The following criteria will be used to judge
the oral presentations:
1. Quality of the research and
experimentation as evidenced by:
the clarity in stating the problem;
identification of the important variables;
originality and ingenuity in the research design or apparatus;
selection of proper equipment for the research task;
recognition of the limitations in the accuracy and significance of the results obtained;
limitations of conclusions drawn to those which are clearly supported by the results.
2. Evidence of the student's
understanding of the scientific and technical principles involved in
the investigation.
3. Creativity/Originality in the choice of and in the investigation
of the topic.
4. Acknowledgment of major assistance.
The student speaker must acknowledge any direct assistance received. As a
researcher, the student is neither rewarded nor penalized by the judges for
utilizing special advisors or equipment. Examples of areas of assistance which
should be acknowledged include: selecting the topic of research; planning
and/or guiding the course of the research; gathering data; and construction of
apparatus.
5. The quality of the oral and written
presentations as evidenced by the organization of the paper; use of
audio-visuals; the clarity of enunciation; the use of acceptable terms and
grammar; the voice projection; the definition of terms when necessary; and the
capacity to handle the questions that are asked. The presentation is important
in the evaluation of the student, but content, not form, will be given the
major weight.
Additional information on judging guidelines
can be located on the web at www.JSHS.org.
Complaints: We recognize
the enormous effort that students undertake in conducting their research.
Therefore, our objective is to ensure an equitable competition by selecting
qualified judges and by communicating the rules of competition to both students
and judges. We realize that in any competition of this nature, differences of
opinion about the judge’s interpretations may occur. It is the policy the
Northern New England JSHS and Southern New England JSHS Program to support the
interpretations and final decisions of the judge’s panel. Recommendations
regarding the future conduct of the NNE-JSHS and SNE-JSHS judging process, or
requests to clarify the rules of competition, can be directed to the attention
of Dr. Subhash Minocha, Director of NNE-JSHS and SNE-JSHS at SMinocha@unh.edu.
Copyright © 2011, The
University of New Hampshire