THINK QUEST Automated Version (A Team Quiz Competition) OBJECTIVES This quiz competition aims to: 1. Encourage students to explore their knowledge in various fields of disciplines 2. Promote greater interest and appreciation of the value of all courses in all programs of study 3. Appreciate the value of good strategy in quiz competition associated with making real life decisions 4. Motivate students towards full development of their potentials in enhancing their knowledge while having fun in learning; and 5. Identify and recognize students who exhibit exemplary performance in quiz competition. THE COMPETITION The ThinkQuest is a quiz competition participated in by teams of students with exemplary knowledge on various disciplines and their applications. It is an event to watch as students are expected to display their ingenuity, analytical ability and knowledge prowess. The competition is divided into three rounds namely: ONCE AND FOR ALL, DOUBLE THE FUN and TRIPLE TREAT rounds. For each round, the teams are given an equal chance to answer all the questions, including the Think Twice Questions. Think Twice questions are pre-determined among the ten (10) questions for each round and will be signified by a Think Twice Sound. These questions allow the teams to strategize because they are given the options to answer or not. Consequently, additional points are earned for items correctly answered or lose points for incorrect answers. Any team may choose not to answer the Think Twice questions and consequently earns no point. For the ONCE AND FOR ALL ROUND, there are ten (10) questions and for each question the teams are given ten (10) seconds to answer or as specified in the question. For each correct answer, a team gets one (1) point. In this round, one (1) Think Twice question will be asked and designated two (2) points.
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For the DOUBLE THE FUN ROUND, there are ten (10) questions and for each question the teams are given fifteen (15) seconds to answer or as specified in the question. For each correct answer, a team gets two (2) points. In this round, two (2) Think Twice questions will be asked, each designated with four (4) points. For the TRIPLE TREAT ROUND, there are ten (10) questions and for each question the teams are given twenty (20) seconds to answer or as specified in the question. For each correct answer, a team gets three (3) points. In this final round, three (3) Think Twice questions will be asked, each designated with six (6) points. An automated system has the following features/functionalities: a. Questions are in Multiple Choice or Identification formats b. Database for questions and answers c. An answer text box or option button that is enabled once the question is flashed in the contestants’ monitor and is automatically disabled/locked once the tim e for each particular question has elapsed c. Automatic checking of answers and recording of scores d. Built in timing module that may be adjusted depending on the round/degree of difficulty of questions e. Ability to accept answers considered as correct by the Board of Judges but marked as incorrect by the system. In this case, the system can override points of the contestants. f. Recording of the running score for each round and the cumulative score for all rounds g. Think Twice question with GO and PASS command buttons for the contestants to click within a ten-second time limit. h. Generation of the result for each round and the summary result i. The system requires the following for the regional level implementation: Ø Two (2) lcd projectors Ø Two (2) projector screens Ø Computer units in LAN set-up (quantity depends on the number of participating schools in a cluster) Ø Windows XP (OS); preferably P4 2.8 or higher; 512 MB RAM; good network connection Ø One (1) unit of printer THE COMPETING TEAM The competing teams come from Colleges or Education Centers and are classified into the Senior Level or Junior Level. Each school is entitled to send one team composed of three (3) students enrolled in a regular program offered by the school. The school must assign a faculty member as a coach. The coach is also the delegates’ official representative from the school and the only authorized person to file a protest in behalf of the contestants.
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THE SUBJECT COVERAGE •
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SENIOR LEVEL Information and Communications Technology – topics include computer concepts, data organization, current technology trends, systems analysis and development, database applications, logic design and switching, computer architecture and organization, software engineering and project management, operating system, computer networks, data structures & algorithms and compiler design Mathematics – include topics in Basic Math Concepts, Algebra, Trigonometry, Analytic Geometry, Discrete Math, Probability and Statistics, Calculus, Problem Solving History and Culture - topics include Philippine and world history and culture Arts and Literature - topics include art appreciation, Philippine and world literature Science and Technology – topics may include basic concepts in Chemistry, Physics and Biological Sciences Current Events – topics include local and foreign significant events
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JUNIOR LEVEL Information and Communications Technology – topics include computer concepts and applications, data organization, theory of database systems, current technology trends, computer networks, data structures & algorithms and basic internet applications Mathematics – topics include Basic Math Concepts, Basic Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Basic Probability and Statistics, Problem Solving History and Culture - topics include Philippine history and culture Arts and Literature - topics include art appreciation, Philippine literature Science and Technology – topics may include basic concepts in Physical Sciences Current Events – topics include local and foreign significant events
MECHANICS 1. The teams are provided with computer units installed with the ThinkQuest automated system. 2. Each team of three (3) members is assigned one (1) computer unit. 3. The coaches and contestants are given approximately thirty (30) minutes to test the assigned computer unit and the program or system to be used prior to the contest proper. 4. The coach of each team is given a seat at the designated place. 5. The emcee introduces the contestants, with their coaches, and the members of the Board of Judges.
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6. The sealed envelope containing the database of questions in CD format is opened by the emcee in front of the contestants, STI representative/s and board of judges. The coach of the team sees to it that the envelope is not tampered. 7. The Board of Judges certifies that there are no questions loaded in the system. 8. The database of questions will then be copied to the system under the supervision of an STI representative and witnessed by the Board of Judges. 9. The Board of Judges is also provided with a hardcopy of the questions sealed in separate envelopes and are opened only in front of the coaches and the contestants. 10. The contestants are given three (3) trial questions for them to test and get accustomed to the system before the actual competition. 11. A printout of the ThinkQuest’ score sheet containing scores in the test round will be routed to the teams in the presence of their coaches who will be asked to sign the copy. This certifies that the assigned computer unit for each team is installed with the system needed for the competition and that the said unit is virus-free, in good and acceptable operational condition, and is suitable for the purposes of the competition. 12. The same copy will be routed to the Board of Judges to certify that all teams have checked their computer units and system. The accomplished sample score sheet printout will serve as a signal that the game is all set to start. 13. There are three (3) rounds of questions in the contest proper. These are: The ONCE AND FOR ALL ROUND. There are ten (10) questions and for each question the teams are given ten (10) seconds to answer or as specified in the question. For each correct answer, a team gets one (1) point. In this round, one (1) Think Twice question will be asked and designated two (2) points. The DOUBLE THE FUN ROUND. There are ten (10) questions and for each question the teams are given fifteen (15) seconds to answer or as specified in the question. For each correct answer, a team gets two (2) points. In this round, two (2) Think Twice questions will be asked, each designated with four (4) points. The TRIPLE TREAT ROUND. There are ten (10) questions and for each question the teams are given twenty (20) seconds to answer or as specified in the question. For each correct answer, a team gets three (3) points. In this final round, three (3) Think Twice questions will be asked, each designated with six (6) points. 14. Think Twice questions are pre-determined in the ten (10) questions for each round and are identified uniquely from the regular questions. 15. Before the Think Twice question is read, the subject area under which it is classified is mentioned then the competing teams are asked whether if they opt to answer or not. 16. Each competing team is prompted with two (2) command buttons in the system labeled as GO or PASS which they have to click. Each team is given only ten (10) seconds to decide whether to GO or PASS. 17. The ten-second count down starts after the EMCEE gives the signal to decide.
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18. After the ten-second deciding time has elapsed, teams who are not able to click either GO or PASS automatically are REQUIRED to answer the Think Twice question and are given the corresponding points if the answer is correct or the corresponding deduction if the answer is incorrect. 19. Only GO teams are allowed to answer the Think Twice question. The teams with the correct answer are awarded with the designated points while the teams with incorrect answer get the designated points deducted from their accumulated points. A NO ANSWER is considered an INCORRECT answer and gets designated points as deductions. 20. PASS teams are not allowed to answer the Think Twice question. The answer text box or option button in their assigned computer unit is disabled. Thus, their scores remain the same. 21. The questions are asked one at a time and are displayed on each team’s monitor. The emcee reads each question twice from the computer monitor provided. The timer is set for the countdown after the emcee is finished reading the question for the second time and after saying the word “GO”. The contestants are allowed to key-in their answers via the keyboard in the provided answer text box or option button even while the EMCEE is still reading the question. 22. As soon as the group has keyed-in the answer to the particular question, the teams need to click the command button “SUBMIT” to ensure that the answer is captured by the system. 23. After the given time has elapsed, the provided answer text box where the contestants key-in their answers is automatically disabled and teams can no longer type or encode any entry for the particular question. The system then records all characters keyed-in in the answer text box as the team’s answer. 24. Each team is provided clean sheets of papers for solving problems that require computations and for them to write their answers manually. 25. A member of each team is required to write their answers on the clean sheets of paper provided which will be collected after the time has elapsed. These will be checked and considered by the Board of Judges ONLY in case of technical problems (such as electricity or network failure). It must be noted however, that answers written on the papers provided must be the same with keyed-in answers. In case of discrepancies between the paper and the recorded answer, the answer recorded by the system is considered. 26. Answers with wrong spelling are considered incorrect including proper nouns that are not capitalized. Answers of the contestants with the corresponding correct or wrong mark as reflected on the answer database will be displayed on their computer screen or monitor. 27. The emcee checks the answer of each team while the Board of Judges validates them. Only answers that matched any of the possible answers stored in the system are automatically considered correct. Note however, that validation made by the Board of Judges may override the system. In cases where the Board of Judges considers a team’s corresponding answer, which is marked as incorrect by the system, the Board of Judges notifies the computer operator to override the system and consequently award the corresponding points for these considered answers. 28. For multiple choice type of questions, ONLY the letter corresponding to the answer is accepted. No other entries are valid except for the letter.
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29. For items which will require multiple answers, a comma must be used to separate each item. 30. Calculators are not allowed for questions that require computations. Answers that require computations must be written in their simplest form. 31. After each question, the teams are given appropriate scores. Scoring is done simultaneously using the computer system and a tally score sheet. Computercompiled scores are flashed on the provided screen. 32. Points for the three rounds are accumulated. 33. The total points determine the winner. In the event of a tie, a tie-breaking question is given. Whoever gives the correct answer earns the points and breaks the tie. The tie-breaking questions database is stored in a disk and is sealed in an envelope, separated from the regular questions. It is opened and loaded into the system only when necessary. 34. In case of a technical problem (such as computer display problem, network problem) during the progress of any question, the contestants may raise their right hand to allow their authorized representative or coach to attend to their concern and settle the issue with the Board of Judges. 35. FILING OF PROTESTS • Only the official coaches are allowed to file a protest. • Protest to be made by the authorized representative is done by raising his right hand immediately before the next question is read. The representative will be asked to approach the judges to settle the issue. • Any protest made, once another question is read, is not entertained. • Controversies and objections are resolved by the Board of Judges before the next question is read by the emcee. The decision of the Board is final and irrevocable.
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