There’s a moment that happens in classrooms around the world every year that middle and high school math teachers wait for. It’s when students stop asking: “When will I ever use this?” and start realizing that math can explain how the world actually works.

For many teachers, that moment often follows student participation in COMAP’s High School Mathematical Contest in Modeling (HiMCM)® and Middle Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MidMCM). What begins as a math contest quickly becomes something much bigger. Students discover that their ideas can take shape through numbers, reasoning, and creativity. They begin to see math as a language for understanding the world around them.

It’s About Solving for Impact

Unlike a typical classroom assignment, modeling contests don’t hand students a formula or a single path to the right answer. The problems are open-ended. So, the goal isn’t coming up with the perfect answer, but instead figuring out how to take the parameters of the problem and make sense of it. Teams learn to define assumptions, test their thinking, and then communicate their reasoning.

It’s less about solving for “x” and instead finding meaning and a real-world positive impact. Once they reach that point, they start to build confidence that follows them into every challenge they take on next.

What Teachers Start to Notice

Teachers who lead their students through HiMCM and MidMCM see it happen. The quiet students start speaking up. The creative ones realize there’s space for their ideas in math. And teams figure out that everyone has something to add, whether it’s writing, math, attention to details, leadership, critical thinking, coding, or design.

Students take the lead in their learning. They stop following steps and start steering the process. For teachers, that’s the best part to watch unfold: students becoming self-directed learners.

Real-World Critical Thinking

The beauty of these math modeling contests is that they’re relevant to students. Contest problems focus on contemporary issues, things that spark curiosity and invite debate. Whether it’s examining the environmental impact of high-powered computing, developing a plan for future Olympic games, or modeling a musical tour, the questions and the reasoning they require are authentic. It's coming up with solutions for issues they care about that turns into using math to think critically about the world.

How Math Modeling Turns Into a Superpower 

COMAP has long believed that mathematical modeling builds skills that extend well past the contest itself. Communication, teamwork, creativity, and persistence are all part of the process. These contests show students that math is really about exploration and connection.

For middle and high school students, that realization can be the turning point. It’s the moment when math becomes more than a subject. It becomes a math modeling mindset that affects how they see the world around them every single day. This is when it turns into a superpower that students will use for the rest of their lives. 

How to Bring the Modeling Moment to Your Classroom

The HiMCM and MidMCM contests are open to teams of students around the world who want to tackle real-world problems using mathematics. Both contests welcome students of all experience levels, and teachers don’t need any special training to get started.

To learn more or register your team, visit our contest registration page that provides more details and instructions. And if you want to talk to contest organizers, join us on October 21 at 7:00 pm ET for a webinar where you’ll learn more about the contests, how to advise a team, and how (and why!) to get your students involved. Register for the webinar here.

Will this be the year your students see beyond the math problem itself and start to turn on their own superpower?