The Hindu: Kerala: Ajit Kumar: Friday, April 3, 2015.
The score sheets obtained – using the Right to Information Act – by a parent of a contestant at the recent State School Arts Festival raise questions about the integrity and efficiency of some judges.
Doubts have often been expressed about the fairness of judgement, especially in classical dance competitions. But it is perhaps for the first time that possible proof for seemingly unfair judgement at the festival is coming out.
One of the judges at the Bharatanatyam competition (High School Girls) gave one contestant more marks than the maximum limit, besides giving her even more when the scores were added. She went on to win the first prize.
Marks in Bharatanatyam are awarded by a judge for six different aspects of dance, such as stage presence, costume, technique and footwork. For footwork, the maximum a contestant eligible is 15 marks, but the girl who went on to finish first was given 19. She was also awarded an additional five while the marks were added for tabulation. She was given marks of 15, 15, 15, 15, 15 and 19, in the six aspects of the performance. When you add those numbers, the total would be 94 (including the four marks she was unduly given). But, the judge gave her a grand total of 99, out of 100. The other two judges were not as magnanimous, but she could still score 260 marks, while it should have been only 251.
When the results were published, she thus came ahead of her rivals, who had scores like 256, 254 and 252. A few of the contestants, though, appealed against the results. Two of those appeals proved successful, and the girl who came second could share the first prize.
Still, some contestants lost out on higher places because of errors, unintentional or otherwise, of the judges.
The judges are required to write the total marks of each contestant in words, but only one of the three judges did it.
Another judge did not give marks separately for the six aspects of dance, but only a grand total. All she did was to write a comment, that too in Tamil, about one performance.
Those results may not change now, but these score sheets should urge the authorities to take more care while choosing judges for events like classical dances, the showpiece of the State School Arts Festival.
The score sheets obtained – using the Right to Information Act – by a parent of a contestant at the recent State School Arts Festival raise questions about the integrity and efficiency of some judges.
Doubts have often been expressed about the fairness of judgement, especially in classical dance competitions. But it is perhaps for the first time that possible proof for seemingly unfair judgement at the festival is coming out.
One of the judges at the Bharatanatyam competition (High School Girls) gave one contestant more marks than the maximum limit, besides giving her even more when the scores were added. She went on to win the first prize.
Marks in Bharatanatyam are awarded by a judge for six different aspects of dance, such as stage presence, costume, technique and footwork. For footwork, the maximum a contestant eligible is 15 marks, but the girl who went on to finish first was given 19. She was also awarded an additional five while the marks were added for tabulation. She was given marks of 15, 15, 15, 15, 15 and 19, in the six aspects of the performance. When you add those numbers, the total would be 94 (including the four marks she was unduly given). But, the judge gave her a grand total of 99, out of 100. The other two judges were not as magnanimous, but she could still score 260 marks, while it should have been only 251.
When the results were published, she thus came ahead of her rivals, who had scores like 256, 254 and 252. A few of the contestants, though, appealed against the results. Two of those appeals proved successful, and the girl who came second could share the first prize.
Still, some contestants lost out on higher places because of errors, unintentional or otherwise, of the judges.
The judges are required to write the total marks of each contestant in words, but only one of the three judges did it.
Another judge did not give marks separately for the six aspects of dance, but only a grand total. All she did was to write a comment, that too in Tamil, about one performance.
Those results may not change now, but these score sheets should urge the authorities to take more care while choosing judges for events like classical dances, the showpiece of the State School Arts Festival.
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