Constitution and Bindings
Bangladesh Geography Olympiad (BGO) has been formed by Professor Dr. M. Manzurul Hassan as an Association. BGO will follow general rules of association as per Laws of the Land. However, considering the nature of the association, this BGO will follow the following Rules and Regulations.
Bangladesh Geography Olympiad:
1. The Rules and Regulations of BGO were developed and amended by a vote of the BGO Committee (BGOC) through an online meeting on 20 May 2023.
Scope of Bangladesh Geography Olympiad:
2.BGO is held under the auspices of the International Geographical Union (IGU) through International Geography Olympiad (iGeo).
3.The aims of the BGO are to:
(a)stimulate active interest in geographical and environmental studies among young students.
(b)contribute to geography by drawing attention to geographical knowledge and skills among young students.
(c)facilitate social contacts between young students from different areas of the country.
4.BGO is a geography competition for Bangladeshi students for Junior Level (classes/grades 6-8), Secondary Level (classes/grades 9-10, SSC, and O-Level students), and Higher Secondary Level (classes/grades 11-12 and A-Level students) who have not yet started their tertiary studies at the university. The competition is open to all the registered schools and colleges in Bangladesh.
Eligibility:
5. Compliance with Rules. All schools and College participants in the BGO Competition must adhere to these official rules (“Rules”). BGO reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any school or participant that does not comply with the Rules or with any subsequent instructions provided as part of the BGO.
6. The competition has three levels, i.e., Junior Level, Secondary Level, and the Higher Secondary Level.
(a) Junior Level is open to students in classes/grades 6 to 8 (age limit between 11 and 14 years, on 30 June of the year that the Olympiad competition takes place);
(b) Secondary Level to students in classes/grades 9-10, SSC, and O-Level students (age limit between 14 and 16 years, on 30 June of the year that the Olympiad competition takes place);
(c) Higher Secondary Level to students in classes/grades 11-12, HSC, and A-Level students who have not yet started their tertiary studies at the university). The Higher Secondary Level competition is open to all students in Bangladesh who meet the age requirements by June 30 of the Olympiad year and reside within Bangladesh.
7. All registered Bangladeshi schools and colleges are eligible to participate in the BGO Competition. The maximum of 10 students from each category can be selected by each registered school or college for the competition.
8. The interested schools or colleges can apply from their respective administrative divisional unit for the division-level competition.
(a) The interested school or college must provide one teacher as their Team Leader during the registration process.
(b) Teachers with students who have applied for any level of competition will be notified through email or web notification from www.geoolympiadbd.com.
(c) If a student is unable to attend the National Final or they are unable to confirm their participation by 7 days earlier of the competition, their spot will be offered to the next eligible participant.
(d) If confirmation of participation is not received by deadlines specified in email communication, participants forfeit their spot. This is a non-negotiable decision.
(e) The student participants in Higher Secondary Level must acknowledge that the medium of all the tests (e.g., the Written Test, the Fieldwork Test, the interview, etc) will be in English only. Therefore, the top four students that form Team Bangladesh are required to be proficient in completing geography skill-testing questions in English.
9. Failure to adhere to any of the Rules by a participant or school or college, as determined by BGO in its sole discretion, will also render the school or participant ineligible to participate in any future BGO Competition.
BGO Competition:
10. The National Geography Olympiad competition consists of mainly three parts: a written test (40% of total marks), a multimedia test (20% of total marks), and a substantial fieldwork exercise (40% of total marks). Past examples of questions are included on the Olympiad website.
11. The competition is open to all registered schools and colleges in Bangladesh.
12. A student can apply one time in each Olympiad year. However, no students can apply more than twice for the iGeo from Higher Secondary Level.
13. The National Competition will be arranged with the selected candidates from regional centres (e.g., one administrative division covers one regional centre).
14. The School Champions and College Champions for each administrative divisions in each category will be declared after the National Competition that will be held in Dhaka.
15. Students selected through this national competition must be enrolled in the school system of the country they represent. Students who participate more than once gain selection each time through their national competition.
16. The official language of the Olympiad is English. However, if needed, Bangla can be used.
Winners and Prizes:
17. Three winners will finally be selected from each level from each division for the National Geography Olympiad Champions with an event. The top three finishers in the division level will be named: Divisional Champion, First Runner-up, and Second Runner-up. They will receive prizes from the BGO.
18.The top three finishers from each level in the National Final will be named: National Champion, First runner-up, and Second runner-up. They will receive prizes from the BGO.
19. Higher Secondary Level competition will be completed with written test, followed by an interview, and ends with the naming of the top four students as “Team Bangladesh”, who will go to ompete in the International Geography Olympiad.
Registration Process:
20. For the Junior and Secondary Levels, one in-school coordinator must register a school online on the Bangladesh Geography Olympiad website (http://geoolympiadbd.com). In-school coordinators who have previously participated in the BGO Competition can use their previous account information and update their account. In-school coordinators can sign into their account to access the questions.
21. For the Higher Secondary Level, one relevant person from each college must register the participating students on the Bangladesh Geography Olympiad website (http://geoolympiadbd.com).
The Financial Principles:
22. The student participants for the BGO Competition pays:
(a) For the National and Regional Competitions, a candidate pays all the costs. The registration fees cover the examination/test processing fee.
(b) For international competition (iGeo), each participant pays the return travel, insurance and, if applicable, visa costs of the students and of all accompanying persons to the place at which the Olympiad is held.
23. The BGO covers all other expenses incurred through sponsorship in holding the Geography Olympiad.
Amendment of the Rules and Regulations:
24. Changes to these Rules and Regulations can only be made by the BGOC members and require a qualified majority (2/3 of the votes).
© BGO Committee
