The Christian Science Monitor

Girls-only competitions build confidence – and the ranks of women in math

A participant in the Advantage Testing Foundation's Math Prize for Girls contest works her way through the exam, held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Sept. 24, 2017.

When she heard her name called, Megan Joshi couldn't quite believe it. 

Earlier in the day, 266 of the brightest young minds in the country – the 16-year-old Californian among them – sat hunched over desks in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's largest classroom, silently scribbling numbers and formulas as test monitors strolled the aisles.

At first glance, it could have been just another math exam at MIT. But the Advantage Testing Foundation’s Math Prize for Girls contest, held in September, had some key distinctions: Participants competed not for grades, but for $31,000 in cash. None had yet graduated high school. And, as the competition's name would suggest,

Battling the gender gapAn important tool

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Christian Science Monitor

The Christian Science Monitor4 min readInternational Relations
Facing Russian Threat And An Uncertain America, Europe Rearms
Two words – stark, sober words – sum up a dramatic mood swing in Europe that could redefine, and ultimately loosen, the Continent’s decades-old alliance with the United States. War footing. That phrase, voiced most recently by British Prime Minister
The Christian Science Monitor4 min readInternational Relations
Fearing Israeli Invasion Of Rafah, Palestinians Plan To Flee. But Where?
Panic is setting in across Rafah. Even as talks seeking an Israel-Hamas cease-fire enter a crucial stage this week, hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians are scrambling to find a way out of this cramped southern Gaza border city – and findi
The Christian Science Monitor4 min read
This Instructor Builds Confidence Among Maldivian Women, In The Water And Out
In the shallow, turquoise waters off Rasdhoo island, Aminath Zoona gathers a small group of adults – mostly women – around her. “Every Maldivian must learn to swim,” she tells them matter-of-factly. As the first Maldivian woman in the country accredi

Related Books & Audiobooks