YOU HAVE NOT FAILED
I say well done for the preparation you did in the service of our Lord, but remember that doing your best is all that is required and everything that is required. God doesn't give spiritual 1st or 2nd placings. He requires only that we be obedient to His calling, studying to be approved unto God (I Tim 2:15).
The purpose of Student Conventions is to train up the next generation of godly leaders. The medals are merely an incentive for us to do our best. Winning is not the ultimate goal.
Convention is one small episode in the life of a speech. Where else have you presented your speech? What lives have been changed because they heard that message? What brings about that change -- your skill and talent, or the power of God through a humble vessel? Considering these things helps us keep a healthy perspective. = )
LEADERSHIP TRAINING
I trust you have many years of leadership training ahead of you. Please don't grieve over not getting public praise and awards at every step. God doesn't work like that and neither should we.
I remember my parents withholding certain opportunities and experiences from my siblings and I when we were children because they wanted us to have things to look forward to and aim for in our teen years when we had the maturity to handle them. They built for us an environment that allowed room to learn and grow.
WHAT TO DO NEXT
Part of the learning and growing process is finding out how you can do better next time. That's what the Convention Guidelines and Judges' Forms are for. You should have a Judges' Form from each of the 3 judges.
ACE Student Convention judges do not score presentations by comparing them with other presentations. They score by how well the student fulfills the specifications in the Convention Guidelines and the Judges' Form. That is the standard you are striving to meet, not some other student's choice of material or style of presentation.
Study the marks they gave or didn't give you and the comments they made at the bottom of the page. This should give you clues as to how you can improve the speech you learned, and how to guide your preparations for next year. You can begin those right now. Student Conventions are designed to be the culmination of a whole year's work.
HOW THE JUDGES JUDGE
Understanding how the judges work is vital to feeling at peace about competition results. ACE stipulates 3 judges to ensure a fair outcome -- for example, it means that one judge cannot sway the results through being a tough marker. So long as he marks consistently, the totals will still show who excelled and who didn't. The 3 scores, which often vary significantly, are totalled. Calculating the average of that total (divide by 3)) gives a clearer overall picture of where a presentation falls in the field.
Another thing you may find helpful to know is that ACE does not award a 1st placing if the student's marks don't reach a certain level of excellence. This means if there are only 3 entrants, there isn't an automatic 1st, 2nd, and 3rd because they must earn their placing.
DUMPED IN THE DEEP END
I believe that 11 years old is generally too young to compete at an ACE Student Convention. It's still childhood, usually pre-cognitive. A student has to cope with a high level of stress and lack of sleep. My suggestion is that you have young students IN TRAINING but not competing. I've seen too many sweet kids in shock after being dumped in the deep end of competition without being coached through private and public performances as a foundation to their Convention efforts.
Train them, give them experience in Christian ministry, but let the children remain children as long as that is appropriate, not feeling pressured to reach beyond the physical, mental, and emotional maturity that God has chosen to give them at this time.
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