What did you think?

So now that Bible Bee 2012 is over, what did you think about the format this year? Did you appreciate the changes in the Bible Bee this year, or did you like a previous year better? What changes to the competition would you like Headquarters to make? Feel free to comment on any aspect of the Bible Bee - from contest format to Nationals location to whether they charge for viewing Finals! :D
Discuss!

My dad says they should just reduce the amount of prize money instead of charging to watch the webcast of Finals. For people that participate in Bible Bee, they will still compete and participate regardless of if the amount of prize money is reduced. However, to "outsiders" it is more likely that they will not watch the Finals if they have to pay $10 to see it. For example, a non-christian relative may want to watch you if you make it to Finals but they are not as likely to if they have to pay.

What did everyone think about the way they did Orals this year? I personally prefer the individual testing rooms. I was a little distracted by the noise in the room this year (especially those annoying little timers beeping!).

I think, as RedeemedbytheLamb said, that it would probably be a good idea to reduce the prize money total. Although it is a great incentive, I think that the amount is far too high. Most of the kids who compete do so to learn more about God and to draw closer to Him. I think that the Shelby Kennedy Foundation could reduce the awards and cause other fun things, such as live streaming and tickets, to be free.
With regards to other format questions, I would say that I think that locals shouldn't be as heavily weighted on the test. I am not quite sure how they would do so, but I think that they should reduce the extent to which only the written test determines national qualifiers. By looking at locals scores, it can be seen that those who did well on the test were those who made it to nationals. A huge proportion of contestants received oral scores in the 290s and above. This causes those who are good at the test, but perhaps not as good at orals, to qualify while those who are excellent at memorizing but not as good at the test to not qualify. What do you all think.
Like you, Matthew, I liked the individual testing rooms better, but my experience at Nationals orals was actually pretty good with regards to sound. Although I could hear mumblings when I paused, I thought that the noise level was quite low and I was able to concentrate. Talking with a few others, they thought the same thing. I liked the fact that the round went a lot faster, especially because I, as a W last name, didn't have to wait a hour and a half to do my orals. I helped to remove some of the pressure. :)
Overall, I think that they should, perhaps, keep the number of required verses for nationals the same, but raise the locals verses to around 60-70 cards. What do you all think?

I agree that locals shouldn't be as heavily weighted on the test as it is. I got 295 for my oral score at locals, but because of my score in the test I didn't qualify.

The noise did not really bother me either though, like Jimmy, I could hear mumbling when I paused. My judges were REALLY friendly which helped me calm down some :D

@jimmy: I felt that it took the same amount of time as before…though I probably felt that because I had a lot of nervous excitement :D The first group of juniors that went took about 25-30 minutes.

I liked the way that the Bible Bee tried to get more people involved. Really, the goal is to get more families to study and memorize God's word regardless of the amount. In a way, I would have liked there to be more verses for the Local Competition, but I also liked that there was less time needed to memorize. Like Jimmy, I think it would be nice if there would be a way that the memorization part could be given more priority, but with two-thirds of the points coming from the written test, it is almost certain to be the deciding factor.

Personally, I liked the atmosphere at Nationals this year. I had a wonderful time, and met many great people. The schedule did not feel terribly rushed or busy, and there was time to relax and do other things. The facilities had accomodations for larger families, which was probably appreciated by those contestants who came from large families.

Also, I think that the Bible Bee should increase the amount of verses required for Nationals, and I think that there should be a way that all of the contestants are eligible to win the Oratory Award, instead of only the Semi-Finalists. However, these are just preferences. I tremendously enjoyed this year of Bible Bee, and would encourage anyone to get involved ASAP!

So… what did everyone think this year?

I liked it!

I liked it!

Lol I LOVED it!!!

For one, I really liked the new final rounds. Having both oral recitation and written questions was a lot more fair.

I really liked the final rounds this year. You all know what I thought of the music.

For one, I really liked the new final rounds. Having both oral recitation and written questions was a lot more fair.

BEST BIBLE BEE YEAR YET!!! :D

^^ AGREED.

I incline towards the same opinion, though they did make us wave our hands in the air, not once, but twice!

What do you all think of it being in Florida next year?

I'd love to go to Florida…. but that's a long drive for a lot of people. And a lot of people don't appreciate Disney too much, so they might not have a clear conscience about paying to stay at the hotel…

I dunno…. I think it'd be fun to go to Disneyworld or Universal while we're there. But I can understand others' reservations.

is it going to be held at like disneys hotel or something??( they have one?/)

Yeah, Disney has a whole bunch of hotels that are in close proximity to the parks. They announced that the Bible Bee will be held in the Disney Hilton, I believe.

Yes, Disney-world does not attract me very much, and I live in Washington State (western Washington, right across the water from Seattle), so we are pretty far away. However, it will be my last year, and, unlike this year, I will be done with my Senior recital (thus gaining over ten hours a week), so I guess I'll work just as hard or harder anyway.

oh ok……yeah we're not huge disney fans…..but we'll still Lord willing be there
@margaret- TELL SARAH TO NOT RUN HER COAT THROUGH THE WASHER AND DRYER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She skyped you or something about what on earth we were supposed to do with your chap stick (or whatever it was).

You're far away? ;)

Disney??? Of all places… :P In my mind, it kind of defeats the point of Bible Bee. Not that I don't enjoy amusement parks while I'm there, but it's going to be a big distraction to a lot of people.

ill have to check my skype…..you can just throw it out…..
i bought a new one today……mint this time :)

I know that you are from Alaska! My Dad went to seminary with your Dad and they were talking to each other after the closing ceremony. My comment when he said that he lived in Alaska was: "Wow! You guys are even farther away from Florida than we are!"

Yeah, Dad keeps going on and on about meeting your dad! :D

After the closing ceremony? More like early the next morning!

(Which I guess still was after the closing ceremony)

My Dad is a pretty awesome person, and they haven't seen each other for about twenty years.
Hopefully this means that you guys can stop by our house some time (since Washington is a lot closer than Florida).

I think that while Disney is by no means a Christian organization in any way shape or form, how many of the other hotels the Bible Bee has been in have been?

It's not that it's the Disney hotel, but that it's next to the park…

What's wrong with that?

We don't have to go to the park, you know.

haha. too late…you should see the inside of our washer. JK! I did remember it.

We don't have to go to the park, you know.

Yeah, but a lot of people will, and personally, I don't think it will be (ahem) beneficial to have the park so close…

Besides the fact that Florida is just a long ways away for most people. They should do it in Denver!

Not any less beneficial than having the waterpark really close this year… >_>

Yeah… I didn't care for that, either. It's fun to go to those things, but really… At Bible Bee?

They should do it in Denver!

Or Texas, that would be pretty good.

We thought they'd do it at San Antonio this year. glances toward Courtney It'd definitely be great to go to TX!

I agree. Having these attractions nearby is fun, but not entirely related to Bible Bee, and also costs more for families to lodge there.

Yeah, they should do it in Texas! Or somewhere in the midwest :)

I'm torn between TX and Denver… I have good friends who live in both places!

I understand! I think one of those cities or somewhere in between would be ideal…more of a centralized location, you know. Think of all the West Coast folks who will make the long trip to FL next year.. >.<

I'm glad that they set the date back. They were pushing it way to close to Thanksgiving. But they'd definitely better reduce the amount of verses!

Well, since they set the date back, I wonder if they will move the Locals date as well- you know, to give contestants more time before Nationals. Yes, they should probably reduce the amount of verses for Nats and give more for Locals- we only had 61 for locals this year!

Amen to that!

I actually think it's very likely that that's what they're planning.

I hope so.

Yeah, the amount of verses at Locals was pretty wimpy this year…but I hope that if they increase the amount of verses, they don't do to much, because I don't know if I could make it to Nats and keep my job at the same time.

Any guesses for the study book next year?