2020 Nat’l Informatics Olympiad to go online amid COVID-19 pandemic

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the activities of the 2020 National Informatics Olympiad will be conducted online, the Department of Science and Technology – Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) said Thursday.

In a statement, the DOST-SEI said the National Olympiad in Informatics – Philippines (NOI.PH) Finals starts on Saturday to select official representatives for the international competition.

“Because of the pandemic, the NOI.PH Finals — and possibly, the training season — will be done online,” the DOST-SEI said.

The NOI.PH is an annual programming contest for Filipino high school students organized by the group of the same name.

According to DOST-SEI, the winners in the local competition who will compose the national team for the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) will be announced on August 9.

The IOI is an annual programming competition for secondary school students from over 80 countries.

To qualify for the national team roster, around 30 finalists will compete at the NOI.PH. The top two students will automatically take the first two slots. The remaining two slots will be chosen based on their performances in the NOI Training season.

Organizer Marte Soliza pointed out that the competition will promote programming as an expertise among the youth.

“In this digital age, you need computational thinking to thrive. Cultivating that is one of our goals as we train high school students and challenge them in the NOI Finals,” Soliza said.

“Although there are unfamiliar challenges to overcome, we are fortunate enough to push this event through despite the pandemic,” Soliza added.

DOST-SEI Dr. Josette Biyo Director thanked NOI.PH for providing a platform in developing the country’s future ‘problem solvers.”

“We thank NOI for sustaining this program that manifests your belief in the excellence of our students in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM),” Biyo said.

“This year’s NOI will surely be a showcase of gifts in coding or programming,” Biyo added.

Last year, Dan Alden Baterisna from De La Salle University Senior High School won a bronze medal at the 31st IOI in Baku, Azerbaijan in 2019.

He was joined by Dion Stephan Ong from the Ateneo de Manila Senior High School, Steven Reyes from Saint Jude Catholic School, and Ron Mikhael Surara from Philippine Science High School – Bicol Region Campus.—Joviland Rita/KBK, GMA News