NBO: nationale Biologie olympiade

Every autumn all schools receive promotional posters and brochures, inviting students and teachers to participate in the first round of the NBO. Articles about the NBO and IBO results are published in the journal for Science Education of our National Association for Science education every year. Additionally, the NBO is promoted in several biology related educational magazines. General newspapers only pay modest attention to the impact of Olympiads for talented students and education (not on a regular basis) .

The NBO is established by the National Institute for Curriculum Development (SLO). The NBO-foundation has a steering board consisting of 8 people. Members are recruited from SLO, biology education (secondary school teachers), the NBO-host (Wageningen University), former IBO participants, the National Teachers Association for Science Education and the National Institute for Biology. The board supervises main issues, policy and strategy. Members rotate every 5 years.

Daily activities of the NBO are coordinated and managed by drs. A. Taminiau, employee of SLO. This institute also hosts the administration / secretariat of the NBO.

Schools and/or teachers apply each year for participation in the first round of the NBO. The test is prepared by a special working group of teachers and is send to all schools mid February. This first round working group is guided by a biology and assessment expert of CITO (= National Assessment Institute). Schools may choose a date for the test in the period end February-mid March. The first round test is a theoretical one, with content matching the national biology curriculum. More than half of all targeted schools take part. Teachers do the marking. A re-evaluation of the top-200 students is performed by the team responsible for the test. The remaining top-80 students participate in a second round test at the end of April. This round solely concerns important facts focusing upon Plant anatomy and Biosystematics (these topics are only partially covered in the National Curriculum).

The final top-20 participate in the final round in June. This final round takes 8 days. Host is the Biology department of Wageningen University. Theoretical and practical tests finally determine which students are the top-4, forming the Dutch team for the IBO.

The organisation committee is greatly supported by  former NBO participants, organised in an Alumni Network. They assist in all kind of activities: managing the NBO website, processing the results of the first round, and producing study materials for the NBO. They also help during the final round by  producing a program booklet, cooking, producing and marking tests, lecturing, assisting during practical experiments, and assisting with the arrangement of the final ceremony.

The first round (end February-mid March) is a test with only pre-coded questions: multiple choice, judging statements, filling out a number or word. Pre-coded questions offer a quick marking for teachers.
The second test (end April) about Plant Anatomy and Biosystematics facts is also pre-coded. It is marked by the SLO-employee.

The tests in the final round are mixed. Partly pre-coded, partly essay and theoretical, as well as practical.

During the final round, lasting 8 days, students get lectures and practical training sessions about topics relevant for the IBO. Fieldwork is included. Host is a university (Wageningen University).

Our IBO team gets one or two days of extra training on special, IBO related topics in the beginning of July.

For the first round: no additional material. The first round covers the secondary school biology curriculum.

For the second round: a 90 page booklet offering a compilation of the most important facts about Biosystematics and Plant Anatomy.

For the final round: Campbell (7^th ed.), and some specialized booklets with collected information and lecture notes about Plant Families, Statistics, Plant Anatomy and Morphology, Fieldwork, and Genetics.

The top-10% of the first round receives a certificate. See logo and files. Schools appreciate this. The top-10 of the final round receive a simple price, mostly a book. The winner gets an artistic metal representation of the logo of the NBO.

The school of the winner receives a big artistic DNA-model. This trophy travels yearly from one school to another.

There are no cash prizes.
In our country an university entrance exam does not exist, so there is no need for a special university entrance award.

All Dutch teams taking part in International Olympiads (Geography, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, IT, Math) are honoured in an official meeting at the MoEd by the Minister of Education at the end of June.

Press releases are prepared after each final round of the NBO and after return from the IBO. Contacts with journalists results sometimes in articles in science magazines, newspapers and educational magazines. Unfortunately attention for NBO in daily newspapers is very limited.

Main sponsor is the MoEd. They provide for the flight fares to the IBO, the salary for the SLO-employee (25 days on a yearly basis), the salary for the CITO assessment expert (9 days on a yearly basis) and board and lodging for the top-20 students during the final round.

Other sponsors:
University of Wageningen, National Institute for Curriculum Development, the Institute for Biology, a Biotechnology Firm (Rijk Zwaan), the National Teachers Association for Science Education.

On average the MoEd pays about € 15,000 for the preparation and travel costs of the national team participating in the IBO. Furthermore the production and distribution of posters and leaflets send to all schools is financed by the MoEd. The top-4 (the IBO team) is honoured in an official meeting at the Ministry of Education.

There is a set of regulations indicating how the NBO is organized and what is expected of schools, teachers and students. All schools may participate. We follow the IBO rules.
The NBO-foundation has a statute (articles) focusing upon the promotion of the NBO.

The Netherlands was observer in IBO 1990 and started IBO-participation in 1991. We were IBO host in 1993.

Number of schools and students participating in NBO