A grade 11 teen from Greenside High School shone brightly in the recent national Physics Olympiad competition. The olympiad was an invitation-only three-hour set paper, written under the same conditions as an exam.
The teens who qualified to write the paper were from various schools across South Africa and Zimbabwe and subsequently wrote the paper at their different schools.
Only the top 100 high school children who participated in the national Science Olympiad competition in March, were allowed to participate in the physics leg of the competition. Participants in the Physics Olympiad stand the chance to receive an education bursary or sponsorship from private companies, among others, for enrolment at an institution of higher education and training.
“Only two [Greenside High] learners qualified to write, but only Joshua Trace placed. He came 11th in the country, beating several independent examination board students,” said Greg Shipton, grade 11 physics teacher at the school. Joshua received senior full colours for both academics and service earlier this year. Shipton lauded the young physics maestro for making magnificent strides in what is largely considered an important subject in the South African education curriculum.
“Competing against learners from all over the country in the Physics Olympiad – including many grade 12 learners – Joshua did extremely well. The fact that he is in grade 11 makes the result even more impressive because it is based on all the grade 11 and 12 work.”
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