Subject: Important Update From MATHCOUNTS - Chapter .

Subject: Important Update from MATHCOUNTS - Chapter Invitational Competition DetailsPreview Text: Ensure your students are prepared to participate in the Chapter Invitational Competition onFebruary 25!Hi First Name ,The Chapter Invitational Competition is quickly approaching! Below are important details for you and yourqualifying students. As you review this information, please note that as a student progresses through theCompetition Series, it is both the parent’s and student’s responsibility to act with integrity. Students must haveboth a proctor and testing environment that do not tempt or encourage dishonest behavior. There is no honor intaking an opportunity away from another more-deserving student; there can be no sense of accomplishment insecuring an accolade one did not earn.When is the Chapter Invitational Competition?The Chapter Invitational Competition is February 25, 7:00pm ET/4:00pm PT. Competitors must login to theirStudent Portal at s/portal to take the competition at thistime. The Chapter Invitational Competition will not be accessible to qualifying students after 7:00pm ET/4:00pmPT on February 25. Students should allow approximately 90 minutes to complete the competition once theybegin. Students will take the Sprint and Target Rounds only; there are no Team or Countdown Rounds for theChapter Invitational Competition.Who is eligible to participate in the Chapter Invitational Competition?Only competitors who participated in and qualified to advance from the Chapter Competition level are eligible toparticipate in the Chapter Invitational Competition. Coaches should confirm that their qualifying competitors aremarked as “Qualified” in the Invitational column on their Coach Portal nts/portal. Only students designated as “Qualified” in theInvitational column on the Coach Portal are eligible to participate in the Chapter Invitational Competition.How will my students access the Chapter Invitational Competition on February 25?On February 25 at 7:00pm ET/4:00pm PT, students must sign into their AoPS account nts/portal. In their Student Portal, they will begin thecompetition by clicking on the “Start Contest” button at the top of the page. Note, once students login to theirStudent Portal, they will see a timer counting down to when they can click the “Start Contest” button and enterthe Contest Platform. Students should remain on their Student Portal while the timer counts down. Once thecountdown time elapses, the “Start Contest” button will unlock, and students can click on it to access thecompetition. There will be no need for them to refresh the page. Students should be prepared to wait up to 10minutes before the “Start Contest” button unlocks and they can access the competition because students arebeing granted permission into the contest in pre-assigned waves. A new wave starts every 2 minutes so as notto overload the system.

If a qualifying student from my school cannot take the Chapter Invitational Competition on February 25, cananother student from my school take the competition in their place?Unfortunately, substitutes for students at the Chapter Invitational Competition level are not allowed.What is my role as a MATHCOUNTS coach during official competitions?Coaches are asked to do the following things for the Chapter Invitational Competition to help ensure a successfulMATHCOUNTS competition season:1) Ensure all your students login to their Student Portals at 7:00pm ET/4:00pm PT to take the ChapterInvitational Competition.2) Talk with students about competition integrity ahead of time. Reinforce the idea that any cheatingstudent who progresses to the next level is taking the spot from a deserving student. Discuss whatcompetition integrity includes, such as Taking the competition in a completely honest way and following all rules; Not using a calculator during the Sprint Round; Not seeking out, accepting or giving assistance in any way; and Not discussing the content of the competition with other students until 24 hours after thecompetition has ended.3) Identify a way to have students proctored, perhaps using one of the following ways: If school instruction is in-person, identify a way for students to take the competition at school underthe coach’s supervision. Students will need computers to take the competition and should take theChapter Invitational Competition in the same environment to test Internet connectivity. If school instruction is online, coaches can utilize the interactive technology they typically use in theironline classroom environment so they can watch students during testing. Set the expectation that parents are to proctor students during testing and have them confirm withthe coach afterwards that they did so.Proctoring is REQUIRED for the Chapter Invitational Competition. Proctoring can be done virtually orin-person by any adult, including parents, coaches, school administrators and others.4) Monitor your students’ activity during the Chapter Invitational Competition to ensure they complete allcompetition steps. You can monitor your students’ activity on the Chapter Invitational Competition fromyour Coach Portal at s/portal. Once thecompetition begins at 7:00pm ET/4:00pm PT on Feb. 25, you will be able to track if your student(s): Has not logged in and clicked the “Start Contest” button on their Student Portal yet; Has clicked the “Start Contest” button on their Student Portal and reached the pre-competition steps(honor code, proctoring responsibilities, instructions); Has started the Sprint Round; Has completed the Target Round and reached the required post-competition steps (honor code andproctor certifications); Has completed all necessary steps and finished the Chapter Invitational Competition.

What guidelines must proctors follow for the Chapter Invitational Competition?Proctors are responsible for ensuring that competitors: Have a testing space clear of any aids other than those allowed under the competition rules (pencils,pens, erasers, and blank scratch paper).Are continuously monitored during the entirety of the competition.Use a calculator only during the Target Round and that the calculator conforms to the followingrestrictions:- Students may use any calculator (including programmable and graphing calculators) that does notcontain a QWERTY (typewriter-like) keypad.- Smart phones, laptops, tablets, iPods and other digital music players, personal digital assistants(PDAs) and any other “smart” devices are not considered to be calculators and may not be usedas calculators during competitions.- Students may not use calculators to exchange information with another person or device duringthe competition.Do not make use of the Internet, any personal (digital or other) communication devices, notes or otherreference materials including dictionaries and translation dictionaries.Do not (1) receive ANY help from the proctor or anyone else (including, but not limited to, hints orsuggestions like, “Did you reduce all of your fractions?” or “Do you want to work through this problemagain?” or “Do you want to check your work before submitting your answers?”, (2) give ANY help toanyone else or (3) copy (in written or digital form) any questions or answers from the competition.Follow all rules of the competition.What should my students expect once they start the competition?Once competitors click the “Start Contest” button, they must read and agree to the MATHCOUNTS Honor Code byentering their name in the field provided. Competitors will then be presented with a short explanation of theSprint and Target Rounds, rules regarding calculators and allowable aids and guidelines on entering answers. Afterreviewing this information, competitors will click “Start Contest” to begin the Sprint Round.Upon completing the Target Round, competitors will be asked to certify that they followed the Honor Code.Certification is required for the Chapter Invitational Competition.The Student Honor Code will read as follows:I pledge to uphold the highest principles of honesty and integrity as a Mathlete and to follow all rules of thecompetition. I will neither give nor accept unauthorized assistance of any kind. I further certify that prior to takingthe MATHCOUNTS Chapter Invitational Competition, I do not believe I have seen any of this year’s MATHCOUNTSChapter Invitational Competition problems and will not discuss problems for the next 24 hours. I understand thatany competitor found to be in violation of this honor pledge is subject to disqualification.For both the Sprint and Target Rounds, students should not click “Submit” unless they are completely donewith the round. Once a student clicks “Submit,” they are locked out of the round and may not return.

What should proctors expect once the competitor starts the competition?After competitors have read the Honor Code and entered their name, the proctor should read the ProctorResponsibilities, enter their name and contact information in the fields provided, and ensure the competitorreviews the competition instructions. If proctoring is being conducted virtually, the student should either allowthe proctor to view their screen to read the competition instructions or read the instructions aloud for theproctor. If being proctored virtually, the proctor must give the student permission to enter the proctor’s nameand contact information where required.The Proctor Responsibilities will read as follows:Competitors should be continuously monitored by their proctor to ensure all rules are followed. If it is clear to theproctor from personal observation that a participant has cheated, then the proctor must disqualify that participantand notify MATHCOUNTS. If the proctor receives an accusation or obtains indirect evidence of cheating, theproctor must immediately report all evidence of the situation to MATHCOUNTS at info@mathcounts.org.Upon completion of the competition, proctors must read the Proctor Certification, choose the appropriatecertification option, and enter their name in the field provided. If proctoring is conducted virtually, the studentshould either allow the proctor to view the screen to read the Proctor Certification section or read thecertification statement aloud for the proctor. If being proctored virtually, the student must receive permissionfrom the proctor to select the appropriate certification option and enter the proctor’s name where required.Where can I find competitors’ results?Results for the Chapter Invitational Competition will be available on Student and Coach Portals beginning March4, 7:00pm ET/4:00pm PT. On or after March 4, students can click on “View Results” on their Student Portal to viewtheir overall score and which problems were marked correct and incorrect. MATHCOUNTS will notify coaches andparents of students advancing to the State Competition by March 4, 7:00pm ET/4:00pm PT.How do students advance to the State Competition?The top five highest scoring students from each chapter and the ten highest scoring students statewide (based ontheir scores on the Sprint and Target Rounds) advance to the State Competition.What should I do if my students experience the following issues on competition day? Forget their password or username to login to their AoPS account: Coaches can find their students’usernames on their Coach Portal and can update passwords for students with “limited accounts”. If thecoach does not see an “Update Password” button for a student on their Coach Portal, that student canreset their own password by clicking “Forgot username/password” and following the instructionsprovided when signing into their account.Coaches who change their students’ passwords should copy and paste the new password when sending totheir students.