The third John Hooper Medal for Statistics competition has been a great success this year. Thanks to all the schools, teachers and students who took part and made the competition such a success. It is heartening to see the depth of creativity, talent and knowledge displayed in the posters submitted and fascinating to see the many interpretations of the agriculture theme. Congratulations to all the students who took part in the competition and submitted a poster.
The third John Hooper Medal for Statistics competition was launched by the Minister for Research and Innovation, Seán Sherlock T.D., on 24th October 2012. Thousands of students registered for the competition from the whole island of Ireland. 253 posters, both Irish and English language entries, were received in the CSO.
The 253 posters were initially judged in two phases by teams from the CSO according to a detailed judging criteria and 16 posters were shortlisted for the final judging phase. The final judging panel chaired by Fiona O’Callaghan consisted of:
Barra Casey,
Structural Business Statistics RAP,
Statistician,
Short term statistics Data Collection Unit, Central Statistics Office Cork
Linda Daly FSA FIA
Lecturer/Actuary
Dept. of Statistics,
School of Mathematical Sciences,
University College Cork
Dr. Ailish Hannigan
Associate Professor of Biomedical Statistics
Graduate Entry Medical School
University of Limerick
Limerick
Dr. Kieran Murphy,
CALMAST,
Waterford Institute of Technology
Fiona O'Callaghan
Statistician
Statistical Methods & Development
Central Statistics Office, Cork
Dr. Julie O’Donovan
Mathematician at Cork Maths Centre
Lecturer at Cork Institute of Technology
The panel had the difficult task to assess the shortlisted posters and pick the winners. In the interest of fairness and impartiality any identification of the students/schools on the posters were covered throughout the judging process.
The results of the final judges’ deliberations are given below:
Students: Aoife Troxel, Sive Neary
Teacher: Dee King
Dominican College,
Taylor's Hill,
Galway
This poster represented Ireland in the International Statistical Literacy Program poster competition in the category - students born in 1994 and younger and was placed second in the world
Students: Andrew Cullen, Tim Sheedy
Teacher: Andrew McKimm
Blackrock College,
Rock Road,
Blackrock,
Co Dublin
Students: Sorcha Trainor, Jessica Donohue, Aislinn Mc Phillips
Teachers: Geraldine McCaffrey, Joanne Myres
St Louis Secondary School,
Monaghan Town,
Co Monaghan
The John Hooper Medal for Statistics 2013 prizes will be presented during Maths week in October 2013.
The following posters were given an order of merit by the judges:
Students: Maria Lambino, Sorcha O' Regan, Nina Shannon Roe
Teacher: Philomena McCumiskey
Dominican College,
Sion Hill,
Blackrock,
Co Dublin
Students: Oisin O Morlaí, Aisling Duffy
Teacher: Deborah Ní Cheallaigh
Gaelcholáiste Luimnigh,
Meal Sior Anraí,
Cathair Luimnigh
Students: Micheal Mahony, Shane Buckley
Teacher: Catherine Kiely
Scoil Phobail Sliabh Luachra,
Rathmore,
Co Kerry
Student: John Cotter, Keith Sexton
Teacher: Mrs Mary Lyons
CBS Secondary School,
Ennistymon,
Co Clare
Students: Emma McGorman, Aoife Treanor
Teachers: Geraldine McCaffrey, Joanne Myres
St Louis Secondary School,
Monaghan Town,
Co Monaghan
Students: Ellen Henkenborg, Aisling Sargent
Teacher: Deborah Ní Cheallaigh
Gaelcholáiste Luimnigh,
Meal Sior Anraí,
Cathair Luimnigh
Students: Princess Okonkwo, Lorna Burke
Teachers: Danielle Waterstone, Victoria Byrnes
Jesus & Mary Secondary School,
Salerno,
Threadneedle Road,
Salthill,
Galway
Students: Martha Kirwan, Lorna O' Regan, Aoife Phelan
Teacher: Eimear O' Friel
Ursuline Secondary School,
Thurles,
Co. Tipperary
Students: Mary Aherne, Zoe Barry,Lucy Ward
Teacher: Máire O' Brien
Coláiste Mhuire,
Askeaton,
Co Limerick
This poster represented Ireland in the International Statistical Literacy Program poster competition in the category - students born in 1997 and younger and was placed third in the world.
Students: Shannon Tracey, Diane Deery
Teachers: Geraldine McCaffrey, Joanne Myres
St Louis Secondary School,
Monaghan Town,
Co Monaghan
Students: Diarmuid Moriarty, Emma McCarthy, Brendan Crowley
Teacher: Shane Kissane
Mercy Mounthawk Secondary School,
Mounthawk,
Tralee,
Co Kerry
Students: Mary Anne Ní Riain, Muireann de Spáinn, Aoife Nic an Mhanaigh
Teacher: Orla de Bhailís
Coláiste Íosagáin,
Bóthar Stigh Lorgan,
Baile an Bhóthair,
An Charraig Dhubh,
Co Bhaile Átha Cliath
Students: Cecily Nic Cionnaith, Katie Ní Dheá
Teacher: Orla de Bhailís
Coláiste Íosagáin,
Bóthar Stigh Lorgan,
Baile an Bhóthair,
An Charraig Dhubh,
Co Bhaile Átha Cliath
Some feedback from the Chair of the final judging panel on the posters, itemised by the judging criteria, could help students improve future statistical work.
Make sure that the flow of the poster is easy to follow. If you are using a coloured/patterned background on the poster, check that the text is still legible over the background. It is also important to remember to proof-read your poster, as simple spelling mistakes can take from the overall quality of the poster.
Give clear information about the sources of the data, sample size etc.
All graphs should have a title and the axes should be clearly labelled.
Overall, the quality of the presentations has improved year on year.
The theme this year was Agriculture and the judges were very impressed with the range of topical subject matters within this theme that the students selected for their posters. The majority of posters submitted this year consisted of survey based projects – the judges would also like to encourage students to consider conducting experimental based projects.
Congratulations on your involvement in the Third John Hooper Medal for Statistics poster competition. Thank you to all the people who participated, assisted or were otherwise instrumental in making this competition such a great success.
Please send your feedback and comments on the John Hooper Medal for Statistics poster competition to johnhooper2013@cso.ie.
