Team Composition

The size of teams may range from 7 to 12 students. A school may form more than one team if there are more than 12 participants from that school. Each team has one adult advisor (teacher, librarian, coach, etc.) and should designate a student team leader as well, who will be the primary liaison with the Challenge staff and the Research Advisor.

Names of student team leaders should be forwarded to Challenge staff no later than January 30, 2004 (or according to your state’s timeline, if not in Colorado). Team rosters must be forwarded to Challenge staff by February 13, 2004 in Colorado. After this deadline, no additions or deletions can be made.

Role of Team Facilitators/Teachers

Adults serve primarily as facilitators, overseeing the work of their teams, but they need not provide substantive aid. They may present curriculum units, help facilitate team meetings and discussions, suggest readings, and provide feedback. Teachers/facilitators should also encourage their teams to maximize use of the Research Advisor. In the end, the Formal Presentation and Discovery Poster should be a product of student initiative.

Some teachers incorporate the Challenge into their curriculum or classes, and others offer the Challenge as an extracurricular activity. The management of each team will depend in large part on how the team is structured.

The Research Advisor

In order to foster a level playing field during the research period, each Challenge team will receive up to 10 hours of research assistance with a graduate student from their host institution. In Colorado, assistance is provided by The Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver. Research Advisors provide advice, guidance, and research for Challenge teams. Challenge teams must employ good time management and communication skills. In some respects, the Research Advisor is an employee of Challenge teams and should be managed as such.

Note that the Research Advisor may not be able to meet all requests submitted at the last minute; requests will be handled on a first-come, first-served basis, so it is best to plan ahead.

The Research Advisor can be reached by email, fax, or phone (toll-free for teams outside the Denver metropolitan area). The office hours of the Research Advisor will be forwarded to teachers and student team leaders from Challenge headquarters. In addition to his or her time, the Research Advisor will provide each team with up to 300 pages of photocopied material or e-resources that pertain to the annual topic. Team members will give the Research Advisor guidance in choosing which materials to copy. Materials will be forwarded to the team in care of the advisor via first class mail. Once research hours have been exhausted, Challenge teams can no longer access the Research Advisor for assistance.