As a teacher, what do I have to do?

Successful teams have to be motivated and resourceful. Your role as a teacher that of facilitator and coach. You will need to make sure there is a practical experimental investigation with results to discuss, ask challenging questions, help pace the presentations. The only thing you must do for the students will be their competition admin and potentially make their travel arrangements. In addition, one physics teacher must accompany each team to the tournament to help with judging.

We recommend you start researching as soon as possible – in early spring and well before the students get close to exam leave. Many established NZYPT schools run a “Physics club” throughout the year. Contact us – we offer mentoring to teachers new to the tournament and by Christmas 2025, will have published free online resources to help you.

The students who do well at this competition are intrigued by the problems, have the tenacity to find out more on their own and get other students involved. This is a team competition. They may also be motivated by the prospect of an international trip representing New Zealand in an international competition! Invite students who are both good at physics, keen to carry out their own research and work well in a team.

How you progress at your school depends on your culture and resources. If you have an interested nucleus of students you could suggest that they each take one question to work on over the summer, and agree to reconvene in early February, before school gets busy. From early Feb it is good if you can offer them use of a lab and access to equipment on, at least, a weekly basis. Supervision, for safety reasons, would be necessary, but you could be doing something else while they got on with it! It will be helpful for the team if you give them constructive criticism.

It generally falls to the teacher to enter the team and organise payment of the fee. We expect a teacher to accompany the team to the competition and act as a juror on the day. .

What if I don’t know the answers?

That is exactly the point! You won’t know the answers.

The questions have been carefully chosen so that no-one knows all answers! AI tools push the boundaries and some scurrilous sites “sell” answers. However no online resource cannot provide the understanding that comes from experimentation and modelling theory yourself. Students parroting theory and relying on simulated results will be found out in competition!

A good solution involves lots of practical experimentation to get reliable data to illustrate (or not) relevant physics theory. It’s important to remember that experiments don’t always work first time and may need refining.

How many exams do students need to take?

None. This is NOT an examination based competition. Not least because nobody does know ‘the answers’ in advance. Students must research and present their own findings.

What if a team gets outside help?

That is all part of being resourceful. Getting outside help – from books, the internet, advice from experts, loan of equipment and facilities – is all part of getting a solution and it is encouraged! However in a Physics Match the team must present a solution to the problem and then defend it on their own without the internet. If they don’t understand the solution they have just presented, or if they didn’t do the experimental work themselves, this is painfully obvious to the judges and the team will score poorly. It is up to the team to make sure that they completely understand and can defend everything they present.

What is a physics match?

A physics match is a very structured discussion of one team’s research into a problem. questioned by a second team. Find the full explanation here.

What if my team faces a top team in the first round?

Teams that face good opponents usually score well in that same “fight” or match. Having good physics to question or defend brings out the best in both teams.

In a good match both the problem reporters and opponents score highly. You are not there to “beat the competition”

Who can compete?

All students attending a secondary school throughout the year of the competition can take part – but not those who are attending full time university. This is usually students who are Year 12 or 13 in the March of the competition, but some exceptional students are Year 11. To be considered for the New Zealand representative team, students must be NZ citizens or residents.

Isn’t this a competition just for the occasional genius?

No. Students need to have learnt some advanced high school physics and during their research they will learn more. Genius however is definitely not required.

This is a competition which prizes resourcefulness, communication and scientific inquiry. Being brilliant at physics, on it’s own will not win a physics match. The need for team work, practical experiments, the ability to answer and debate questions “on your feet” (without internet access!) as well as having good problem-solving skills are key attributes for any student who wants to do well. The tournament aims to develop these skills that are so vital for STEM careers.