Were impartial selection procedures used to determine who JOINS math team?
I'm sure DD would have been "chosen" for math team if that was done based on grades and standardized test scores, but of course, it's voluntary.
This. DD attended the math team's first meeting at our urging- it was her first and last time attending. The way it was structured/organized guaranteed that she would not enjoy it. There are girls on the team, but as UM noted, they are predominantly Asian girls, and the team is mostly male students. (Though it is notable that at this year's school awards ceremony, the class math awards and the AIME/AMC awards were dominated by girls).
My DD, and probably many other girls, are competition-avoidant- DD qualified for, but declined to participate in the school spelling and Geobees in middle school, despite urging from us and teachers. (And as UM noted, I suspect she would qualify for the math team if it was a team that was chosen, not based on volunteering). I think it is a combination of disliking competition, and not wanting to draw attention to her smarts, which contributed to some bullying in the past. As an aside, now that DD is in high school, she seems to be handling competitive activities much better, and is (mostly) embracing her abilities, so things can improve.
