The events of the 2023 STEM Olympiads include:
 
(a) Math Olympiads

• Barbados (In-person)
• Other Caribbean Countries other than Barbados (virtual)

(b) CSF Computer Coding Games (aimed at solving one of the challenges faced by Caribbean communities)

• Scratch-based games for Level I
• Preferably Python-based games for Level II, but other high-level languages (not Scratch) will be accepted
• Games based on Python or other high-level language (not Scratch) for Level III

(c) A Robotics Showcase
 
Based on input from the CSF Country Representatives, the decision has now been made to give equal admission preference to individual participants, teams from clubs and associations, and teams supported by their schools. Depending on the number of applications, it may be necessary to run preliminary competitive rounds during the fist two wees of January 2023 to reduce the pool to a manageable size. The CSF Hackathon will not be held in 2023.
 

CSO AGENDA

• Application Deadlines: 11:59 pm, 15 December 2022 for the Coding Games and the Robotics Showcase. The Math Olympiads application deadline is now 11:59 pm, 31 December 2022
• Elimination rounds: First and second weeks of January 2023, if necessary
• Barbados Math Olympiad Finals:Thursday 19 January 2023 during school hours (proposed)
• Math Olympiad Finals (other Caribbean countries): Friday 20 January 2023 during school hours
• Computer Coding Games Finals: Saturday morning 21 January 2023
• Robotics Showcase Finals: Saturday afternoon 21 January 2023
• Awards Ceremony: Sunday afternoon 22 January 2023

MEDALS AND PRIZES

Medals, prizes and cash will be awarded to the winning teams and individuals. The table below summarizes the contemplated distribution of awards and prizes for the winning teams and individuals by CSO event.

THE JUDGES

The CSF invites persons, known to be experts in their field, to be judges. There is no application form for judges. Potential judges for the competitions will be carefully screened so they have no conflict of interest. They will be selected from the private sector, universities and the government sector, and the audience in some special cases.

Persons interested in serving as judges should send an e-mail to warde.csf@gmail.com specifying the event on which they are offering to serve as judge, along with a recent copy of their CV as an attachment. If the CV does not have much detail, a separate paragraph explaining their experience or qualifications would be helpful.
 

1. Guidelines for the 2023 CSF Math Olympiads

The CSF Math Olympiad is an annual STEM event in the form of a competition where individuals or teams compete to solve math problems in a limited time frame in front of an engaging and enthusiastic audience.

The Caribbean Science Foundation is working cooperatively with the Barbados Ministry of Industry, Innovation, Science and Technology (MIST) and will execute a special in-person Math Olympiad for Barbados. A separate Math Olympiad for other Caribbean countries will be held in a virtual environment and and will take place at a different time than the Barbados event.

• Level I questions include: Consumer arithmetic, number concepts, fractions and decimals, statistics and probability, algebra, elementary geometry
• Level II questions include: Algebra, coordinate geometry, introductory trigonometry, vectors, logarithms, exponentials, calculus, series and series and sequences, and probability
• Level III questions include: Series and sequences, Euclidean geometry and trigonometry, calculus, probability, matrices, complex numbers, and differential equations

In both Math Olympiads, each school, club, association, community college or university will be allowed to enter one team per age range with a maximum of 3 students per team.

The 2023 Math Olympiads will be run as a “Jeopardy” style contest using a professional software platform. The game will be run in such a way that during the competition, teams will be allowed to chose the topics on which they wish to answer questions. This means that in the early rounds all teams should be able to score many points in areas in which they are strongest. This approach will add further excitement for student participants and the audience alike. A list of some of the subtopics that fall under the main topic areas is provided below.

A preliminary session during the first two weeks of January may be necessary for an elimination contest to narrow the field to 4 or 5 teams. The finalists (teams and individuals) will compete for trophies/medals and prizes (including cash) before a live audience (in-person and virtually) on 20 January 2023.

Subtopics for the Caribbean Math Olympiads
For general guidance, here is a table of the types of subtopics that may be included under each topic. As input and guidance come in from the different countries in the Region (to oliver.csf@gmail.com) updates may be made frequently so the subtopics (and the questions) are better and better matched on average to the age levels. However, after 10 December 2022, the list will be frozen and no further changes will be made.

Some Reference Materials
Here is a list of some free online resources that you may find helpful:

1. CTS Mathematics book and related videos at http://uwitube.com
2. Archive at https://archive.org
3. MIT Open Courseware at https://ocw.mit.edu
4. Libre Texts at https://libretexts.org
5. OpenStax at https://openstax.org
6. Euclid Examination past papers at https://www.cemc.uwaterloo.ca/contests/past_contests.html
7. Paul’s Online Notes at https://tutorial.math.lamar.edu
8. Khan Academy at https://www.khanacademy.org/
9. The Student Hub at https://www.youtube.com/c/KerwinSpringer

The judging criteria for the Math Olympiads include:
• Number of points scored in the Jeopardy math game
• Originality of solutions
• Teamwork (more than 1 member contributing if a team is the contestant)
 

2. Guidelines for the 2023 CSF Computer Coding Games

The CSF 2023 Computer Coding Games consists of a problem-solving journey where individuals or teams compete to create the best comprehensive coding solution to a specific problem. It culminates in an event in which competitors showcase the coding solution they designed, built, and tested as well as its value in response to one of the problems posed.

The 2023 Computer Coding Games are focused on the development of tools such as Apps, websites, games, or data analysis that facilitate the solving of any one of the six challenges below which affect Caribbean communities:

1. Food security and food safety
2. Non-communicable diseases
3. Energy production and consumption
4. Transportation (inter- and intra-country)
5. Money movement, fintech, financial education, investing, etc.
6. Geohazards and climate change (e.g., hurricanes, earthquakes, and sea-level rise, etc.)

Clearly, full solutions to these thorny challenges are not expected. However, your team must clearly explain how the problem you are solving fits into, or is relevant to, or facilitates a solution to one of the larger challenges listed above. The judges will be looking for innovation and thinking outside the box, and of course, working code.

The Level I competition is focused on Scratch Coding Games. For the Level II competition, Python is preferred, but other high-level languages will now be accepted (not Scratch). The Level III competition is open to any high-level software solution to the challenges posed.

Only one team per age level can enter from the same school, club, association, community college, or university, and no team will be allowed to have more than 5 participants.

The judges will be experts, selected from the private sector, universities, government sector and the virtual audience.

Coding Games teams will need to submit a project description and their proposed solution by the application deadline (15 December 2022). Upon approval by the CSF Coding Games Review Committee, the selected teams will be notified of acceptance around 20 December 2022. The selected teams may continue working on their software solution up the day of the competition.

The Coding Games Competition will be entirely a virtual event. At both the finals (21 January 2023) and the preliminary event (if necessary) the teams must present their work from the same room using two computers, or a computer and a document camera as described above. As specified on the application form, your team must first send us a description of your solution to your chosen challenge by the application date (15 December 2022) along with a link to any demos that you have at that time. For teams and individuals invited to the finals, an update of your code and a revised description must be submitted to the CSF by 15 January 2023 (5 days before the Coding Games). More details will be provided to the invited teams.

The judging criteria for the Coding Games include:

• Originality
• Technical merit of the solution or approach taken
• Effectiveness of your submission in enabling a solution to one of the 6 Challenges
• Potential marketability of solution (entrepreneurial strength)
• quality of the code

3. Guidelines for the 2023 CSF Robotics Showcase

At the 2023 Robotics Games, teams or individuals at the three age levels will showcase their custom robot builds via pre-recorded videos to a Caribbean-wide audience over the Zoom platform.

• Level I robots may be built entirely from kits and the total cost of the parts must be less than US$ 300 (based on vendor catalog price for new parts). Level I robot designs must be approved in advance by the CSF Robotics Review Committee.
• Level II robots will not be allowed to have more than 50% of the components built from snap-together kits, and the total cost of all purchased parts (from kits and otherwise) must be less than US$ 500 (based on vendor catalog price for new parts). Level II robot designs must be approved in advance by the CSF Robotics Review Committee.
• Level III robots are not allowed to be built from snap-together kits, and the total cost of all purchased parts must be less than US$ 700 (based on vendor catalog prices for new parts). Level III robot designs must be approved in advance by the CSF Robotics Review Committee.

Only one team per age level can enter from the same school, club, association, community college, or university, and no team will be allowed to have more than 5 participants.

Judging criteria for the Robotics Showcase include:

• Originality and inventiveness
• Engineering/design merit of the solution
• performance/cost ratio for your robot
• Potential marketability of solution (entrepreneurial strength)

2023 Robotics Showcase teams will need to: submit a project description, and upload media demonstrating their robot by the application deadline (15 December 2022). Upon approval by CSF Robotics Review Committee participants will be notified of acceptance around 20 December 2022. The selected teams will be invited to showcase their advanced robots to the public at the Olympiads. The selected teams may continue working on their robots up to the day of the competition.

In order to level the playing field for all participants, especially for persons living in remote locations or who have transportation and lodging challenges, the CSF has now made the decision that the final Showcase will be entirely a virtual event. Thus, in addition to sending us a video of your robot in action by the application date (15 December 2022), the final event will also be a totally virtual showcase, based in part on a second updated video of your robot recorded and submitted to the CSF by 15 January 2023. Your video will be played 6 days later on 21 January 2023 at the Showcase. In addition, on the day of the Games the selected teams will make a short PowerPoint presentation that describes their robot. More details will be provided to the invited teams.

Mentor Engagement

For all the above Olympiads, in addition to the assistance offered by your teacher or your peers, contestants may want to seek assistance from one or more mentors who are experts in the area of your project. Contestants should think of the mentors as your consultants on the project. It is the responsibility of the teams or individuals to leverage their mentoring resources. If you are having difficulties finding a mentor, you may ask the Caribbean Science Foundation to suggest some possible mentors. We will do our best to help!

Application Forms

INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILLING OUT THE APPLICATION FORMS

• • Before you begin to fill out the application form, please be sure to read the above Guidelines in their entirety so you know what you are signing up for. It is also very important that you read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) below, so you are fully informed of the rules governing the STEM Olympiads. The FAQs contain additional important information not covered in the general Guidelines above, and it is very likely that questions you have are already answered there.
  • The participant application period closes on 15 December 2022. To access the application form, you must first login at http://caribbeanscience.org/login/. If you have previously established an account with the CSF, then enter your password and proceed. If you have forgotten your password or your password no longer works, send us an e-mail requesting a new password and we will assist. Otherwise, please create a new account with a new e-mail address.
  • All participants must register with the CSF by filling out the personal BIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION FORM (CSO-Form-1)
  • While you are filling out the application form, please be advised that clicking on the SAVE button does not result in the submission of your form. You must keep going until you reach the SUBMIT button at the bottom of the page.
  • Note also, that if you are under 18 years of age, you must certify that you have your parent’s permission to enroll in a Workshop. We reserve the right to check with your parents
  • Please type your responses whenever possible (illegible handwritten documents may not be accepted). Type N/A for questions which are not applicable.
  • Please make sure the content in your attachments is upright and legible. Attachments with the content upside down on the page will annoy most reviewers.
  • Make sure your full name (i.e., first and last names) appears on all supplementary documents/attachments you submit to us. Also, please name your attachments to reflect their contents. We suggest you name your attachments using the following format “ CSO-2023-LastName, FirstName-DocumentName.pdf”. Attachments with file names such as “scan 001” could cause your attachment to be misfiled. If this happens, your application will be deemed incomplete. Further clarity in this regard can be found on the application form.
  • Teams can sign up for one or more events by filling out the EVENTS APPLICATION FORM (CSO-Form-2)
  • However, your Team captain is the only person who fills out the EVENTS APPLICATION FORM (CSO-Form-2) on behalf of all the registered team members. That is, only one EVENTS APPLICATION FORM (CSO-Form-2) per team is to be submitted
  • If your team encounters challenges filling out the online EVENTS APPLICATION FORM (CSO-Form-2), you can submit a Form 2 for each event in wish to compete as a separate document using the WORD files below:
    CSO Form 2 Math Olympiad
    CSO Form 2 Coding Games
    CSO Form 2 Robotics Showcase
  • Applications will be rejected if incomplete or submitted later than the application deadline.

  Please also note that at least three days before the competition (17 January 2023) Form 2 for each event in which you are competing must be updated using the forms above and resubmitted to the CSF. The videos and links you submit on 17 January 2023 are what will be used to present your project to the judges and the audience in case you lose internet connectivity on the day of the competition
   

  Frequently Asked Questions

  1. How do I enter the Olympiad competitions

  In order to enter the CSO competitions, you must first create an account. Once you log in to your account you will see application forms for all the CSF programs. Choose the CSO Form 1 to begin the process.
  Some useful links:
  Competition Guidelines: https://caribbeanscience.org/cso-guidelines/
  Link to create an account: https://caribbeanscience.org/signup/
  Link to log in your account: https://caribbeanscience.org/login/

  2. In order to participate in the Math Olympiads, do you have to have citizenship for the country you would like to compete for? Or can you have just lived there for a number of years?

  In the Caribbean STEM Olympiads, we do not think of your participation as competing for a country. However, to be eligible to compete you must either be a citizen of an English-speaking Caribbean country or have lived continuously in an English-speaking Caribbean country for the past 4 consecutive years. In either case you must send us proof.

  3. Will the CSF be providing robots or robotic kits to competitors

  No. The operating budget of the CSF is too small to provide such assistance

  4. Why should I participate in the Olympiads?

  It can be fun. It gives you regional recognition for your academic accomplishment. It looks good on your resume if you are a finalist – this could enhance your university applications, and may distinguish you from others in a job application.

  5. Can students compete in age Levels above the Level in which their age falls

  Yes. Students may compete in age Level categories above the one in which their age falls.

  6. When is Form 1 due?

  Form 1 is due no later than 15 December 2022 at 11:59 pm AST

  7. What is the deadline for submission of form Form 2?

  The Form 2 deadline is 15 December 2022 for the Coding Games and the Robotics Showcase. For the Math Olympiads, Form 2 can be submitted no later than 31 December 2022.

  8. Are high school students the only ones that will participate in the olympiads?

  No. Anyone or any team who meets the age and citizen requirements can enter.

  9. Is it possible to compete in multiple levels for the same event?

  Yes. For example, if you are 13 years old. You are eligible to compete at all three age levels. For the Math Olympiads it is straightforward. However, for the Coding Games and the robotics, your projects would have to be different for each of the age levels in which you chose to compete.

  10. Where will the Olympiads be held?

  All of the Games are held virtually (except for the Barbados Math Olympiads). Please see the description of the Olympiads for the specifics

  11. Is there a registration fee for the events, as I do not see any information on this at the website?

  No. There is no registration fee for the Caribbean STEM Olympiads

  12. I think we made an error in our form, can we go back and edit?

  Once you hit the submit button you cannot go back and do edits. If you make an error, or if the form had bugs or failed to communicate your wishes, send us an e-mail (to csfhdq@gmail.com) clearly stating the information you want to change. Be sure to include your name, your application ID number, the Form No. (1 or 2) and, if necessary, the name of your team members.

  13. Does the jeopardy format also apply to the Math Olympiad in Barbados which is to be held in person?

  Yes

  14. As it relates to Form 1, some persons are a bit uncomfortable about the fact that they must give a picture of themselves, identification card or birth certificate. Respectfully, why does the CSF need that information?

  Many of our sponsors want to know how we spend their funding. For example, some often want to know the age groups, the percentage of females, the countries of the participants, and many want photographs of the participants in action to put in their newsletters or in their annual reports to their stockholders. As you can imagine, the CSF is required to provide such information (in aggregate) in its final narrative and financial reports to some of the sponsors. Please be assured that the CSF is respectful of and safeguards the personal information of all individuals participating in its programs, as reflected in its Participant Privacy Pledge.

  15. Some secondary students are 11 years old. Will they be allowed to participate?

  To be eligible for participation in the 2023 Caribbean STEM Olympiads, all persons must be older than 12 years on 15 December 2022.

  16. What if the majority of my teammates are older than 16 but there is one member younger than 16. Would that younger member still be able to compete in the same level as us?

  YES. Students are allowed to compete in age levels above the level in they fall based on their age.

  17. Can there be more than one team from a school? What if the school as a team and the math club has a separate team?

  Let us assume the Math Club is a school initiative. Then the CSF will not treat the Math Club as an entity that is separate and distinct from the school. For the Math Olympiads, the school is allowed to choose three students in each of the 3 age levels who will represent the school. Some of these students can be from the Math Club.

  18. Can a private academy, club or association enter the competition, and if so, how many students can enter?

  Yes, we would treat the academy, club or association in the same we treat a school. Schools may “send” or assist teams to enter the CSO. If a school was able to “send” students to all possible events, the maximum number of students from that school who could apply would be 39. Because of the elimination rounds, the number would likely be smaller by the time they reach the finals. Also, the medals and prizes are intended to be personal property of the students (not the school).

  19. Are there 3 persons per team or 5 persons per team?

  Math Olympiad teams can have up to 3 persons per team, and the Coding Games and the Robotics Showcase can have up to 5 persons per team.

  20. What is the maximum number of students who can enter from a school?

  A school is not allowed to enter more than 1 team per event per age range. With this restriction, a school can enter only up to a maximum of 39 different students as follows into the 2023 CSO: For the Math Olympiads, up to 3 different students in each of the three different age levels; for the Coding Games, up to 5 different students in each of the three different age levels; and for the Robotics Showcase, up to 5 different students in each of the three different age levels.

  21. Is it possible for an individual or a team to participate in more than one event?

  Yes. An individual or team can participate in all 3 events within their age range (or higher) since the events are non-overlapping. An individual can also be on up to 3 different teams.

  22. If I am on a team, and find that I am unable to attend the competition on the day of the finals, can someone substitute for me?

  If you know early enough that you will be unavailable on the day of the finals you should leave the team as early as possible and allow another student to that the slot if there is waiting list for the team. The person replacing you would need to have filled out Form 1 before the finals, and the CSF would also have to be notified of the switch before the finals.

  23. How are the judges selected?

  The judges for the competitions will be experts in their fields who have been carefully screened so they have no conflict of interest. They will be selected from the private sector, universities and the government sector, and the audience in some special cases. Persons interested in serving as judges should send an e-mail to warde.csf@gmail.com specifying the event on which they are offering to serve as judge, along with a recent copy of their CV as an attachment. If the CV does not have much detail, a separate paragraph explaining their experience or qualifications would be helpful.

  24. Will the finals of the various events be televised/streamed?

  YES

  25. On the CSF website, it says that “An individual entrant will be treated as a team with one participant.” I have 2 questions: (a) Does this mean that a student participating without a team will have to fill out both CSO Forms 1 and 2 to apply to the competition? (b) For the box asking for team name, would that individual do? Do they simply have to put their own name?

  (a) YES
  (b) For the team name you can use your own name or make up a name that you like.

  26. I know that the website mentions we need good connectivity for competitions but in the case of an unforeseen outage, would there be provision for a team to have a make up session afterwards?

  No make up sessions are possible. To solve this challenge, all teams in the Coding Games and Robotics Showcase MUST submit updated copies of their robotics video or game, App, or Website, (along with the other required documents) as appropriate, to the CSF 3 days before the finals. This way if a team loses power or Internet connectivity, we can run their video and show their descriptions so they will not be at a disadvantage.

  27. Will there be any sample questions released to give the students an idea of the type of questions they will be asked in their level?

  No. The CSF does not have the resources to provide sample questions this year. Please be guided by the CSEC and CAPE syllabi as they apply to the three different age levels. Also, you may want to use the list of free on-line resources (books and websites) above if you think you need to brush up for the Olympiads.

  28. Will there be a meeting/opportunity where we can see some of the robots from past competitions?

  2023 is the inaugural year for the Caribbean STEM Olympiads, so there are previous robot sessions that can make available to you

  29. On Form 2, since everyone on the team does not have to fill out Form 2, who is the Team Captain that fills out Form 2 for the entire group?

  The Team Captain is simply one of the team members who the team has chosen to carry out this role. Therefore, the team should designate one person as their Team Captain. The Team Captain is the person to whom the CSF will send all correspondence. So please choose a person who reads their e-mail frequently, and is reliable and has good leadership skills. There is no special form that Team Captain must fill out other than Form 2 on behalf of all of his/her team members (and Form 1, of course). The Team Captain is not your teacher or your coach!

  30. Where can I find the link for my teacher or coach to fill out?

  Even though the name and e-mail address of your teacher or coach may appear on the FORM 2 application, your teacher or coach does NOT fill out any forms in the Caribbean STEM Olympiads application process.

  31. On CSO Form 2 for the Math Olympiad, there is box for Project Title. What do I put there, since there is no project for the Math Olympiad?

  If the box is mandatory, simply put “Math Olympiad” for the Project Title. If it is not mandatory, you have the option to ignore the box.

  32. For the Math Olympiad, would there be a certain amount of questions a team can answer or will it finish when the board is cleared?

  Different questions will be allotted different amounts of time, depending on the complexity of the question.

  33. How is the scoring done in the Math Olympiad when there are 3 people on a team

  During the Math Olympiad, anyone on the team can answer the question posed. The credit always goes to the team and is not assigned to any particular individual.

  34. Will I need to bring my calculator to the Math Olympiad

  The CSO questions are designed such that calculators will not be needed. Numerical answers do not have to be reduced to their simplest form. The questions are designed to test your critical and analytical skills, and the judges can give substantial partial credit for incorrect final answers that have the correct logical and analytical approach. Individuals or teams caught using calculators or the calculator software on their computers will be disqualified from the competition.

  35. How is the teamwork score determined if an individual is working alone?

  Except for the Math olympiads, now that the other events are virtual, we have removed teamwork from the judging criteria.

  36. Can you kindly tell us the difference between scratch coding vs no scratch?

  Scratch is a user-friendly software that is easy to learn and that the Level I computer coding students will be using. “No Scratch” in this context means that scratch is not allowed for use by Levels 2 and 3 students.

  37. I know that we need to submit write ups for our Coding Games by the 15 December deadline, but do we need to also make a demo game by then as well?

  To be invited to participate in the Coding finals of the Olympiads, you should submit as much material as possible on 15 December 2022 to convince us that you have started and have a good probability of success by the time the Olympiads start on 20 January 2023. If you have a preliminary demo by 15 December 2022 that would be fantastic.

  38. For the Coding Games and the Robotics Showcase, when I’m submitting my applications, where should I send my code and my videos?

  You should store your code or video in a repository such as Google Drive or Dropbox, and then send us the link to the code or video. Be sure to share the link with csfhdq@gmail.com and with warde.csf@gmail.com so we have no difficulty accessing it.

  39. Can the Coding Games emphasize solutions that already exist?

  Keep in mind that the judges are looking for innovative and novel solutions to any one of the challenges posed. This means that if your solution is incremental over what has already been done, it may not be very persuasive or competitive.

  40. Is a game spreading awareness about a certain topic considered an enabling component to a solution of one of the 6 challenges?

  Yes.

  41. For Level III Computer Coding Games, are the software solutions required to be in Python or can any programming language be used?

  Level III Computer Programming Games can use any high-level programming language. Scratch, for example, is not allowed in Level III (or Level II).

  42. Can students submit any kind of python application (e.g., a game with pyGame, Web application with a Python web framework, or a data science notebook with an analysis)?

  Yes, but also keep in mind that a large component of your score is based on the effectiveness of your proposed project in enabling a solution one of the 6 challenges.

  43. Are there any restrictions to the Coding Games (e.g., regarding graphics, complexity/simplicity, and are abstract concepts allowed, etc..?

  The only restrictions are that scratch is not as the software of choice for Levels 2 and 3. However, keep in mind that a large component of your score is based on the effectiveness of your proposed project in enabling a solution one of the 6 challenges. So the practicality of your solution will weigh heavily in how the judges see the merits of your solution.

  44. If I create something that is innovative, must I share the rights to own, use and commercialise with the competition organisers?

  For your entries to the Computer Coding Games, the CSF will not take any rights in your invention. If you feel strongly that you have a proprietary and/or confidential solution, you must choose whether or not you want enter your solution into the competition as you will end up disclosing your solution. The CSF has no means of protecting your info once you share it in the competition. The downside of not presenting is that you may miss an opportunity for funding your project if an interested prospective investor is in the audience.

  45. Do you want to see our robot fully finished when submitting on the 15th or just a startup of our robot building?

  Your robot does not have to be finished at the time of the application deadline. We just want to see far along you are. If you are not very far along, you may not be admitted to the competition. So show us as much as you can so there is no misunderstanding.

  46. Does the CSF want to see the type of coding the robot will be using in the project description by 15 December 2022?

  For the robotics showcase, the CSF is less interested in the code the robot employs and more interested in the performance of the robot. So, by the 15 December 2022 deadline, what the CSF is really looking for is a video of your robot doing something, even something preliminary. Your submission on 15 December 2022 should be aimed at convincing the CSF that you have started and could have a reasonably good performing robot by the time the Olympiads start on 20 January 2023.

  47. For the level III robotics showcase, would it be possible to build the robot from parts taken from a starter kit of parts such as the REV Robotics starter kits?

  Kits that consist of a bunch of parts that are not of the snap-to-build type are allowed in Level III. As an example, the REV-45-1883 is not a snap together kit, falls under the US$ 700 cost limit, and thus is allowed for use in LEVEL III. It is best to check with the CSF in advance to make sure that parts you purchase for your robot are allowed. The judges will be looking for innovation, so if a team simply builds something that is a standard recommendation with such a kit, it may not be competitive enough.

  48. Do the 6 challenge problems for the Coding Games also apply to robotics?

  No. The robotics event is a showcase. Simply show the judges and the audience what you have for a robot and what it does. In doing so you will have to follow the Showcase rules.

  49. What day would the elimination rounds of the Computer Coding games be? Because there may be issues with having all team members in the same room very early in January.

  Preliminary rounds to narrow the field to about 5 or 6 teams in each age level for both the Math Olympiads and the Coding Games may have to be carried out in early January. We will not have enough information to how many preliminary rounds, when they will be, and which teams qualify for the preliminary rounds until after the application deadlines. So please remain as flexible as you can. A schedule for the preliminary rounds will be sent to all qualifying teams to establish team availability. We understand that some juggling of that schedule may be necessary.

  50. What arrangements are being made to accommodate persons with disabilities?

  Persons with speaking and hearing disabilities who may need the help of interpreters/assistants will require permission in advance to use such assistants. The request should be submitted in writing to the CSF (e-mail to csfhd@gmail.com) along with the CV or biography of the interpreter/assistant. Interpreters/assistants with backgrounds in disciplines closely related to the competition event will not be approved.

   

  Contact Us About the Olympiads

  For more information on the Caribbean Science Foundation (CSF) and questions about the Caribbean STEM Olympiads (CSO), you can reach us at:
  ● Telephone: 1(246) 417-7493
  ● Email: csfhdq@gmail.com
  ● Website: http://caribbeanscience.org/

  You can also find us on social media at:
  ■ Instagram: @caribbeanscience
  ■ Facebook: @CaribbeanScienceFoundation