For the first time in two years, Trinity College School’s Grade 10 Public Speaking Contest was held in person on Thursday, May 12th. Speeches focused on Canadians who have made a significant contribution to their field and/or the world around them. Every Grade 10 student researched, prepared and delivered a speech for their English class. The top student from each class then participated in the finals, which were held in the Davies Student Centre in front of the entire grade and broadcast via a webinar.
Former faculty member Mr. Peter Kedwell generously sponsored the competition. The event was hosted by two prefects, Gordon Bennett and Abby Hicks. They entertained the audience by providing interesting facts about each speaker as they were introduced as well as engaging in a question and answer session between speakers.
Each year, we are impressed with the calibre of speakers and their confidence and poise in front of an audience. However, this year, the judges stressed that the students competing in these finals were the strongest speakers they had witnessed in several years. Thus, the task of judging the contest was both challenging and enjoyable. After much deliberation, the judges awarded first place to Eric Jin for his speech on Frederick Banting. Eric impressed all with his confidence, creativity and captivating delivery. His speech balanced interesting, little-known facts with anecdotes, highlighting why Banting is a significant figure. The judges also wanted to give an honourable mention to Aidan Reid for his speech on David Suzuki. The other finalists, in alphabetical order, were: Jerry Chen, Dr. Lap-Chee Tsui; Junhyeong Hong, Josephine Mandamin; Kaitlin Miller, Irene Ayako Uchida; Val Northey, Christine Sinclair; and Asia Smith, Deepa Mehta.
Thank you to the judges, Mr. Peter Kedwell, Mr. Doug Mann and Mrs. Barbara Piccini, for their time and careful deliberations. As well, thank you to Mr. Myke Healy for hosting the webinar.
- By Barbara Brough, head of English
