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Aurora Speech
Contest
The Fifth Annual USA National Japanese Language
High School Speech Contest 2008
Will be held on
May 24, 2008
Objectives
Procedure
Eligibility
& Application Requirements
Judging
Criteria
Deadline
Mailing
Address for Submissions
Prizes
Contest
Schedule & Venue
Objectives:
The Aurora Foundation, in conjunction with the National Council
of Japanese Language Teachers, will host its fifth annual Aurora
Foundation National Japanese Language High School Speech Contest.
The contest will provide opportunities for young learners of
Japanese to make presentations in Japanese and to inspire more
students to improve their proficiency in Japanese. It is also
hoped that the contest will encourage students to further their
understanding of Japan, its people, and its culture.
Hosted by: The Aurora Japanese
Language Scholarship Foundation
In association with: NCJLT (National Council of Japanese Language
Teachers), Consulate General of Japan at LA
Supported by (tentative): The Japan Foundation, JETRO, Japan
America Society, JCCSC, Japanese Prefectural Association
Procedure:
Fifteen contestants will take part in the fifth annual contest,
to be held on May 24, 2008. Contestants will be chosen
from a pool consisting of the top three winners of various sub
national/regional/state/multi-school Japanese language speech
contests held throughout the USA between April 1, 2007 and April
14, 2008. If more than 15 applications are received, participants
will be selected based on evaluations of tape recordings of the
applicants' speeches in Japanese.
Eligibility and
Application Requirements:
All applicants must :
(1) Be one of the top three winners of a sub national/regional/state/multi-school
Japanese language speech contest held in the USA and its territories
between April 1, 2007 and April 14, 2008;
(2) Provide a recommendation form completed on the applicant's
behalf by an official representative of that contest;
(3) Be high school students at the time of the Aurora
speech contest (senior year applicants graduating in May or June,
are still eligible);
(4) Not be native speakers of Japanese or have a Japanese
parent (Issei);
(5) Have not had more than six months of schooling in Japan
after age six;
(6) Not have entered an international speech contest (Japanese
Speech Award - organized by E.G.G., JSA Planning Committee) in
the past;
(7) Submit a copy of their speech (script) in applicants'
own handwriting and an audio recording of the speech in Japanese
with the completed application form. (Please visit our website
for more details at www.jlsf-aurora.org)
The application form is to
be submitted by either the applicant or the contest representative
and must have the signatures of the student, the student's parent
or guardian, and the representative of the speech contest.
Judging Criteria:
Each speech must be five minutes or less in length. Choice of
topic is open. Judges will base their decisions on content and
presentation of speech, and interviews in Japanese with the Judges
after each speech presentation.
Deadline:
The completed application form and required materials must be
mailed to the Aurora Foundation on or before April 15, 2008. The application form is available online
at the Aurora Foundation website, or upon request from the Aurora
Foundation office.
Mail submissions to:
Aurora Speech Contest
3127 Nichols Canyon Road
Los Angeles, CA 90046
Tel: 323.882-6545 / Fax: 323.969-9425
E-mail:Aurorafoundation@usa.net
Website: http://www.jlsf-aurora.org
Prizes:
The Grand Prize winner will be invited to the overseas students'
Japanese Speech Award (JSA) contest held in Tokyo, Japan, in
the summer of 2008. (Total trip tentatively spans 12 days, and
includes a Japanese language workshop and cross-cultural exchange
program). All the expenses will be paid for the Grand Prize winner's
trip to Japan. The Grand Prize winner will also receive a $1,000
scholarship. The 2nd place winner will receive a $500 scholarship.
The 3rd place winner will receive a $300 scholarship. All participants
will receive a commendation.
Contest Schedule&
Venue (Tentative):
The 15 contestants will be invited to Los Angeles the weekend
of May 23-24, 2008. The sponsoring organization or the student
will be responsible for transportation between the student's
home and Los Angeles. The Aurora Foundation will cover all the
contestants' appropriate expenses while in Los Angeles. Contestants
will home-stay with Japanese host families in the Los Angeles
area for two nights, unless a student wishes to make his or her
own housing arrangements at his/her own expense.
| April
15 (Tue), 2008 |
All
applications must be postmarked (We recommend sending the form
with Confirmation receipt from a post office) |
| April
30 (Wed), 2008 |
Announcement of 15 participants |
| May
23 (Fri), 2008 |
Participants
arrive in Los Angeles
Attend Welcome Dinner |
| May
24 (Sat), 2008 |
Rehearsal
& Contest |
(Time
to be announced)
Location:
Hitachi Chemical Research Center
Lecture Hall, University of California Irvine
1003 Health Sciences Road West
Irvine CA 92612 |
| Attend Goodwill
Party |
| May
25 (Sun), 2008 |
Free time
Participants depart from LA |
All inquiries and requests for
applications from representatives interested in entering the
winners of their own speech contests should contact the Aurora
Foundation by e-mail at aurorafoundation@usa.net
or NCJLT ncjlt@japaneseteaching.org
for further information.
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| Jesse
Bias of the West Bloomfield High School, West Bloomfield, Michigan
(third from left) received the 2007 Aurora Speech Contest Consul
General of Japan Award and $500 scholarship from the Aurora Foundation. |
2007
Aurora Speech Contest contestants, judges, VIP guests and staff |
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