Independent NZYPT Juror
Independent NZYPT jurors are the judges of the New Zealand Young Physicists' Tournament who do not teach a participating school team. They work in teams of four, ideally five, other jurors on a jury panel. The other jurors will be a mix of school physics teachers who accompany their own, (but do not assess) team and other independents.
Senior high school students spend up to nine months researching the pre-set, open-ended physics tournament problems experimentally. At the tournament, school teams of three students compete in physics matches against other schools. teams take turns to present and defend their solution or to critique the presentation of the other team. This structured debate considers the physics theory applied, the appropriateness of scientific investigation methods, quality of data collected and conclusions drawn from it. The process mimics, as far as possible, how scientists research and defend the results obtained.
Jurors assess the team's achievements in both the presentation and opposition (critique) during the match. There is a clear rubric to award points. The marks from the four or ideally five jury members are then aggregated to give a final score. The school team with the highest combined score from three competition matches wins the national tournament.
Jurors receive lunch, refreshments throughout the day and, optionally, may accompany the teams to their social event on Saturday evening. We also offer a small koha in appreciation of the time and energy given.
Firstly, and most importantly, a good working knowledge of Physics used in your profession. Preferably a bachelor's degree in physics or a strongly related discipline. You might be working as an engineer, architect, radiographer, computer scientist, geophysicist, etc. And of course, physics teachers, a post graduate students and other physics academics also qualify. Secondly be available for both the tournament and an online training session for independent jurors.
The training will be a two-hour online session within a week of the Tournament. There will also be opportunities to drop in and observe a student after school research session and talk to the supervising teacher about the tournament.
All day (office hours) on one or both of the Tournament days, Saturday March 21st and Sunday 22nd
Optionally, and at your own cost, attending the Saturday evening social event which will be Physics themed and inspire the students to STEM careers built on a physics foundation.
Getting started:
The first step is to express your interest by filling out the form below. We will then put you in touch directly with the organisation for more information on the role and how to proceed.
Youth & Children