend to be a little harder. The number of questions from particular genres within the subject area can change.”
Let’s all hope that Clayton can win its seventh consecutive sectional competition and advance to the state competition!