Picking a Judge for a School Contest Can Be Easy

We often compare ourselves against others. Doing so helps us evaluate our own shortcomings and our successes. Contests can be a great way to help children be able to cope with the ups and downs in life’s natural competitions. When contests are treated fairly, and with good sportsmanship, contests can boost confidence and good self-esteem in children, even if they do not win.

Guided competitions, such as science fairs, literary competitions, art contests, etc., are good for children to participate in. These allow children to learn and develop new skills, encourage children to set and achieve goals, and feel a sense of accomplishment. They also provide a way to help children express themselves by sharing their opinions and beliefs.

When choosing judges for children’s competitions, consider the following:

Goal of the Competition

The goal of the competition is for the children to develop skills and gain a love of learning. When looking for a judge for the competition, the goals of the competition should be considered. The judges need to understand these goals and be able to perform in a way that meets these goals. If a potential judge has any issues with these goals, or with the competition, other considerations for the judge will be necessary in order for the outcome of the competition, and the attitude of the children, to be positive and successful.

Define Ideal Judge

Come up with a list that would define the ideal judge. The list should contain questions or qualities of the kind of person who is needed to judge the competition. For example:

· What is the age of the group competing? Will this person interact well with this group?

· Does this person have knowledge of the subject being judged? If not, will they be able to judge fairly?

· Does this person know anyone competing? Are they able to remain unbiased?   

The ideal judge will be able to interact with the children in a positive manner. They also may need to have certain legal clearances in order to do so. Check State and Local laws before choosing a judge to see what kind of requirements and clearances are needed to be allowed to interact with children at this level. 

Unbiased

Bias is being favorable to one side, subject, or person. It is not a good thing to have a judge who may be bias in a situation at the competition. Bias is viewed as unfair and can cause negative feelings for the children and adults associated with the participants. It is important to try to find judges who are not associated with any particular subject (when judging multiple subjects in the competition), group, or individual within the competition, in order to remain unbiased.

Unconscious bias is a possible problem. This is where a judge is unaware of their feelings of bias toward a subject. To help avoid unconscious bias, rubrics for judging are a necessity. This helps judges be able to follow rules of judging easily and can help them effectively and positively score in multiple areas instead of allowing them to choose how to score. When choosing judges, consider if they will follow the rules and use rubrics correctly and honestly.

Parents and Teachers

Parents are not good judges. Parents of children competing often have bias towards their child or the children’s friends. When considering a judge, it might be helpful to look outside of the area to avoid picking a parent, friend or relative of children participating in the competition.

A teacher may be needed to judge competitions. Be aware that teachers, too, may have bias towards their students. If possible, try to have teachers only judge entries of participants who they do not teach, or have entries be anonymous to the teachers, so they can judge blindly; not knowing whose entry they are judging. Rubrics also help teachers with any unconscious bias they may have.

Experts

Consider getting an expert on the subject being judged. A judge with knowledge of the subject is viewed by the participants as someone who knows how to be fair. An expert would know what work went into the project and would have a better idea of how to judge the projects with that knowledge. Furthermore, an expert would also know how to help the participants in their explanations of their project or be able to ask questions that would help the participant share their knowledge on the subject.

zFairs Helps Make Judging Easy

When choosing a judge for competitions with children, put together a list of candidates and ponder how each would be a benefit to the program. It may also help to label them in order of preference in case there is a need to replace a judge due to unforeseen circumstances or if the top choice is unavailable.

Contact each candidate to confirm if they can help judge in the event. After confirmation, send each judge a thank you and a list of expectations and rules to follow. It may even be a good idea to send a sample of what they will be judging so that they know what to expect. Giving this information will help prepare the judges for the event, and the event will run smoother.

When considering how to run the event, zFairs event management software can help provide an online platform where all event information, admissions, fundraising, and judging can be found all in one convenient place. zFairs is customizable to any event information or judging rubric. Judges can even access the rubric from any internet accessible handheld device, no downloading necessary. Judges can then input their score through the software. The software will keep track of and calculate the scores to determine the winners. It is that easy! zFairs is here to help the event be a success.