About iGeo

International Geography Olympiad (IGEO) is a competition for the high school students aged 16-19. It was first held in 1996 at The Hague, Netherland. Since then International Geography Union (IGU) hold the international competition every two years and the next year are the regions competition. Member teams are growing from 6 at the first to 24 at the 7th. The 8th iGeo will be held in Taipei from 29 July to 4 August, 2010. The number of participants is expected around 30 countries.

Taiwan has been a regular participant since 2002, under the support of Ministry of Education and National Science Council. We advocated to hold the 1st Asia-Pacific Regional Geography Olympiad In 2007 and are honored to be able to host the 8th IGEO in Taipei.

Geography Olympiads facilitate social contacts between young people from different countries and in doing so, contribute to the understanding between nations especially in social science and science education field. At the same time, every country can present their achievement in geography education and integrate with the world development.

Participants

The age of the participants should not surpass 19 before 30, June on the year. Every country can send one team only. Every team comprise up to four participants and two team leaders. The competitors should be selected from the national game. The leaders should major in Geography and they are able to use English fluently. One leader will represent the national to join the international committee and the other will take care of the students. In addition, the future host countries or participant countries can send observers. Observers can attend the international committee conference but they cannot vote or discuss.

Competition

This competition is individual. Participants who don’t comply with the answering direction will be disqualified. The competition include three events – Fieldwork Test, Written Test, Multi-media Test. Students must be able to answer test questions in the official language of the Olympiad (English).

Finance

Each team has to afford the return travel costs of the students and all entourages to the place as well as the insurance during the competition. It has the registration fee for the event which should give to the organiser. The host will pay all the fees during the Olympiads competition, including participants and leaders’ accommodation, traffic, observation, study…. Additional members’ accommodation, touring fee will not be covered.   

International Board

International Board of the International Geography Olympiad comprises the representative from each nation and the participation of all delegations is equal. The committee will propose and vote for the statutes. The long-term work involved in organising the Olympiad is coordinated by the Task Force.

Further information

Geography Olympiads facilitate social contacts between young people from different countries and in doing so, contribute to the understanding between nations especially in social science and science education field. At the same time, every country can present their achievement in geography education and integrate with the world development.

For the Statutes of iGeo and the previous Geography Olympiads – check the official website http://www.geoolympiad.org/ The Statutes  is also attached at the bottom for your convenience.

If you have general queries about the Olympiad, for instance about eligibility,  please email them to Kath Berg at admin@rgsq.org.au (the Secretariat).

Queries about the iGeo 2010 Taipei, please contact to Su-Min Shen at tngc@deps.ntnu.edu.tw (the local organizer).

Statutes

International Geography Olympiad

The Statutes of the International Geography Olympiad (IGEO) were approved by an email vote of the International Board constituted for the International Geography Olympiad in Carthage, Tunisia, in August 2008. The vote was concluded on 30 June 2009.

General characteristics

• The Olympiad is held under the auspices of the International Geographical Union (IGU) and organised by the IGU Olympiad Task Force.

• The aims of the Olympiad are to:

• • stimulate active interest in geographical and environmental studies among young people;

• • contribute positively to debate about the importance of geography as a senior secondary school subject by drawing attention to the quality of geographical knowledge, skills and interests among young people;

• • facilitate social contacts between young people from different countries and in doing so, contribute to the understanding between nations.

• The Olympiad consists of a competition, social activities and excursions. The Olympiad competition is in three parts: a written test, a multimedia test and a substantial fieldwork exercise.

• The Olympiad is a competition between individual students who are between 16 and 19 years old and selected through a national geography competition.

• The official language of the Olympiad is English.

The participants

• Each participating country, as defined by IGU Statute II A, sends a team of four students.

• • They must be students of secondary schools (general or technical), or ex-students who finished school in the year of the Olympiad and have not yet commenced regular education at university level.

• • Their ages must be between 16 and 19 years old (inclusive) on 30 June of the year that the Olympiad takes place.

• • Students must be able to answer test questions in the official language of the Olympiad (English). Non-native English speakers get extra facilities such as the use of a language dictionary, translations of selected geographic terms from the tests, and extra time for long written tests.

• • Students must be selected through a national geography competition. Students selected through this national competition must be enrolled in the school system of the country they represent. They do not necessarily have to be citizens of that country.

• • Students must answer the test questions independently. Violation of this provision shall result in disqualification of the student from the Olympiad.

• In addition to the students, two adult team leaders are invited.

• • They must be involved in geography teaching or geography in education in their country.

• • Each of them must be able to speak and write the official language of the Olympiad (English).

• • One leader has membership of the International Board. S/he shall maintain absolute security about the contents of any test until after that particular test has taken place. S/he is eligible to participate on one of the jury panels, vote on the Statutes, review marking guidelines, translate geographic terms, etc.

• • The other leader is the person responsible for the students. S/he may also assist in supervision of the tests and other activities related to the Olympiad.

• • Both of them have equal rights at the event evaluation meeting of team leaders, which takes place at the end of the Olympiad.

• The organisers of the next Olympiad may send an observer. Observers may be present at meetings of the International Board, but may not vote.

The Olympiad tests

• The tests of the Olympiad are as follows:

• • The marks assigned for the Olympiad are: written test (40% of total marks), multimedia test (20%) and fieldwork exercise (40%). The three test elements are organised on different days, which may be any day of the week. Past examples of questions are included on the Olympiad website.

• • Students complete most test assignments individually not as teams. However, up to 50% of the fieldwork test, that is up to 20% of the Olympiad’s total mark, may be completed as a national team, with each team member being awarded the same mark. Note: preliminary exercises in the field may be carried out in cross-national groups, if all the fieldwork test questions are completed individually.

• • The tests are based on the guidelines drawn up by the Olympiad Task Force. Olympiad assignments test both knowledge and skills in geography.

• • The Olympiad assignments are prepared by committees under the supervision of the Olympiad Task Force.

• • Students must produce their answers in the official language of the Olympiad (English).

• • Students who do not commence a test for whatever reason will be awarded no marks for that test. Students who commence but do not complete a test due to circumstances beyond their control, will have their mark for that test determined by the Olympiad Task Force, after consultation with that test’s marking jury and the International Board.

• • All students receive a certificate. Approximately 50% of the participating students receive a medal. Medals are awarded in the approximate ratio of gold 1: silver 2: bronze 3.

• • The Olympiad tests are based on the International Charter on Geographical Education of the International Geographical Union.

  • The results are announced and the awards and diplomas presented to the winners at an official ceremony during the Olympiad.

The Task Force and the International Board

• The long-term work involved in organising the Olympiad is coordinated by the Task Force. Members of the Task Force are the chair and the organisers of the past, the present and the future Olympiads. The Task Force may co-opt up to three additional International Board members to serve on the Task Force. The chair of the Task Force is elected by the International Board after consultation with the chair of the Commission on Geographical Education of the International Geographical Union. The chair of the Task Force is elected every 4 years. The incumbent chair may stand for re-election. Note that two people may assume the role of chair as co-chairs, with their rights and responsibilities defined as if they were a single chair. The Task Force:

• • takes the lead in organising an efficient and high-quality Olympiad;

• • promotes the Olympiad worldwide;

• • stimulates national geography competitions;

• • defines the areas, themes and geographical skills to be included in the Olympiad;

• • maintains an up-to-date Olympiad website;

• • works in consultation with the International Geographical Union and its Commission on Geographical Education;

• • seeks funds to organise the International Geography Olympiad.

• The International Board consists of one adult representative of each country participating in the present or last Olympiad. The chair of the Task Force chairs the meetings of the International Board. Decisions of the International Board are passed by a majority vote. The chair has a casting vote. Members of the Task Force have the right to attend meetings of the International Board but, apart from the chair’s casting vote, only have a vote if they are a country’s representative. The decisions of the International Board are final. The International Board has the following responsibilities:

  • help the Task Force and local organiser to conduct the Olympiad according to the Statutes;

• • ascertain that all the competitors meet the requirements of the Olympiad in all respects. The Board shall disqualify those competitors who do not meet the requirements. The costs incurred by a disqualified competitor shall be covered by his/her country;

• • discuss the Olympiad's assignments and tasks and make a final decision on these before the Olympiad tests start;

• • maintain and preserve confidentiality concerning the assignments and tasks and offer no assistance to any participant;

• • mark the students' test assignments, this task to be carried out by subsets of the International Board acting as juries;

• • ensure correct and just classification of the prize winners;

• • summarise the results of the Olympiad;

• • select the country to organise the next Olympiad.

Local organiser

• The Olympiad is organised by the Ministry of Education or one or more other appropriate institutions of the country in whose territory the Olympiad is to be conducted. The Education Ministry of the organising country, as a rule, assigns the organisation, preparation and execution of the Olympiad to a geographical society or another institution in the organising country. The obligations of the local organiser are to:

• • ensure the equal participation of all delegations;

• • invite the participants of the last three Olympiads and other countries as appropriate. Applications from countries which participated in the preceding Olympiad and which are received at least six months before the Olympiad in question starts, shall be accepted in the order in which they are received up to the number the local organiser specifies it can host. Six months before the Olympiad any places still available shall be allocated to other countries in the order in which their applications were received;

• • forward to these countries not less than eight months before the date of the Olympiad information which gives details of the Olympiad not covered in the Statutes, and gives the names and addresses of the institutions and the persons responsible for the Olympiad;

• • forward the areas, themes and geographical skills to be included in the Olympiad, as supplied by the Task Force, to the participating countries;

• • establish a detailed programme for the Olympiad including a schedule for competitors and adult representatives, a programme of excursions, etcetera. This is to be sent to the participating countries not less than three months in advance;

• • check immediately after the arrival of each delegation whether its competitors meet the conditions of the Olympiad;

• • conduct the Olympiad in accordance with the Statutes;

• • be responsible for the financial aspects of the Olympiad and announce one year before the date of the Olympiad the fee to be paid by each student and adult.

The financial principles

• The country which sends the students to the Olympiad pays:

• • the return travel costs of the students and of all accompanying persons to the place at which the Olympiad is held;

• • a fee to the local organiser for each student and adult as a contribution to other costs. This fee is to be announced one year before the Olympiad starts.

• The local organiser covers all other expenses incurred in holding the Olympiad.

Final regulations

Changes to these Statutes can only be made by the International Board and require a qualified majority (2/3 of the votes). No changes may be made to these Statutes unless each delegation participating in the present or last Olympiad is sent the proposed revision by email at least two months in advance. The International Board may conduct such votes in person or by post,  fax or email.

• Participation in an International Geography Olympiad signifies acceptance of the present Statutes by the Ministry of Education or other institution responsible for sending the delegation.

• The original and definitive version of these Statutes is written in English.

(c) IGU Olympiad Task Force
Joop van der Schee, Henk Ankoné‚ & Kath Berg.

(Chinese version.)

競賽辦法

國際地理奧林匹亞競賽要點

    國際地理奧林匹亞是專為16-19歲中學生舉辦的競賽，參賽者年齡在參賽該年的6月30日時不得超過19歲。每國可派出一隊，每隊由至多四位選手和兩位領隊組成。選手必須是選拔自該國的全國賽；領隊則需是地理（教育）學者或地理老師，同時須具備流利的英語能力。一位領隊將代表該國參加國際委員會，另一位則負責照顧選手。此外，未來的主辦國或參賽國，可以派觀察員。觀察員可以列席國際委員會議，但無權投票和參與討論。

     本競賽為個人賽，若測驗時不遵守獨立作答的規定，將被退賽。競賽項目包含Fieldwork Test、Written Test、Multi-media Test三項；官方語言為英語（競賽試題不會被翻譯為母語，答題也必須使用英文）。為降低語言造成之落差，非英語系國家的選手在答題時可以攜帶非地理專業的字（辭）典，比較艱深的地理名詞，會提供翻譯給選手參考，答題時間也比英語系國家選手略長。

     在經費方面，各參賽隊伍必須負擔參賽學生和隨行人員往返比賽地點的旅費以及比賽期間的健康保險，並須繳交報名費給主辦國。主辦國需負擔參賽隊伍在國際地理奧林匹亞舉辦期間的所有費用，包含所有參賽選手、領隊以及指定受邀隨行人員的交通、住宿、參訪、考察及獎品等費用，其餘隨行人員之交通、住宿、觀光費用則須由參賽國自理。

     透過參加國際地理奧林匹亞可以增加我國與其他國家的互動，特別使社會科學和科學教育發展的交流管道更為暢通，也提供青年學子參與國際競賽的寶貴機會，增進未來的合作機會和彼此鼓勵，加強國際社群間的友誼，並呈現我國教育改革成效，與世界發展趨勢接軌。國際地理奧林匹亞歷屆辦理情形，可參考官方網頁(http://www.geoolympiad.org/)。

2010年第八屆國際地理奧林匹亞在台北

計畫目標

    為鼓勵年輕人認識地理在生活中的重要性，並加強發展各國間地理教育交流，「國際地理奧林匹亞」（International Geography Olympiad，IGEO）首度於1996年在荷蘭海牙舉行。自此以來，國際地理聯合會 (IGU) 每兩年舉行一次會國際賽，隔年則由舉行區域賽。我國自2002年起在教育部和國科會（科普計畫）支持下，辦理國內競賽 ，參與國際賽事，並於2007年倡議辦理第一屆亞太區域地理奧林匹亞。我國為促進地理教育之努力，深獲各國好評，而能爭取到2010年在臺北主辦第八屆國際地理奧林匹亞（附錄1）。

    國際地理奧林匹亞（附錄2）的最高權力機構為由各參賽國一位代表組成的國際委員會(International Board of the International Geography Olympiad)，各委員的權力相等，負責議決競賽章程（附錄3）和提案。IG U下並設有奧林匹亞工作小組 (IGU Olympiad Task Force)，負責經常性業務。參賽隊伍從第一屆的6隊到第七屆的24隊（表一），其中又以地理教育傳統最堅強的歐洲國家最積極。

本計劃之目的為：

1. 激發學生對地理與環境研究的興趣；

2. 鼓勵學生主動關懷在地環境和國際社會議題；

3. 提供各國學生交流的管道，以促進各國之間的了解；

4. 增進地理教育的國際交流；

5. 展現我國在地理教育特色，並彰顯我國之教育成就和國際形象。 

競賽章程

目的

國際地理奧林匹亞是專為16-19歲高中學生舉行國際性地理競賽，由國際地理聯合會[1](International Geographical Union, IGU)下之地理教育委員會(CGE, Commission on Geographical Education) 倡議舉辦，1994年在捷克布拉格通過競賽辦法，1996年首度在荷蘭海牙舉行，每兩年舉辦一次。第七屆競賽於2008年8月7至12日在突尼西亞迦太基(Carthage, Tunisia)舉行。發起這項競賽的主要目的為：

- 激發學生對地理與環境研究的興趣；

-  透過激發學生關注地理知識、技能與興趣，而能有益於地理作為高中學科的辯論；

-  提供各國學生交流的管道，以促進各國之間的了解。

 章程

國際地理奧林匹亞的最高權力機構為由各參賽國一位代表組成的國際委員會(International Board of the International Geography Olympiad)，各委員的權力相等，負責議決競賽章程和提案。競賽章程中明訂競賽項目、測驗大綱、活動內容、參賽者資格，以及國際委員會和工作小組的組成和任務等。而為確保優良的競賽品質，IG U下特別成立奧林匹亞工作小組 (IGU Olympiad Task Force)[2]，負責經常性業務。工作小組也有責任與IGU下之地理教育委員會（該會專注於地理教育之學術研究）保持密切聯繫，擬定競賽測驗綱要後，再提請國際委員會議決。

國際委員會的責任為：(a)協助奧林匹亞工作小組和承辦國家根據規章辦理競賽；(b)確認所有參賽者資格符合競賽規定，委員會有權取消不合規定的參賽者資格，被取消資格的參賽者其費用須由該國家自行負擔；(c)討論競賽各項測驗的內容，並具有最後的決定權；(d)委員必須對測驗內容保密，不可以任何形式協助參賽者；(e)分組對各項測驗評分；(f)確定金、銀、銅牌獎項的得獎者無誤；(g)總結競賽結果；(h)選定下一屆的主辦國家。

奧林匹亞工作小組的責任為：(a)引導籌組有效率和高品質的競賽；(b)推廣國際地理奧林匹亞競賽活動；(c)激勵更多國家辦理地理競賽；(d)擬定競賽測驗綱要（再提請國際委員會議決）；(e)維護地理奧林匹亞的官方網頁；(f) 與IGU和其下之地理教育委員會保持密切聯繫；(g)爭取經費以籌組國際地理奧林匹亞。