SCREAMING FOR HISTORY: ACADEMIC BATTLE A BIG DRAW

Dr. Frank Nickell, left, coordinator of History Day at Southeast Missouri State University, presented the Sweepstakes Award to Risco schoolteachers Cheryl White and Michael Murphy at Academic Hall Saturday.

Some 518 students from throughout the region convened at Southeast Missouri State University Saturday for the 21st annual History Day competition.

History Day is a national competition in which students make presentations relevant to the annual theme.

Students competing this year developed projects around the theme "Science, Technology and Inventions in History." Ideas were varied this year, with many students opting to discuss the historical impact of the cotton gin, inventions by George Washington Carver and the John Deere tractor.

Other students were more diverse in their look at history, choosing to study topics as varied as the life of Hedy Lamar, or the impact of the Barbie doll or toilets on history.

Students may deliver their topics individually or in groups using historical papers, table exhibits, visual or media presentations.

Students from as far away as West Plains and East Carter County participated in the event, which is a preliminary contest leading up to the state and national competitions later this year. Events are divided into categories based on age and method of presentation.

Competitors are judged by teachers, professionals and university professors and graduate assistants. The top three winners from each category advance to state competition in Columbia next month.

"When you so often see kids cheering for basketball and football, it's kind of fun to see them screaming for history," said Dr. Frank Nickell, event coordinator. "There is so much learning that takes place in this environment."

Nickell said judges reviewed some 140 table exhibits and 40 historical papers during the six-hour competition, in addition to numerous individual and group performances by students in fourth through 12th grades. The day is mentally exhausting for the judges, who are reviewing projects some students may have spent most of the year working on.

"It's happens fast, it's chaotic, that's sometimes the fun of it," he said.

Anna Robbins, 15, of Greenville developed a desire for information about pacemakers into a table exhibit. She dedicated numerous before- and after-school hours, as well as weekends and holidays, to her project.

"I decided to do this project after my mom had heart problems," she said. "It was sort of expensive, but my parents helped me a lot because they knew this meant a lot to me."

"The topics are deliberately broad to let students do whatever their imaginations will let them do," said Nickell. "Today, they're even more creative because they're using more varied ways of gathering information."

Michael Murphy, a teacher from Risco schools, said it's not uncommon for students to develop a fleeting interest into a History Day presentation. However, many students know nothing at all about a topic before they begin research, he said.

Risco students received the sweepstakes trophy for the seventh straight year for having the most top entries. The school, which had 17 winners Saturday, sent about one-fifth of its 212 students to the competition.

"They can be inspired by their experiences or by something they have no clue about," Murphy said. "Once they get a taste of success, they keep coming back."

Elementary school students may participate at the regional level but are not invited to state or national competitions. Veronica Jordan, 11, of Advance was one of many elementary school participants attending the event in preparation for years when she will be eligible to compete on the state level.

Her exhibit discussed the history of American locomotives.

"I liked the experience of the district interviews, and next year I'll know how everything works," Jordan said.

Nickell said students benefit from History Day participation because they develop skills in research and presentation. The competition teaches them about history, but also makes them more analytical thinkers and researchers, which creates better students, he said.

"It does much to promote a lot of academic skills," said Nickell. "It also aids in maturity. We've had many positive stories come out of this."