Ages 15–18 · Grades 9–12 · Computer Science
ChallengeForge
An entry lands on your desk. Does it clear the bar?
A student app showcase hands a judge a tiny finished app and a rubric. To ship your own work you have to learn to read it the way a judge will. Here, an entry lands on your desk: read what it actually is, decide whether it clears the bar — and if not, which pillar it breaks — then reveal the verdict and the concrete fix.
The five pillars are generic judging criteria, not any one contest’s rules — student app contests change their rules every year, so always check the official current rules. Runs on your device — nothing leaves it.
Loading the judging lab…
How are you feeling?
A case · you decide
Dev's entry versus the rubric
Dev, 17 — submitting a small app to a student showcase that judges each entry in three minutes
Dev's app tracks the bus home and has a beautiful settings screen with seven themes. The showcase rubric has four lines: a clear problem, it works without explanation, it is accessible, and you can explain one design choice. Judges get three minutes.
Makers tend to show what they are proudest of. Judges score what is on the sheet in front of them.
Three minutes goes fast. Anything a judge has to be told before it makes sense costs time the rubric does not reward.
What should open Dev's three-minute demo?
Testing on his phone, Dev finds the bus times are tiny grey text on a pale map. What does he do?
Dev's demo was the shortest of his table and scored highest on three of the four lines. The seven themes are still in the app; they just were not the demo.
Who made this?
“In reality, every technology reflects decisions made by designers, companies, and communities, and carries the values and power of those choices.”
- Who benefits from this technology?
- Whose needs are ignored?
Brain break
What next? Pick a door
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