Science Olympiad
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- This article is about competition for secondary schools in the United States. For others, see International Science Olympiad.
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Science Olympiad is a primarily American elementary, middle school, or high school team competition that requires knowledge of various science topics and engineering ability. Over 14,000 teams from 45 U.S. states and Canada compete each year.
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[edit] History
Science Olympiad began as the Delaware Science Olympiad. A write-up in The Science Teacher of December 1977 caught the attention of Dr. Gerard Putz, who proposed that the program be expanded beyond Delaware. After tests in Michigan at the Lawrence Institute of Technology and Oakland University in 1983 and 1984, Putz and Delaware director John Cairns took their idea to the National Science Teachers Conference in Boston. The first National Tournament was attended by representatives of 17 states, held at Michigan State University in 1985. Since then, the program has expanded to reach 45 states and Ontario, Canada.[1]
[edit] Divisions
There are four divisions in the hierarchy of Science Olympiad:
- Division A1 for elementary school (grades K-3)
- Division A2 for elementary school (grades 3-6)
- Division B for middle school (grades 6-9)
- Division C for high school (grades 9-12)
However, the national tournament and generally state and regional tournaments are only for divisions B and C. Division A teams usually have separate tournaments. Note that 6th, and 9th graders have the option of competing in either of the two divisions in which they meet the grade requirements and are part of the competing school. A middle school may however use up to 5 members who have graduated to the next school if they are in 9th grade or lower. Students in lower grades that those in the division the school competes in may also be on the team. Teams are restricted to five 9th graders for division B and seven 12th graders for division C. Students may not participate on multiple teams, i.e. a 9th grader on both a high school and middle school team would not be allowed.[2]
[edit] Events
There are twenty-three events in which competitors face off on a single day. Events fall under three main categories: Science Concepts and Knowledge, Science Processes and Thinking Skills, and Science Application and Technology. They are either knowledge-based (i.e. written tests or laboratory tasks in earth science, physics, biology, and chemistry) or engineering-based (i.e. participants construct a device to do specified tasks). [3]
Knowledge-based events generally have two participants either taking a test, performing experiments, or mathematically analyzing data. Examples of such events are Designer Genes, Forensics, and Chemistry Lab.
Engineering-based events have a team of two to three participants. They are to construct a device following a specific event's parameters and test the device against others. Examples include Robot Ramble, Bridge/Tower Building, and Storm The Castle.
The majority of events require two team members, though some require more. If one member is unable to attend an event, the other is able to continue, depending on the event, with the competition, though at an obvious disadvantage.
The list of events, and rules for events, change and are updated every year to keep the competition interesting and to limit the advantages of older teams
[edit] Division B events for the 2007-2008 school year
| Event | Description |
|---|---|
| Amphibians and Reptiles | This event tests knowledge about salamanders, frogs, turtles, crocodiles, lizards and snakes. In some cases identification goes down to the genus level, but life history, habitat, and current events are also covered. |
| Anatomy (Circulatory and Nervous) | Students take a test about the circulatory and nervous systems |
| Balloon Launch Glider | Construct a monoplane glider to be launched from a balloon, trying to achieve the longest flight time |
| Bio-Process Lab | This new event is designed to test both basic and integrated science skills, including operation of a microscope, the usage of a triple-beam balance, determination of statistics such as median and mode, and description of experimental and human errors. |
| Crave the Wave | Test on all types of waves (e.g. earthquake waves, ocean waves, sound waves, and light waves) |
| Disease Detectives (Epidemiology) | Students are given data in which they are to do calculations to answer questions which may include where the source of this disease is located, what is the agent, how it can be prevented from spreading, et cetera |
| Ecology (Forest/Desert biomes) | Students are tested on their knowledge of topics related to the ecological sciences, including energy flow, biological processes, current events, and two specific biomes: North American forests and North American deserts. The desert biome is new this year. |
| Food Science | Students are to answer questions about basic food chemistry experiments, and do experiments involving Benedict's solution and other tests for the composition of a food item. |
| Meteorology (Severe Storms) | Students are asked questions on the basis of meteorology, with an emphasis on severe storms like hurricanes, tornadoes, and monsoons. |
| Metric Mastery | An event in which students present and use knowledge on how to correctly estimate and measure with metric units |
| Mystery Architecture | In this event teams are given certain materials and are told to build a structure to perform a specific task, on-site. Structures to be built are most frequently bridges, towers, or cantilevers. |
| Oceanography | Students are tested on their knowledge of the oceanographic sciences, including topics such as El Niño, ocean currents, tides, waves, and coastline features. |
| Reach for the Stars (sometimes called astronomy) | This event tests students on their knowledge of stars and other celestial bodies like galaxies and nebulae. |
| Road Scholar | Students read through a story and answer questions throughout the story while having to interpret the multiple maps given. These maps may be either topographic or road maps, but must represent areas whithin the U.S. A portion of the test may also require students to draw a 1 mile × 1 mile section map. |
| Robo-Cross | The object of this event is to design and build a robot capable of performing certain tasks on a prescribed playing field. (i.e, pick up an object on the other side of the room.) |
| Rocks & Minerals | Students test their skill at identifying certain rocks and minerals given characteristics, or samples, and also their knowledge of geological sciences such as the rock cycle or Bowen's Reaction Series. |
| Science Crimebusters | Students use provided material to find unknown materials (e.g. plastics, powders, liquids) and identify them. Science crime busters also have to use DNA, blood samples, hair samples, finger prints, tracks, glass samples, and shoe prints to provide answers and solve a "crime" based on a story. |
| Science Word | One student is given a word and in 1-2 words has to give a simple definition of that word to the other student who doesn't know what the word is, and must guess it as quickly as possible. |
| Scrambler | Teams build a light wheeled device that can travel a specific distance with no motor or fuel, and stop at (but not beyond) a specific point. |
| Simple Machines | Students measure the mechanical advantage and mechanical efficiency of various simple machines |
| Tower Building | Students design and build the lightest tower (made out of wood), with the highest structural efficiency, capable of supporting a load of up to 15 kg |
| Trajectory | Teams will design, construct, calibrate and operate a device capable of launching a hollow projectile onto a target using energy provided by a nonmetallic elastic solid. |
| Write It, Do It | One student is given a model that the other student can not see; he/she is to write instructions on how to create that model, and after the time is up, the other student is given the set of instructions with the materials and is to try to build a replica of the model. |
(Competitions may include other Trial/Pilot events [see below])
[edit] Division C events for 2007-2008 school year
| Event | Description |
|---|---|
| Astronomy | Teams identify deep-sky objects and solve astronomy problems. |
| Boomilever | Teams will design, build & test the lightest boomilever, a type of cantilevered boom, to carry a maximum load. |
| Cell Biology | Students will demonstrate their understanding of cell biology and biochemistry. |
| Chemistry Lab | Teams will demonstrate chemistry laboratory skills related to selected topics. |
| Circuit Lab | Students will compete in activities involving knowledge of direct current electrical circuits. In addition to testing the participants' hands-on knowledge of circuitry, the event also has a written portion. |
| Disease Detective | This event requires students to apply principles of epidemiology to a published report of a real-life health situation or problem. |
| Ecology | Students will answer questions involving content knowledge and process skills in the area of ecology and adaptation by examining different ecosystems. |
| Electric Vehicle | Students will construct a vehicle that uses electrical energy as its sole mean of propulsion. |
| Experimental Design | Given a set of unknown objects, teams will design, conduct, analyze and write-up an experiment. |
| Fermi Questions | Teams seek a fast, rough estimate of quantity in power(s) of ten. |
| Five Star Science | Teams will compete in an academic pentathlon to demonstrate their overall understanding of five major science content areas. |
| Food Science | Teams will be asked questions pertaining to food chemistry, which may include chemical reactions, characterization, and quantification. |
| Forensics | Students will identify polymers, solids, fibers, and other materials in a crime scenario. |
| Health Science | Teams will be tested on their knowledge of health concepts. |
| Herpetology | This event will test knowledge of amphibians, turtles, crocodiles, lizards and snakes. |
| Oceanography | Teams will work at stations that display a variety of earth science materials and related earth science questions. |
| Physics Lab | Teams will demonstrate physics laboratory skills related to selected topics. Topics explored in the 2007 event included circular motion, moment of inertia, and angular acceleration. |
| Remote Sensing | Teams use maps and remote sensing technology to explain human land use patterns and the relationship of a region’s physical environment to the cultural landscape. The 2008 event, like the 2007 event, focuses on Martian geography, general information about Mars, and international aerospace projects concerning Mars. |
| Robot Ramble | Students will design and build a robot capable of performing certain tasks. |
| Rocks & Minerals | Students will identify, describe, and classify various specimens. |
| Sounds of Music | Teams will build musical instruments, describe the scientific principles behind their operation and perform a musical selection on them. |
| Wright Stuff | Teams will design and build a propeller propelled aerodynamic device for greatest time aloft. |
| Write It, Do It | A technical writing exercise where students write a description of a contraption and other students will attempt to recreate it using only the written description. |
(Competitions may also include Trial/Pilot events†)
†Trial/Pilot events (the former refers to academic events, while the latter refers to building events) are, at Regional and State tournaments, events that are specific to that state that are being considered as events for the next year. At Regionals and States, these events DO count towards the team's score. However, at Nationals, there is a completely different set of Trial/Pilot events, sometimes known as "alternate events" because the people entering them do not have to be on the official team. These DO NOT count towards the team's score, but ribbons and medals are awarded.
[edit] Team structure
Teams are hosted by the school from which the participants attend. A teacher, parent or student, usually a volunteer, coordinates the team in practice and preparation for the competition. Often there are others who coach individual events as well. A team can consist of up to 15 students (plus alternates) and any amount of alternates at the national level; some states allow more students per team. In the middle school level, only 5 ninth graders are allowed to compete on one team, and at the high school level, only 7 twelfth graders are allowed per team. Homeschool groups may also form teams to compete.
A lot of strategy usually goes into the forming of a team. Since events go on as the same time as other events during a competition, and creates conflicts, the coach or coordinator must make decisions based on the competitor's specialty and ability in order to correctly place them. Sometimes, usually during the reformation of competitors when a team advances a level, a competitor who wasn't originally planned to compete in a certain event is put into it to fill the certain event slot.
[edit] Scoring
The winner of the competition is determined by each team's overall score. Each school is ranked in every event based on that event's rules. The team's overall score is then calculated by adding together the rank of the school in all events (e.g. 1st place receives 1 point, 2nd place 2 points, etc.). The team with the lowest overall score is declared the winner. However, it should be noted that some state competitions choose to score the competition by awarding more points per place (e.g. 13 points for 1st place, 12 points for 2nd place, etc.) and having the team with the most points being declared the winner.
There are several ways to break a tie (draw):
- Before a competition, the event organizer decides on several events to be used as tie-breakers. If two teams get the same score overall, the team that rates highest in that one event will take the lead.
- Another method for tie-breaking is based on medals where the team with more first place medals wins, if both teams have the same amount of first places, it moves to second place medals and so on.
- A third way of tie-breaking is to use a team's score in trial/pilot events. The team with the best combined score in trial events would win the competition when this method is used.
[edit] Competition levels
Science Olympiad competitions occur at a regional, state and national level. Normally, the top few teams advance from regional competition to state; the exact number depends on how many regions there are and how many teams compete. For example, the regional Science Olympiad competition in Albany, New York, which is held at The College of Saint Rose typically will send the top three finishing teams to the state competition. However, an additional team or teams can be sent to the state competition if one of the top three has been victorious (or has gone to the state competition) multiple times in a row. In most states, the top team advances from state to the national competition. Some states with a larger number of teams are able to send two teams to the national competition to represent their larger presence. About 120 teams compete at the national level each year (60 from Division B and 60 from Division C); the number has changed over the years to accommodate growing participation and is dependent on the number of teams attending a particular state's state tournament.
Some states, including Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York, Indiana, Michigan, and Nebraska hold Invitational tournaments. These competitions serve as "practice rounds" for qualifying tournaments, and are hosted by individual high schools and/or colleges. These are also often organized by schools themselves and usually occur some time in January or February. Teams can participate in Invitationals from multiple states depending on availability. In some states, only a few events are held. However, Ohio and Illinois generally hold Invitational tournaments which mimic regional competitions in their competitive intensity.
[edit] National Tournament
The National Science Olympiad competition is held in May at a different university in a different state every year. Teams either stay in student dorms or nearby hotels.
The competition officially begins with opening ceremonies on the day before Saturday's competition (a Friday). Usually a notable speaker, such as a Nobel Laureate, will give a speech. Following this is the traditional Swap Meet, when all the teams bring bags of state memorabilia to trade with other teams from all over the country. The most popular items include hats, license plates, and t-shirts.
Saturday includes several time blocks (this year 6, plus the "impound" time slot at the beginning of the day). Each block includes a 50-minute section for each study event, plus time for competitors to get from one event to another.
That night, a semi-formal Awards Ceremony is held. It opens with a short speech, which is followed by the awarding of medals for the top six teams in each event, including trial events (events that do not count to the overall team score). At the end, the top ten teams are awarded trophies.
In some national tournaments, scholarships are awarded to the top teams in each event. In 2005's competition at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, first-place winners received waivers for a four-year undergraduate tuition. Extra prizes are also given out for certain events: in Disease Detectives (Division C), the first-place team is given t-shirts and a trip for the two competitors and their coach to tour the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention facility in Atlanta, Georgia. For the 2006 National Competition, the host, Indiana University, awarded $7000 annual scholarships to Division C 1st place finishers who decide to attend the university for their freshman year.
The 2007 National Tournament was held at Wichita State University in May 18th to the 19th. This year's national competition will be hosted by George Washington University during the last weekend in May. Future hosts include 2009 - Augusta State University, 2010 - University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. [4]
The 2008 National Tournament was held in Washington DC. Solon Middle School captured its first title ever, while Troy High School continued its streak of winning first.
[edit] Past national champions
[edit] Division B
| Year | School | State |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Barrett Middle School | CA |
| 1986 | Slauson Intermediate School | MI |
| 1987 | Gompers Secondary School | CA |
| 1988 | Irmo Middle School | SC |
| 1989 | Irmo Middle School | SC |
| 1990 | Irmo Middle School | SC |
| 1991 | Grandville Junior High School | MI |
| 1992 | Jenison Junior High School | MI |
| 1993 | Thomas Jefferson Middle School | IN |
| 1994 | State College Junior High School | PA |
| 1995 | State College Junior High School | PA |
| 1996 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 1996 | Thomas Jefferson Middle School | IN |
| 1997 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 1998 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 1999 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 2000 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 2001 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 2002 | Rising Starr Middle School | GA |
| 2003 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 2004 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 2005 | Community Middle School | NJ |
| 2006 | J.C. Booth Middle School | GA |
| 2007 | Community Middle School | NJ |
| 2008 | Solon Middle School | OH |
[edit] Division C
| Year | School | State |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Seaholm HS | MI |
| 1986 | Seaholm HS | MI |
| 1987 | Irmo HS | SC |
| 1988 | Haverford HS | PA |
| 1989 | Irmo High School | SC |
| 1990 | Irmo High School | SC |
| 1991 | La Jolla High School | CA |
| 1992 | La Jolla High School | CA |
| 1993 | Grand Haven High School | MI |
| 1994 | Grand Haven High School | MI |
| 1995 | Harriton High School | PA |
| 1996 | Troy High School | CA |
| 1997 | Grand Haven High School | MI |
| 1998 | Solon High School | OH |
| 1999 | Troy High School | CA |
| 2000 | Troy High School | CA |
| 2001 | Harriton High School | PA |
| 2002 | Troy High School | CA |
| 2003 | Troy High School | CA |
| 2004 | Fayetteville-Manlius High School | NY |
| 2005 | Harriton High School | PA |
| 2006 | Troy High School | CA |
| 2007 | Troy High School | CA |
| 2008 | Troy High School | CA |
