The 11 finalists were culled from 42 semifinalists Thursday afternoon, with spellers advancing based on a formula that combined their scores from a computerized spelling and vocabulary test with their performance in two onstage rounds.

WSJ: After 1st vocab test, Spelling Bee gets a champion

The field was whittled down from 42 semifinalists Thursday afternoon, with spellers advancing based on a formula that combined their scores from a computerized spelling and vocabulary test with their performance in two onstage rounds.

WSJ: Spelling Bee: 11 finalists compete for trophy

His review also recommends the reading test should be "refined" and that there should be a distinct writing test covering spelling, grammar, punctuation and vocabulary.

BBC: School Sats review: Lord Bew calls for more creativity

Organizers also added an additional computer test for the semifinals, imposed time limits on computer-based spelling and vocabulary tests and added a rule that resulted in automatic elimination for any participant who misspelled a word on stage in the second or third rounds.

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