Science Exhibits (Years 7 – 11)
Students (years 7 – 11) are required to produce an exhibit to display their science project.
Students in Years 7-11 need to attend an interview with the judges marking their project. The interview is quite relaxed, it is not formal, but it is important. Interviews are a chance for judges to talk with students to find out more about the project and the depth of a student’s scientific or technological knowledge. Read some example interview questions…
Exhibit Dimensions
Full maximum dimensions for exhibits are given in the diagram on the right. Cardboard display boards of differing dimensions may be purchased through a number of retailers.
Students also have the option of making a wooden board providing it is within maximum allowable dimensions. Exhibit displays must fit within the space of the display board on exhibition tables.
At the Central Northland Science and Technology Fair you are limited to a space 90cm wide by 75cm deep. The height maximum of your board is 100cm. You also have an option of an additional 20cm height for TITLE SPACE ONLY.
Your displayed prototype and / or investigation pieces MUST fit within the display area between the board ‘wings’. Failure to comply with these dimensions may result in disqualification.
More about safety and ethics…
Science Posters (Years 12 & 13)
Senior students are required to submit and present an A1 size Conference Poster for judging. The intention is to foster a collegial learning and sharing environment whilst having some fun.
The changes have taken both NCEA and Cambridge Educational systems into account. Our expectation is that students completing the 2.1 3.1 units for NCEA will still be able to use that work to enter the Fair. We also believe that a number of other NCEA units for Science, Technology and Sustainability could also contribute to projects for the Fair, depending on the chosen topic.
Student Requirements
- Design and print an A1 sized Conference Poster and bring it to the Fair on the day.
- Present the Conference Poster to the Judges. This replaces the previous power point presentation process.
Conference Posters
A scientific paper as a Conference Poster (Poster Presentation) is how the majority of cutting-edge science research is shared between researchers at conferences throughout the world. They have the choice between giving an oral presentation (power point display, standing at the front of an audience talking aloud) or a poster presentation. There are usually only a dozen slots for the first and hundreds for the second, depending on the size of your conference. Most of the speaking slots go to the famous older scientists, so students and early-career researchers get very good, very quickly at their Conference Poster skills. And to add a sweetener – there are always Conference Poster prizes.
A Conference Poster is a visual representation of your paper, dissertation or thesis. These three things are basically all just a story about your research, written with lots of big words and important data from your experiments. Like a school science report on steroids.
Presenting Your Poster
At a scientific conference you usually get given a time slot in which you must stand with your poster and present it to anyone interested in hearing about your work. So this means that, firstly – your poster has to grab the attention of people wandering past, and secondly – that you have an engaging speech written to ‘present’ your work to people when they come up to you and ask about your project.
When you talk to your poster (do your little speech) you need to get across why you did the work, how you did it, what you found – and what this means in a wider context. Cool – you found out worms poop blue by keeping a worm farm – what does this mean for everyone else?! You want to make the person remember you, have confidence in your research skills and to remember your results.
More about Judges interviews…
Design Tutorial Links
The links below for poster design tutorials. The tutorials contain a lot of information and they are aimed at university students doing research, but we think they will helpful to students and teachers if you view them then pick out appropriate bits to use and apply at a Year 12-13 level.
- http://hsp.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/ScientificPosters.pdf
- http://guides.nyu.edu/posters
- http://colinpurrington.com/tips/poster-design
Additional Assistance and Poster Examples
The committee is delighted to announce that both teachers and senior students will have access to learning support with Dr Sarah Morgan. Dr Morgan is a Science Writer and Designer. She is very skilled and experienced presenting science in a community context and will be an excellent resource for the students.
Search Google to find millions of other examples of science posters…
