In this post, the APPP/OPMP team would like to share an overview of our upcoming tournament, an interest form for schools, and a link for schools who would like to register. The 2027 Tournament booklet will be published soon.
If you have any questions about the tournament, please contact us for more information!
Happy Summer
Check out this 2024 video to learn more about our tournament.
How Can Your School/Organization Participate?
Peer Mediation Team
Your school/organization will need to register your team. A peer mediation team consists of the following members: two disputants and two mediators. There are four divisions:
Elementary
Middle
High
International
Registration
The school’s peer mediation coordinator/administrator/counselor/teacher may register a team. Registration per team is $40.00. Once the fee is processed, the team will be registered for the tournament. Each school will receive a confirmation email with the next steps. A limited number of scholarships are available for schools. Registration begins on August 1st and closes October 30th. There is no limit to the number of teams a school may register.
Coaching Services
A peer mediation team may request a coach. A coach may consult with a team virtually and the school is responsible for setting up coaching consulting meetings.
Tournament Timeline
The tournament will be held between October 30th - February 28th.
Timeline for Tournament
July - September
Call for participants!
September
Orientation/
Coaching/Questions
October
Tournament Agreement
Tournament Begins October 30th
March
Announcement of Winners
Feature on OPMP Website
Orientation
Each peer mediation team will watch a virtual orientation by October 30th. Any questions from the peer mediation team can be submitted by email from the peer mediation coordinator. The OPMP team will have complete discretion in answering questions related to the cases and rules.
Tournament Process
The JAMS/APPP/OPMP Peer Mediation Tournament is designed to pair peer mediation teams using the same scenario and same processes in a basketball-style tournament. An email will be sent to the school contact notifying the team about the orientation video that must be viewed by October 30th and the confirmation to participate in the tournament form must be completed.
Once the form is sent to the OPMP team, a confirmation email of entrance into the tournament will be sent to the school contact with the conflict scenario and the name and contact information of the OPMP judge.
The event consists of three rounds. The first round will eliminate one-fourth of the teams that have entered the tournament. For example, if eight teams are entered into the first round, by the end of Round 1, the six teams with the highest scores will advance to Round 2.
Round 2 will eliminate another one-fourth of the teams, and the remaining teams with the highest scores will advance to Round Three. For example, if six teams are in Round 2 then the four teams with the highest scores will advance to Round 3.
The third and final round will consist of the remaining four teams. The team with the highest score will be declared the winner of the tournament. Each round consists of one mediation. Each mediation is scheduled to be 45 minutes long.
After the final mediation round is completed, OPMP will post the winner of the OPMP peer mediation tournament on the OPMP website. Second-place winners will also be listed on the OPMP website. OPMP will personally call the team advisors to inform them if your team placed second or third in the tournament. All other participating teams will be able to view their scores on the OPMP website to see where their school team placed in the overall standings of the tournament. Your team advisor will receive an email informing them that your team scores have been posted to the website.
All rounds must be completed by February 28th.
Scoring
As peer mediators, you will be graded on your ability to work together with your co-mediator. You will be judged on each of the five steps of the mediation process. The judges will grade mediators on their opening statements, their ability to gather facts, their ability to help the disputants see the strengths and weaknesses, their ability to evaluate options, and their ability to help guide the parties to a resolution of the dispute that brought them to mediation. Your disputant's performance will have no factor in your final score. There are seven categories your team will be judged on. The categories for mediators are: (1) Opening Statement of the Mediator; (2) Storytelling; (3) Position/Interests; (4) Evaluation/Options (5) Agreement (6) Cooperation Between Mediators; and (7) Self-Reflection. The five mediation skill categories receive 0-15 points in each skill and the cooperation and reflection receive a total 0-25 points between the two categories.
Mediators
Each mediator must make an opening statement. The mediators can decide who goes first and whether they will coordinate their remarks or make them independently. The judges understand that the co-mediators’ remarks may be quite similar. Each co-mediator must conduct a caucus during the mediation. The co-mediators can decide who will conduct the first caucus and with which disputant, but each mediator must conduct a caucus with a different disputant. The co-mediator not conducting the caucus will observe and may ask clarifying questions at the end of the caucus. The mediators are responsible for ensuring that caucus time is used effectively. As a guideline, caucuses of longer than 5 minutes are discouraged.
Judges
All tournament videos will be sent to an experienced judge. The judges will score independently of each other. Judges are provided with all the information provided to the teams. Judges will provide feedback to the mediators. If you are interested in becoming a judge or coach for the tournament, see the link below.
Cases To Be Mediated
In each round, the same case will be used for all mediations. The case scenario will include a common set of facts (“General Information”) disclosed to both sides and the co-mediators and a separate confidential fact sheet given to each side (“Confidential Information”). The mediators will not receive the confidential fact sheets.
Timekeeping
Responsibility rests with the student participants for timekeeping and adherence to the allotted time periods. Each mediation is limited to 45 minutes. Preparation for Self-Reflection is limited to 5 minutes, and each Self Evaluation is limited to 5 minutes.
Self-Reflection
Each participant will have five minutes to honestly answer these questions at the conclusion of the mediation:
1) If you had to do the mediation over again, what would you do the same and what would you do differently?
2) What were your strengths and weaknesses as a peer mediation team?
Assistance
School coordinators may assist their students up until the beginning of the first round of the mediation tournament. They may observe the mediations in which their teams are participating. They may also observe all evaluations associated with mediations in which their teams are participating. School coordinators may not communicate in any way with the participating team members until the mediation round is complete.
Coaches
Schools may contact an OPMP coach via email with questions and/or request a consultation. Advisors must give coaches a list of three dates they are available for a phone or video consultation. Coaches may confer with their students up until the mediation begins. Coaches and other people (i.e. peer mediation coordinators or administrators) associated with a team may observe the mediations in which their teams are participating to give feedback. They may also observe all self-reflections associated with mediations in which their teams are participating.
They may not examine or “investigate” any other teams.
Technology
The purpose of this competition is to help students develop their skills. The focus is on how the students perform during the round. Therefore, no pre-prepared materials may be brought into the round to be presented to the judges or other competitors in the round.
Punctuality
Mediation videos must be sent to the OPMP Coordinator by the due date.
Awards
Winners of each division, along with their coordinators, will receive a cash prize.
All participants receive a certificate.
First place will be featured on the OPMP website.
Sponsorship
Schools may request a scholarship for their team.
Peer Mediation Tournament Manual
The manual will be available in July.
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