Midwest High School Chinese Speech Contest
Western Michigan University is honored to host Midwest High School Chinese Speech Contest. The competition is co-sponsored by Chicago Consulate General of the People's Republic of China. It provides a stage to showcases achievements of Midwest high school Chinese learners and teachers, as well as to select the most qualified candidate to represent the Midwest in the Global High School Chinese Bridge Speech Contest to be held in China.
2024 Midwest High School Chinese Speech Contest
All current grade 9-12 high school Chinese language students in the Midwest recommended by local Chinese Teachers’ Associations, or selected schools with Chinese language programs are eligible to participate. However, heritage native speakers of Chinese who came to the U.S. after the age of 13 are not eligible.
The Organizing Committee of the Contest and WMU reserve the right to make the final decision on candidates’ eligibility to participate in the contest.
Levels of competition
Contestants will be divided into 5 levels based on their HSK test result if they have one, or based either on the number of years they have studied Chinese or the number of years they lived in China if they don’t have an HSK score:
Heritage Level: for Students who reside in a home where Chinese (Mandarin, Cantonese or any Sino-Tibetan language or dialect) is spoken to anyone on any occasion or where he or she may rely on one or more native, heritage or other Chinese-speaking members of the household or immediate family to speak or to study Chinese, or that the participant has spent a combined total of more than 2 years in a Chinese speaking country or region.
Level 1: for Students who have passed HSK 2 or under, or students who have studied Chinese for 2 or less years, or students who had lived in a Chinese speaking country or region for 3 months or less;
Level 2: for Students who have passed HSK 3, or students who have studied Chinese for more than 2 but less than 3 years, or students who had lived in a Chinese speaking country or region for more than 3 but less than 6 months;
Level 3: for Students who have passed HSK 4, or students who have studied Chinese for 3 or more years but less than 5 years, or students who had lived in a Chinese speaking country or region for more than 6 but less than 12 months;
Level 4: for Students who have passed HSK 5, or students who have studied Chinese for 5 or more years, or students who had lived in a Chinese speaking country or region for more than 1 but less than 2 years.
Format of competition
The Contest is comprehensive and divided into two Rounds.
1. Preliminary contest: ALL registered contestants are required to submit two pieces of video recordings on YouTube by April 21, 2024.
- Speech in Mandarin (no editing allowed): contestants of Level 1 and Level 2 will deliver a 2-3 minutes original speech at regular speed on a topic of their own choice; contestants of Level 3, Level 4, and Heritage Level will deliver a 3-5 minutes original speech at regular speed on the topic of “打开汉语这扇门”;
- Chinese Talent Show (editing allowed): contestants will demonstrate their talent in an area that highlights one aspect of Chinese culture, such as Chinese music, painting, calligraphy, martial arts, dance, etc. within 2-3 minutes.
All submissions will be viewed and judged by a designated panel of experts. The maximum score each contestant could get is 100 (speech 70 + talent 30). Each and every contestant will receive one of the following two types of awards based on their performances: Successful Participation Award or Excellent Performance Award.
Only recipients of Excellent Performance Award will have the chance to compete at the Final Contest for the first, second, and third prizes at their respective level.
2. Final Contest: ALL qualified contestants will compete in two categories. Contestants of Level 1 and Level 2 will compete via Zoom on Saturday, May 11, 2024; contestants of Level 3, Level 4, and Heritage Level will compete on Saturday, May 18, 2024 on WMU main campus*.
- Impromptu speech: In addition to presenting their prepared speech from the preliminary contest, contestants of Level 1 and Level 2 will answer 4 impromptu questions that are based on their original speech; contestants of Level 3, Level 4, and Heritage Level will deliver a 60-90 seconds impromptu speech on assigned topics;
- Knowledge competition: the competition will use Kahoot as the platform; contestants will answer questions on topics of Chinese language, culture, history, and geography; questions will be chosen from Preparatory Materials provided at least 2 weeks ahead of time.
The maximum of each contestant’s score will be 100 (speech 60 + knowledge 40).
*Meals will be provided, and limited support for travel, as well as one night of lodging, will be available upon request based on individual needs.
Final Awards and Prizes:
Each contestant’s final score will be the sum of the scores from both the preliminary contest and the final contest.
- Outstanding Individual Award: Three students with the highest total score in Level 4 will win the first, second, and third prize of this award, respectively. The first prize winner will receive a free trip to China to represent the Midwest in the 17th global Chinese Bridge High School Speech Contest to be held in China in fall of 2024 (providing international travel is permitted);
- Excellent Chinese Learner Award: the top three students of Levels 1-3 and Heritage Level will win this award;
- Generous scholarships up to $5,000 each provided by Western Michigan University for first prize winners if they choose to study at WMU.
How to apply
The online application form for the contest is available at: https://wmich.edu/asia/midwestregistration
Please fill out the form to complete your application by April 21, 2024.