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RE: [GWL]: GWAA awards again

Title: RE: [GWL]: GWAA awards again
Jeff,

Your image of how standards might be accomplished is much different than mine.  Kindly allow me to explain...

 Of course a judge would never compare books to columns, videos to radio -- that is why there are different categories for submission and different judges for each category.  It is also why each category requires its own criteria.

Within each category, however, one could certainly come up with judging standards and guidelines.  Think about the way you approach judging.  When you evaluate a product, you most definitely have some criteria in  mind, though you may never have codified your thinking.  And no doubt your criteria is specific to the medium.  So, if you were judging an article, for example, your mental criteria might be:  is it well written?  Is it accurate?  Is it grammatically correct?  Is the content interesting?  Is entertaining (that may or may not be important)?  Does it address the audience at an appropriate level?  Does it inform or is it merely fluff?

If you were judging television or video, you might look at the production values, how well the talent performs, whether there is a clear take-home message and if so, what it is, etc..

I would bet that you could even assign a number on a scale of one-to-five or one-to-ten for most of these criteria.

Your point on how difficult it is to evaluate a book is a prime example.  I agree that it is hard to focus on writing and disregard overall design, photography, etc.  This is precisely why criteria and judge training are important.  If you supplied the judges with a well-designed score sheet, for example, that score sheet would guide the judges through the judging process using questions focused strictly on the writing.  The scores would not reflect the design, photography, etc.

Developing such an evaluation process like this is not difficult at all, I've done it many times.  One starts by  interviewing judges like yourself to find out what basis they use for making their judgement.  Talk to four or five (or twenty) of them and soon, it becomes very clear what the judges are looking for.  Then, using the information provided by the judges, write up a series of questions to use as judging guidelines.  Word the questions so that the results can be quantified and that's it -- you have well defined and accurate judging standards.

This is what criteria based judging is all about.  It is important for two reasons -- one, it eliminates any appearance of subjectivity, bias, or lack of fairness on the part of the organization and/or judges (which is the topic that started this whole discussion).  Second, it helps individuals interested in submitting a piece to understand the criteria by which their submission will be judged.  Sometimes, that results in their deciding not  to submit a piece.  Sometimes it helps them select which story or show to submit. Ultimately, it can help to raise the standards of our industry.

This is not a matter of whether judge A or judge B has good principles.  Nor is it a matter of good intent or bad intent, or  honesty vs dishonesty.  We all have good principles, good intent, and are  honest (or at least, that is my assumption).


Nan
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Nan Sterman                     PlantSoup
205 Cole Ranch Road            
Olivenhain, CA 92024            760.634.2902 (voice)   
NSterman@PlantSoup.Com          760.634.2957 (fax)

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