For Judges
The 2024 West Kootenay Science & Technology Fair will be a hybrid event. Judging will take place virtually on Saturday, March 16 and the in-person judging & fair, which will include science activities, public viewing of projects, and an awards celebration, will be held on April 6 in Nelson at Selkirk College Tenth Street campus. There will be activities on site for youth and adults to participate in. Judges in the area are invited to come to the fair on April 6 to see the projects and speak to the youth in person. Friends, family, and co-workers are also welcome!
Important Dates
February 5: Judge Registration Opens
March 6: Judge Registration Closes
March 7: Judge Instructional Material Distributed
March 12: Interview/Project Schedule Notification
March 16: Virtual Interviews
March 25: Score Sheet Deadline
April 6: In-Person Fair and Awards Ceremony
Judge Role
Step 1: Register
Registration opens February 5 and closes March 6, 2024. Registration information will include contact details and questions about experience, qualifications, preferences (age categories, topics of interest), and availability, and should take approximately 5 minutes to complete.
Step 2: Review Judge Instructional Material
Virtual judge instructional material will be sent out in early March. You will be sent judge material such as a pre-recorded video outlining your role, our fair’s philosophy and expectations, and advice to help you conduct successful student interviews.
Step 3: Interview Students (Virtual & In-Person)
Judging will take place virtually on March 16 and in-person at the Fair on April 6. Your individual interview time slots will be sent to you the week before each date, along with the student project information. A judging rubric and an online score sheet will also be included. The rubric will be used as your scoring tool to evaluate each project. The score sheet will be your online marking sheet for project evaluation. The deadline to submit your scores is March 25 for virtual judging & April 6 for the in-person judging.
Step 4: Celebrate!
We will come together in-person on April 6 at Mary Hall (Selkirk College Tenth St. campus) in Nelson, BC to announce our 2024 West Kootenay Science and Technology Fair award winners and Canada-Wide Science Fair finalists.
FAQs
How will judging take place?
Judging will be virtual & in-person (depending on your availability). You will interview each of the students in a virtual environment (or in-person at the Fair) and submit your scores and feedback through an online form.
Do I need to be from the West Kootenay region to judge this fair?
Not at all! Because some of the judging will be held virtually, you can register from any location. If you are looking to judge an in-person fair in your area, reach out to the regional science fair close to you to see if they need help.
How will you assign projects to judges?
You will be assigned to judge student projects based on the availability, expertise and preferences you submit during your registration. Information about each of your assigned projects, including an electronic version of the project built by the student, will be sent to you in March 2024.
Do I need to be an expert to be a judge?
No! We welcome all judges and can provide instructional resources to support you. Inexperienced judges are sometimes assigned to younger grade levels and less complex projects.
What if I am not available on the day of judging?
We are sorry, but unfortunately it is a requirement. For scheduling and coordination reasons, we need our judges to be available. If you can only commit to the virtual judging, that is fine but if you can do both virtual & in-person then we would need you to be available March 16 & April 6.
Will there be any judging taking place at the in-person fair (April 6)?
Yes, we will have in-person judging taking place at the in-person fair on April 6. Score sheets will be provided as hard-copies & submitted before lunch on April 6. In addition the judging in the morning, the fair on April 6 will focus on celebrating the achievements of all participants. During public viewing, guests can view the projects and ask the students questions, but there will be no scoring at that time.
How much time will judging take?
It all depends on how many projects you agree to judge. We ask that you judge a minimum of three projects. Between reviewing instructional materials, interviews, project scoring and feedback, and judge discussions, we estimate it will take between 1-1.5 hours to judge each project. Please note that this may be split over the two days depending on your availability.
Will students see my scores for their project?
No, students do not receive judge scoring. Judge scoring is used as a guide for judge discussions, to support decision-making about awards and finalists. The written feedback you provide during judging will be sent to students to help them learn and improve their projects moving forward.
I have never judged at a science fair before. Is there any information or guidance provided?
Yes! Before your interview, you will be sent a pre-recorded video outlining your role, our fair’s philosophy and expectations, and advice to help you conduct successful student interviews. We are also available to answer your questions around judging and your role at the fair. Reach out to us anytime at westkootenay@sciencefairs.ca.