2,030 Abibisika (Black Gold) Points

Rank: Unranked Newbie

Esther Okade born to Nigerian parents who lives in Walsall in the West Midlands with her family has always been interested in Maths and who at six years old was already taking her maths GCSE, generally undertaken by 14-16 year olds in the United Kingdom and getting a C. Always being interested in Mathematics, she wrote her first math GCSE exam, a British high school qualification at just six where she received a C grade, a year later, she outdid herself and got the A grade she wanted. Then in 2014, she scored a B grade when she wrote the math A level exam.

In 2015, at the age of 10, Okade then enrolled at an Open University (a UK based distance learning College) for a university maths course and began getting straight A’s as one of the youngest Under Graduate Students in the country. Three weeks after enrolment, she was already top of the class receiving a perfect score on her first test which she said was “easy”. At the time of enrolment and speaking with CNN she said:

“I want to (finish the course) in two years. I actually wanted to start when I was seven, but my mum was like “you’re too young, calm down”, so I’m going to do my PhD in Financial Maths when I am 13. I want to have my own bank by the time I’m 15 because I like numbers and I like people and banking is a great way to help people.”

Credit is given to her mother Omonefe Efe Okade who is a Mathematician Teacher who noticed her daughters flair for figures shortly after she began home schooling her at the age of three. She then converted her living room into a classroom for both her daughter as well as for her son. What is most inspiring about Esther’s story (which was shared to the world in 2015) is that she is not taking advanced math courses simply because she can; she doing it because she sincerely wants to.

Maths is her passion, the same way sports or music is for other children. She told CNN:
“The course is so interesting. It has the type of maths that I love. It is real maths-theories, complex numbers, all that type of stuff. It was super easy, my mum taught me in a nice way.” Besides becoming one of the youngest college students in history and being classed as a “Genius”. Esther is also writing a series of Math Work Books for children called “Yummy Yummy Algebra”.

She explains the series to CNN:
It starts at a beginner level, that’s volume one. But then there will be volume two and volume three and then volume four. But I’ve only written the first one. As long as you can add or subtract, you’ll be able to do it. I want to show other children they are special.”