Continued judging
Judging the creative writing skills of high school students has proven to be quite a subjective exercise because acquired biases over the years often blur my vision of what young writers are trying to express.
In spite of that, though, I keep being asked to judge the Scholastic Art and Writing Contest that solicits writing entries in various categories from middle and high school students from Washington, Greene and Fayette counties.
For the last several years, I have been given personal essay/memoirs to judge. A “partner judge” also receives the same entries, and we do not meet and compare scores until all judges gather at California University of Pennsylvania in early January, which we did this past Sunday.
We are emailed instructions and entries about a week before we meet, read them and then score them from 0 to 10. Votes are not finalized until the two of us compare scores and come to an agreement. Gold Key winners, those that receive a score of 9 or 10, automatically advance to the national level for judging.
In our group of 15 personal essays, we had one Gold Key and recommended it be considered for an American Voice award. Yet, I am reluctant to identify the entry because I don’t know if the author was notified yet.
Remarkably, the two of us judging the essays were almost spot on with our scores. I say remarkable because many of the essays were similar in theme – some tragic event such as death or abuse.
Where we initially differed was the Gold Key winner. It was quite a creative entry, and I was confounded as to how to judge it. I gave it a 4 and my partner judge gave it a 9 out of 10. I told him I was willing to hear his argument and after reading it again and applying criteria from a rubric, I was convinced it was a worthy winner.
Basically, we are to look at three elements: originality, in which our gold key selection mightily challenged conventions; personal vision, which, in this case, the author demonstrated a unique style; and finally, technical skill, demonstrated admirably by the author’s expression of an idea that was powerful and innovative.
Other writing genres judged included poetry, short stories, science fiction/fantasy and humor.
It was somewhat disheartening when a few other judges, some of whom were college professors, said this crop of entries was not up to par with those from years past.
One judge said it can be intimidating to write, while another said it also can be intimidating to teach writing.
As the only journalist in the group of judges, I felt somewhat intimidated discussing the elements of style, imagery and whether there was an emergence of a personal voice with Ph.D. professors.
But why should I be intimidated? I have been judging this contest for years, and if I hadn’t earned respect by now, I wouldn’t have been asked back.
Anyway, words is my life, so there!
Jon Stevens, Greene County bureau chief, can be reached at jstevens@observer-reporter.com.