IOI'95 - Regulations - Explications

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E1 Preamble
E2 Definitions
E3 Objectives and Means
E4 Office Bearers and Tasks
E5 Host Nomination and Selection
E6 Responsibilities of Present Host
E7 Competition, Judging and Awarding
E8 Revisions of the Regulations


E1 Preamble


E1.1

The IOI Regulations have two purposes: a formal description of the IOI (1) and information about the IOI (2).

  1. All statements which are placed in the Statutes, the Explications and the Appendices, as well as the statements in the Organizing Rules which are drawn up by the Host of IOI'n, are meant to regulate the formal communication between the participants. When the Regulations do not provide the participants are asked to act in the general spirit of the Regulations.

  2. But the Regulations are also meant to be more than just procedures. The other purpose is that the IOI Regulations provide information about:
    • a quick overall idea of what the IOI is and how it works to new and observing Countries;
    • what steps should be made to become a Host and to organize an issue of the IOI in a certain year.

E1.4

This statement does justice to countries with a different name for the same domain. This statement also sets some boundary conditions to domains which are not appropriate for the IOI.

E1.5

The term General Assembly replaces the term International Jury that has been used at past IOIs. This was done to avoid confusion between judges (members of the Evaluating Committee, better called evaluators) and team leaders (gathered in the GA).

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E2 Definitions


E2.1

The original idea of initiating the IOI was proposed to the 24th general conference of UNESCO by the Bulgarian delegate Professor Sendov in October 1987. This plan was included into the fifth main program of UNESCO for the biennium 1988 - 1989. In May 1989, UNESCO initiated and sponsored the first IOI, which was held in Pravetz, Bulgaria.

E2.4

The Observer-status is introduced as a possibility to see the IOI in practice before participating in the IOI. But the more functional reason is that by introducing the Observer-status, the number of Participating Countries is regulated. Before a Country can participate with Contestants it should be present with one or two Observers and announce its participation for the coming year(s). This has the advantage that the IOI and the Future Hosts are not surprised by an unforeseen amount of complete Delegations in the next year(s).

Each Country has the right to be invited as an Observer.

If a Host Country wants to invite more or fewer then four Contestants, it's advisable to announce this in the General Assembly beforehand.

E2.7

A representative of UNESCO is always invited to the Olympiads. UNESCO is a link to the other Science Olympiads as well and distributes information around the world about the IOI and the other Olympiads.

E3 Objectives and Means


E3.3

Informatics is a relatively young, scientific and engineering discipline of growing importance in society. Currently it is underrepresented in secondary education throughout the world.

E3.4

It is firmly recommended that Contestants participated in a local, regional or national informatics competition in their Country as a pre-selection for the IOI and that they belong to the winners of that competition.

E3.5

It is firmly recommended that Countries reasonably circulate the yearly issues of the IOI among each other. To spread the average costs for travel it is also recommended that Countries sufficiently keep to geographical staggering.

E4 Office Bearers and Tasks


E4.1

The International Committee (IC) is established by the General Assembly of the GA in order to prepare revisions of the Regulations and to elaborate decisions and recommendations of the GA.

The IC should include Countries that represent all geographical regions of the world. It should be encouraged that all IC members actively participate in the IC and that there are no vacant positions in the IC.

E4.2

The Secretary-General of the IOI is a continuing position which is taken up by a member of the Host Team of IOI'n after the Opening Ceremony of IOI'n. The Secretary-General of the IOI holds this position in the full period up till the Opening Ceremony of IOI'n+1.

E4.4

The level of support which the IC and GA can give to the International Secretariat of the IOI (IS) is not yet arranged. After the needed support has been specified, and the IC and GA have taken their decisions, the 'provisional' character of the IS might change to 'permanent'.

In the process of organizing IOI's since 1989 all kind of materials about past IOI's are collected. This material forms the basis of the IS.

E4.5

As an organisation the IOI lacks sustained influence from universities, research, commerce and industry. A permanent Board of Patrons, consisting of a group of well-known, respected, male and female members of information technology and business from different regions of the world, can have the necessary profile and influence.

The BP can promote the IOI, can provide advice to the IOI, and can act as intermediaries between the IOI and others who can support the development of the IOI (e.g. with extending the scope of the IOI, with organizing the IOI in specific countries, with providing some financial support).

E4.6

In the year preceding IOI'n the Host Team of IOI'n functions under supervision of the IC, whose composition is established during IOI'n-1.

The IOI Regulations can not and will not prescribe in which way the Host Team of IOI'n is composed and tasks are performed by the members.

But in order to prepare IOI'n statements S4.6 and S4.7 record that the Host Team includes as a member:

The main reasons for the distinction of the four main positions are:

There is no preference wether the organizing Host of IOI'n combines any of the positions of Secretary-General of the IOI, Manager of IOI'n, President of the GA, Chair of the SC of IOI'n in one person, or not.

If several positions are combined by one person, by a default of that person, each position is taken up as is indicated for that position in the Statutes.

It is not recommended that the organizing Host reduces the Host Team to one person.

E4.8

Up till now the details of the Judging Procedure are 'provisional'. There are not enough specifications which the SC can use to propose a distribution of medals among the Contestants. Although the GA is the body which awards the Contestants, it is strongly recommended that the procedures to determine this distribution should be better specified and the SC can be given more authority to present a complete awarding proposal to the GA.

Problems which need to be specified in a more 'permanent' Judging Procedure are such as (for example):

E5 Host Nomination and Selection


E5.4

It should be known which Host Countries will offer the future issues of the IOI in the coming three years (IOI'n+1, IOI'n+2, and IOI'n+3) and have the status of Future Host.

E6 Responsibilities and Organizing Rules of Present Host


E6.4

The Guidelines for the organization of IOI'n is a plan which is necessary for the preparation, production, organization, timescales, and distribution of information of IOI'n. The plan should be suited for the local situation in the Country offering IOI'n.

It is not necessary to make an English version of the Guidelines, although parts, such as Competition Procedures and Judging Procedures, should be English.

E6.5

A discussion of the presentation of the Guidelines does mean that there is agreement between IC and Host Team about the contents of the Guidelines and the way the Host Team prepares IOI'n.


Created on JUN-01-95, last updated on JUN-02-95 by
daniel.weiler@ci.educ.lu from CIL
Update on June 22 1995, by Richard Verhoeven.

IOI 95