Media Releases - 2003
Plainly speaking, there can only be one winner!
15 August 2003
Guided missiles and misguided men; What I learnt from Martin Luther King; Looking for a better home; Journey to freedom; The importance of having goals; Restoring faces; Don't judge my speech by its topic; and A fair go for all.
These are the topics that eight of Australia's finest young public speakers will address on Monday at the National final of the Plain English Speaking Award.
To reach the final, each speaker has been through a gruelling process of regional, state and territory competitions that have attracted a record number of student entries.
Now, they will face off for the ultimate public speaking accolade – national champion. There can only be one winner.
Hosted by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority and supported by the Plain English Foundation Inc and the Australian-Britain Society, the Plain English Speaking Award is a the ultimate test of nerve, eloquence and improvisation.
The national winner will be awarded a return airfare to the United Kingdom in 2004 to compete in the annual International Public Speaking Competition. The runner-up will receive $500.
Each contestant is required to give two speeches – a prepared speech of eight minutes on a topic of his/her own choice and an impromptu speech of three minutes on a topic chosen by the organisers, for which the speaker has four minutes to prepare.
The National finalists are Julien from Brauer College, Warrnambool, Victoria; Emily from Hawker College, Hawker, ACT; Simon from Scotch Oakburn College, Launceston, Tasmania; Claire from Casauarina Senior College, Moil, Northern Territory; Jason from St Aloysius College, Milson's Point, NSW; Daniel from Ipswich Grammar School, Ipswich, Queensland; Chantal from Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College, Enfield, South Australia and Thom from Mount Lawley High School, Mt Lawley, Western Australia.
Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority chief executive officer Michael White said a record number of participants entered this year's Award in Victoria.
"The finals of the Award provide students from all school sectors with the opportunity to learn together. In 2003, 46 per cent of Victorian participants came from government schools, 31 per cent from independent schools and 23 per cent from Catholic schools."
Mr White said plain speaking involved "the use of the right words, in the right way, to convey meaning in the clearest, simplest, shortest and most courteous way possible".
"This is a goal for all speakers whether or not they stand up in public," he said.
"The Award provides an excellent opportunity for students to build self-confidence and extend their skills in oral communication, speech writing and research."
Students' success in the Award depends on their ability to use the same kinds of oral skills and techniques as those described in the VCE English Effective Oral Communication Area of Study.
The competition is open to secondary students who are at least 15 years of age in the year of competition and not older than 18 years of age at the time of competing in regional, state or national finals.
The Award began in Victoria in 1977 as part of the celebrations of the twenty-fifth year of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.
So successful was the competition, that it became an annual event. In 1978 other states and territories in Australia were invited to join, and in a few years all were taking part.
The panel of judges uses a set of criteria including:
- Is the subject matter of the speech suitable and substantial?
- Is the speech original and intelligent in its exploration of the subject?
- Does the speaker develop the argument and line of thought logically?
- Is there a satisfactory conclusion and an overall sense of structure?
National Final
Date:
Monday 18 August 2003
Venue:
Dallas Brooks Convention and Function Centre
300 Albert Street, East Melbourne
Time: 10am-1pm
