Some of the most important decisions coaches make during competition include deciding which quizzer starts the game on the bench and when to put them in the game. Sure, at times their teammates help make that decision by erring- or quizzing-out. But what if you are trying to get that 3rd- or 4th-quizzer bonus? What if your Memory Verse quizzer has 2 errors with 10 questions and 1 more memory verse question to go? Do you take them out now or wait until the next memory verse question is asked?

Being able to predict the next few question types – or knowing how much longer until the next Memory Verse question will be asked – allows you to make strategic choices to put your team in the best possible position for success.
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Impossible, you say? What if I told you there are patterns inherit in the algorithm that generates competition questions? For certain conditions, it is not the totally random selection process as I had believed.

​Given the positive responses from fellow math aficionados regarding my last post which introduced the Advanced Quizzer Rating, I decided to push my luck with one more technical article. Plus, many who have downloaded the revised Naz Quiz Scoresheet have asked “what do all these new numbers mean?” So, consider this post your instruction manual as we navigate through each tab and explain the changes.

Before you read any further, I want to warn you that this blog post contains a significant amount of algebraic equations applied to Teen Bible Quizzing explained in excruciating detail. Well, it may be excruciating to you but not to me. I’m actually pretty excited with the result. So, if you are brave – or just curious – please read on.

Though we all use a Quizzer’s average points per game to determine individual placement at the conclusion of a quiz meet, it does not tell the whole story. Say, for example, that Diane and Bruce both finish a 10-game tournament tied for 10th place with a 40 average. Bruce averaged 1 Error per game while Diane had 2 Errors per game. So, Bruce gets the medal for 10th place. However, what we do not consider is that Bruce missed all 10 of his Bonus opportunities while Diane answered all 10 of hers. Also, Bruce’s 1 Error each game happened after Question 15, costing his team 10 points each time. Also, every error turned into 10 points for the opposing team when they correctly answered the Bonus. Diane was more careful and did not error after question 15 in any game. Only one of Diane’s two errors each game resulted in Bonus points for the opposing team. Looking at the net points contributed to their respective teams, Bruce averaged 20 points per game while Diane averaged 40.
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Though the details of this scenario are fictional, something similar does happen at every quiz meet. So it seems odd to me that the only statistics that we really track are team wins, individual averages, and individual errors. While I understand why we do not include points from Bonuses as part of an individual’s average, there are so many more events that happen during each match that contribute to the final score: cumulative team errors, error-outs, perfect game bonuses, and errors after question 15 to name just a few. It would be as if the NFL only tracked each team’s wins, total yards per game for each offensive player, and turnovers. 

In my career as a business leader responsible for the development and performance of those who work for me, I have learned and tried to emulate leadership principles that seem to be the most effective. In my experience, there are no bad teams, only bad leaders. Leaders must keep their ego in check. They must embrace simplicity and communicate the mission with clarity. To be effective, leaders must not only prioritize various activities, but also execute each of them well.

I have also learned that leadership is not always one thing or another. There is a spectrum and sometimes contradictions. While leaders do lead, they must also be willing to follow. They must remain calm when under stress, but not be robotic. Aggressive, but not overbearing. They must be brave, but not reckless. Successful leaders have a competitive spirit, but are also gracious losers. There are times leaders must be quiet, but never completely silent. Additionally, leaders should be humble, but not passive.

After all, if no one is following you, are you really a leader?
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Not surprisingly, these leadership principles in business are also effective for me as a leader in Youth Bible Quizzing.

Have you ever wondered how some churches – regardless of the size of their youth group – continually bring in new Quizzers every year while other churches have not had a Teen Bible Quizzer in several years, decades, or ever? Though a minority regrettably cannot participate for legitimate reasons, I find that the majority of adults and students decline to participate due in part to an inaccurate or incomplete perception of what it entails – despite multiple attempts to highlight the program in newsletters and at Teen Camps, Retreats, Children Quizzes, and Conventions.
 
For them, Teen Bible Quizzing is simply not a part of their church’s culture – and that may be just fine for their unique situation. On the other hand, they could be so much more fruitful if they offered this highly effective youth leadership and discipleship program to their teens. They just don’t know that they don’t know what they are missing.
 
Alternatively, why do some quiz programs regularly produce quizzers who excel in competition while other similarly mature quiz programs do not? The answer is the same: it is their culture.

​Culture is simply the beliefs and values that determine how someone acts. Culture is developed by what we do – or do not do – regularly. When you hear things like, “My church just doesn’t do that”, that is culture.
 
Jesus, too, sought to change the church’s culture of His day. His message was radically different from what they were accustomed:

​Though this topic was recommended to me by a subscriber to this blog, I am writing it as much as a reminder to myself as I am writing it to share with all of you.
 
After our November quiz, the weekends get very busy. First up is Thanksgiving. A week later, my District participates in the St. Louis Top 10 quiz tournament. Not too long after that is Christmas followed one week later by New Year’s Day. So, like many of you, our District does not have a December quiz. For our small District, the St. Louis Top 10 quiz is our December quiz. But as God continues to bless our ministry, we continue to grow in numbers. So much so in fact that for the first time ever we will have more teens not quizzing at the St. Louis tournament than those who will be quizzing.

Challenges, rebuttals, and appeals. Sounds more like words you’d hear on a courtroom drama television show than in a friendly game of Teen Bible Quizzing. But in a way, you are on trial in front of a judge who is handing out a decision based on your testimony! While Quizmasters do their best to make a just ruling based on their interpretation of the Scripture and quizzing rules, they are human and therefore could make an error in judgment (though it is very, very rare, as I have been assured by some of them).

A check to their power exists in Teen Bible Quizzing in the form of challenges and rebuttals. The Captain of any team may challenge a Quizmaster’s decision on a Toss-Up question if there is reason to believe that the Quizmaster’s ruling is incorrect. Before the beginning of the next question, the Captain stands and gives a concise argument regarding why the ruling should be reversed. The opposing Captain is then allowed an opportunity to rebut the challenge, explaining why the Quizmaster’s original decision was indeed correct.

Keep in mind, however, that the team is penalized 10 points beginning with their 2nd overruled challenge in a game! So choose your battles wisely!

To better understand not only when but how to make an effective challenge, I consulted with several experienced Quizmasters to get their perspectives: JD Sailors (Quizmaster at District, Field and National competitions), Darrik Acre (Quizmaster and SNU Field Quiz Director), and Matt Thrasher (Quizmaster and Trevecca Field Quiz Director). 

Effective August 2017, the Nazarene Youth Quizzing Official Rules & Guidelines were revised per the direction of the Quizzing Advisory Council (QAC). And while most updates to this manual are typically minor or clarifying in nature, this time a few rules were changed that could have strategic implications on how you play and coach the game.

​When compared line-by-line against the August 2015 Rules, here are the 3 notable changes made to the 2017 edition of the Official Rules & Guidelines:

Having been involved with Teen Bible Quizzing for two decades now *shudder*, I thought I had a firm understanding of the fundamental structure and shifting trends within this wonderful ministry.

But what I have since discovered is that - for some things – I simply didn’t know that I didn’t know. 

Earlier this year, I invited subscribers to this blog to participate in a survey about their local Bible Quizzing ministry. As an amateur statistician, even I knew this would not be a scientific study and it would have a large margin of error. Of the estimated 3,000 Teen Bible Quizzers and Quiz Leaders in the U.S., my sampling method would only capture those Quizzers and Quiz Leaders who are subscribers of this blog.

“So, what is the margin of error?”, your inner geek asks. “16%”, my inner geek replies. But I wasn't necessarily looking for precision of values. Rather, I was looking for patterns of evidence.

​Here are the results to the survey questions and how they either fundamentally changed or affirmed my assumptions:

I love Amazon. One of the biggest perks of any online store is that you get to shop from the cozy comfort of your own home while wearing pajamas. And besides being able to compare prices without burning a tank of gas and wasting your day, have you ever noticed that Amazon uses “frustration-free” packaging? That means no impenetrable hard plastic clamshell cases or M.C. Escher-esque wire ties, and a lot less – if any – chances of being one of the nearly 6,000 people who go to the emergency room annually for an injury inflicted by the razor-sharp shards of packing material. Additionally, the majority of Amazon orders are shipped in corrugated containers that contain 43% recycled materials and are 100% recyclable. So, in effect, I am helping the environment by ordering from Amazon!
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But while Amazon takes this whole “shopping from home” thing to a whole new level by offering everything from toilet paper to video games, coffee, adult Madagascar hissing cockroaches and more, they fall short with resources for Teen Bible Quizzing.