Panasonic Academic Challenge
Encyclopedia
The National Tournament of Academic Excellence (NTAE)http://www.polk-fl.net/students/academiccompetitions/ntae/ (formerly known as the Panasonic Academic Challenge [PAC]) is one of a small number of national competitions (see also) that is held in June for high school quizbowl
teams in the United States. The NTAE has been run in June of each year since 1988. When funding disappeared, the tournament has not been held since 2009.
While most tournaments involve two teams playing in a head-to-head format, the NTAE involves matches of between four and six teams playing against each other in the same competition room. Each team starts with 100 points.
Each match is divided into three untimed periods. The first period consists of 20 questions, each worth five points. The second period consists of 20 questions, each worth ten points, and the final round consists of 25 questions, each worth fifteen points. Each question has a one minute time limit in which teams may answer. Teams answering incorrectly are penalized the point value of the question. A team is eliminated from competition if their point total reaches zero (a very rare event).
At the end of each period, each team participates in a written team question which has a variable time limit, and a variable number of questions. The written team question after each of the three periods is worth (respectively) a maximum of ten, twenty, and thirty points. There are no penalties for incorrect answers in this phase of the competition. These written questions are non-competitive, and each team may earn the maximum number of points.
At the end of each match, teams are ranked according to their point totals. A tie-breaker occurs only if a tie results among teams that will be advancing to a future match.
Aside from the written team questions, there are no bonus questions which are prevalent in most other quizbowl formats. There is also the absence of "rebounding" a missed question. That is, once a question is attempted, whether the answer given is correct or incorrect, the question ends, and no other team is given the opportunity to answer.
Adding to the challenge, each team is permitted only one button to indicate they are ready to answer, and to lock out other teams from responding (aka "buzzer"). Most other formats allow each player to have their own buzzer.
While topics range across the academic canon, there is an overall de-emphasis of pop culture questions, and a marked increase in the number of mathematics questions (teams are provided calculators). Foreign language is also utilized often, with teams usually choosing from amongst French or Spanish questions (in the past, German and Latin were options, but these have been discontinued).
There are also visual questions displayed on a television monitor, and audio questions played from recordings. While these two question formats can be used for any question category, audio questions are most often used for music and foreign language questions, while video questions are most often used for art questions.
at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida
.
Teams are randomly assigned to a first round match (historically, each first round match has either four or five teams in each competition room). Winning teams automatically advance to the semifinals. Teams not winning in the first round are randomly assigned to a consolation match, and compete on Monday. Winners of each consolation match also advance to the semifinals.
There are usually three semifinal matches played on Tuesday morning. The top two teams from each semifinal advance to the championship round, held on Tuesday afternoon.
Coaches are not permitted to challenge the game officials, though players are permitted to do so. Each match generally has at least one judge who is a specialist in each academic area.
and Polk
, with the Florida Department of Education joining in the tournament's third year. Herff Jones and Publix Supermarkets have also been sponsors since the first year of the tournament.
From 1992 to 2008, Panasonic
had been the title sponsor of the event. The Pepsi
Bottling Group has also been a long time sponsor.
This corporate sponsorship allows for one of the largest prize packages in high school quizbowl. The top six teams each earn trophies, which are sent to the governors of the respective states or territories. The members of each of the top three teams earn scholarships ($2000, $1000, and $500 per team member, respectively), and earn championship rings. An "all-tournament" team is selected based on geography and individual performance in the first round of competition. These players earn medals and scholarship money.
Quizbowl
Quiz bowl is a family of games of questions and answers on all topics of human knowledge that is commonly played by students enrolled in high school or college, although some participants begin in middle or even elementary school...
teams in the United States. The NTAE has been run in June of each year since 1988. When funding disappeared, the tournament has not been held since 2009.
Match Format
The format used in the NTAE is unique among all other national tournaments, and is based on the format used for the Commissioner's Academic Challenge, which is Florida's quizbowl tournament for school districts (separate from their actual high school championship). This tournament is used to select the team which represents Florida at the NTAE.While most tournaments involve two teams playing in a head-to-head format, the NTAE involves matches of between four and six teams playing against each other in the same competition room. Each team starts with 100 points.
Each match is divided into three untimed periods. The first period consists of 20 questions, each worth five points. The second period consists of 20 questions, each worth ten points, and the final round consists of 25 questions, each worth fifteen points. Each question has a one minute time limit in which teams may answer. Teams answering incorrectly are penalized the point value of the question. A team is eliminated from competition if their point total reaches zero (a very rare event).
At the end of each period, each team participates in a written team question which has a variable time limit, and a variable number of questions. The written team question after each of the three periods is worth (respectively) a maximum of ten, twenty, and thirty points. There are no penalties for incorrect answers in this phase of the competition. These written questions are non-competitive, and each team may earn the maximum number of points.
At the end of each match, teams are ranked according to their point totals. A tie-breaker occurs only if a tie results among teams that will be advancing to a future match.
Aside from the written team questions, there are no bonus questions which are prevalent in most other quizbowl formats. There is also the absence of "rebounding" a missed question. That is, once a question is attempted, whether the answer given is correct or incorrect, the question ends, and no other team is given the opportunity to answer.
Adding to the challenge, each team is permitted only one button to indicate they are ready to answer, and to lock out other teams from responding (aka "buzzer"). Most other formats allow each player to have their own buzzer.
Topic and Question Formats
The questions used in the NTAE are wholly unique among national tournaments. Unlike most other tournaments there are multiple choice and matching questions, some of which can be deceptively difficult. There are also "fill-in-the-blank style questions," as well as free response questions (standard to high school quizbowl).While topics range across the academic canon, there is an overall de-emphasis of pop culture questions, and a marked increase in the number of mathematics questions (teams are provided calculators). Foreign language is also utilized often, with teams usually choosing from amongst French or Spanish questions (in the past, German and Latin were options, but these have been discontinued).
There are also visual questions displayed on a television monitor, and audio questions played from recordings. While these two question formats can be used for any question category, audio questions are most often used for music and foreign language questions, while video questions are most often used for art questions.
Tournament Format
The tournament is usually held during the second or third week of June, starting on a Sunday, and ending on a Tuesday. The tournament is usually held at the convention center of the Contemporary Resort HotelDisney's Contemporary Resort
Disney's Contemporary Resort is a deluxe resort at the Walt Disney World Resort. It opened on October 1, 1971...
at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
.
Teams are randomly assigned to a first round match (historically, each first round match has either four or five teams in each competition room). Winning teams automatically advance to the semifinals. Teams not winning in the first round are randomly assigned to a consolation match, and compete on Monday. Winners of each consolation match also advance to the semifinals.
There are usually three semifinal matches played on Tuesday morning. The top two teams from each semifinal advance to the championship round, held on Tuesday afternoon.
Coaches are not permitted to challenge the game officials, though players are permitted to do so. Each match generally has at least one judge who is a specialist in each academic area.
Team Qualifications
An unusual feature of this tournament is that teams do not necessarily qualify based on performance during the past season, as is the case in most other national quizbowl tournaments. The Board of Education (or equivalent body) of each U.S. state and territory is given the power to select a team in any way they see fit. Some teams come from a single school, and are usually the quizbowl champion of that state. In other cases, the Board of Education gives selection power to a committee who chooses an all-star team from among that state's best players. Thus each state or territory can enter only one team, and is referred to at the tournament as (for example) Team Alabama or Team Oklahoma.Sponsorship & Prizes
Another unique fixture of this tournament are the resources committed by corporate and government sponsorship. Since its inception, the tournament has been sponsored by the school systems of the Florida counties of PinellasPinellas County, Florida
Pinellas County is a county located in the state of Florida. Its county seat is Clearwater, Florida, and its largest city is St. Petersburg. This county is contained entirely within the telephone area code 727, except for some sections of Oldsmar, which have the area code 813...
and Polk
Polk County, Florida
Polk County is located in central Florida between the Tampa Bay and Greater Orlando metropolitan areas. The county was established by the state government in 1861 on the eve of the American Civil War and named after former United States president James K. Polk. The county seat is Bartow and its...
, with the Florida Department of Education joining in the tournament's third year. Herff Jones and Publix Supermarkets have also been sponsors since the first year of the tournament.
From 1992 to 2008, Panasonic
Panasonic
Panasonic is an international brand name for Japanese electric products manufacturer Panasonic Corporation, which was formerly known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd...
had been the title sponsor of the event. The Pepsi
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
Bottling Group has also been a long time sponsor.
This corporate sponsorship allows for one of the largest prize packages in high school quizbowl. The top six teams each earn trophies, which are sent to the governors of the respective states or territories. The members of each of the top three teams earn scholarships ($2000, $1000, and $500 per team member, respectively), and earn championship rings. An "all-tournament" team is selected based on geography and individual performance in the first round of competition. These players earn medals and scholarship money.
History of the NTAE
| YEAR | CHAMPION | RUNNER-UP | THIRD PLACE | FOURTH PLACE | FIFTH PLACE | SIXTH PLACE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Maryland | Tennessee | New York | Louisiana | Florida | Georgia |
| 1989 | Maryland | Ohio | Virginia | South Carolina | New York | Michigan |
| 1990 | Kentucky | Georgia | Maryland | Florida | Wisconsin | New York |
| 1991 | South Carolina | Virginia | Wisconsin | Indiana | Oklahoma | New Jersey |
| 1992 | Maryland | Kentucky | New Jersey | Florida | South Carolina | Georgia |
| 1993 | California | Maryland | South Carolina | Kentucky | Iowa | Oregon |
| 1994 | Virginia | Wisconsin | Kentucky | |||
| 1995 | Florida | South Carolina | Maryland | Pennsylvania | ||
| 1996 | Maryland | South Carolina | Alabama | Oklahoma | Pennsylvania | Georgia |
| 1997 | Texas | Maryland | Wisconsin | unknown | Minnesota | Pennsylvania |
| 1998 | Maryland | Florida | District of Columbia | unknown | Illinois | unknown |
| 1999 | Florida | South Carolina | Maryland | Missouri | Tennessee | Texas |
| 2000 | Maryland | Kentucky | Missouri | Illinois | Georgia | Alabama |
| 2001 | District of Columbia | Florida | Maryland | Vermont | Kentucky | South Carolina |
| 2002 | Maryland | Illinois | South Carolina | Virginia | Georgia | Texas |
| 2003 | Virginia | Florida | South Carolina | Texas | Pennsylvania | Ohio |
| 2004 | Virginia | Missouri | Illinois | District of Columbia | Kentucky | Colorado |
| 2005 | Virginia | Maryland | Illinois | Florida | Colorado | Wisconsin |
| 2006 | Maryland | Florida | Missouri | Pennsylvania | Virginia | Tennessee |
| 2007 | Illinois | Missouri | Florida | California | District of Columbia | Kentucky |
| 2008 | Illinois | Florida | South Carolina | Kentucky | Tennessee | California |
| 2009 | Kentucky | Oklahoma | Colorado | South Carolina | Florida | Ohio |
| 2010 | No Funding - No Tournament | |||||
| 2011 | No Funding - No Tournament |