So do you think that reading the spirit of the question, reading the quizmaster’s mouth, and knowing which chapter the quizmaster is likely to ask out of helps quizzing at all? Or do think it better to just be solid on your stuff and jump with assurance?
–Jade, the best one of them all
Bible Quizzing analysis is never an exact science. Discerning the spirit of the question, however, is pretty much essential when quizzing on the higher levels, at Nationals, SCQANIT, NYC, etc. You will need to identify key words in the question: names, places, phrases, and so forth. Also, the easier it is to quiz is directly related to how much you know. The more of the Scripture you have memorized, the more often you will be able to identify key phrases and words. You will also have more confidence in your abilities.
Reading the quizmaster’s mouth is okay, but so many times you will have a weird quizmaster whose mouth is difficult to discern, and find yourself jumping without any real information. I don’t ever try to focus on the mouth of the quizmaster; instead I trigger my jumps on what I hear.
Lastly, some coaches look at what questions have been asked, and from what chapters, so they can try to determine what chapters haven’t been asked. I tried that once, but you never really know if they will ask all the questions, if they skip questions, etc, thus I would rather, as a coach, focus on the spirit of the quizzers.
I will also say this: being a good quizzer, after memorizing your verses well enough, starts with experience and practice. We were all new at quizzing at some point, so I encourage new beginners not to be discouraged.
When can you tell if your challenge is appropriate, or if you shouldn’t say anything because it’s too frivolous?
–Patricia, Guess My State
I’ll just say this: Challenging should NEVER be a strategy!
Challenging exists simply because man is imperfect, and sometimes a quizmaster may rule an incorrect answer correct or a correct answer incorrect. In such cases, those are the only times you need to challenge. It is illegal (to my knowledge) to challenge the question, the scoresheet, the seat pad, anything but the answer.
So if you feel that the quizmaster, (who may not know all of the text being quizzed over, mind you) accepted a wrong answer or did not accept a correct answer, then challenge. When in doubt, don’t challenge. If you are facing a stubborn quizmaster, don’t waste their time. For the most part, a quizmaster usually knows what they are doing, and they made the ruling for a reason.
By the way, if there is one thing that annoys me the most about quizzing, it is frivolous challenging.
Jesse