Chairman's Award -- is the bar too high now?

[kjolana1124]

Originally Posted by JesseK

I have a feeling that it's FIRST's lack of feedback to those who submit CA at the regional level, and lack of genuine thankfulness to the teams for their efforts year after year even though they didn't win any awards for it. The feedback form for CA is a joke some years -- in 2 of the 4 years we were eligible for CA, the feedback form simply regurgitated what the students presented.

Maybe it's simply because we haven't been presenting that long, but I like the feedback they supply. What does annoy me is the fact that we got absolutely no feedback at Championships. If the judges want stronger contenders for future years, they should explain what would make us stronger.

For FiM, I have been suggesting giving of season seeding points for Chairman's. X points for applying, and Y points for being nearly there or "Honorable Mentions". I was told this makes the judges job tougher, but having judged many other competitions, I personally believe this makes it easier as you don't feel so bad leaving Team 4444 out in the cold because they were only 99.99% as good as team Winners. With 10 points this year going to the District chairman's winner, I would give 2 points for applying, and 4-6 for an honorable mention (judges discretion on number).

I'm not sure I agree with this. I personally like the fact that there is only one Chairman's or only one EIA. Yes, the districts do allow there to be more than one, but that's a little different. To have like runner-ups kind of seems to defeat the purpose. While I will (and have admitted) that it shouldn't be a reason to strive for Chairman's, people do attempt to go for this award because it's so highly revered. Giving teams a "well, we still kind of like you" option may cause them to settle and not have to worry about always pushing that extra button. The worst thing you can do if you want to win CA is to fall into a comfortable pattern. CA should be hard, like everything else worthwhile.

Altruism is a lot to ask of most teenagers. Childrens brains are hardwired to be self-serving.

Most teens are not FIRST teens. Give us a chance, we'll surprise you every now and again.