News

JSANZ Speech Competition Results

Speech contest 2.

We are delighted to announce the winners of the 2015 JSANZ Tertiary Japanese Language Speech Contest.

First place:                Brennan Galpin                   (University of Canterbury)

Second place:            Simon Hsieh                         (University of Auckland)

Third place:              Jay Tweddle                         (Victoria University of Wellington)

We would like to congratulate all of the participants and in particular, Brennan Galpin, Simon Hsieh and Jay Tweddle.  Brennan will receive a return air ticket to Japan, and Simon and Jay will receive Prezzy cards ($100 and $50 respectively), sponsored by the Sasakawa Fellowship Fund for Japanese Language Education and the Japan Foundation.

We hope the participants continue their Japanese learning journey with renewed motivation and enthusiasm, and wish them all the best for the future.

Comments from the Chief Judge

The contest has attracted more participants than the previous year and the overall quality of the speeches was very high. The contestants made commendable speeches with passion and enthusiasm, and we enjoyed the opportunity to judge speeches on interesting themes with originality and strong messages.

Speeches have a power to move and inspire the audience when they are based on what speakers have gained and learnt through own experiences, and when ideas, arguments and messages are elaborated in their own words with concrete examples.  These were exactly the elements of the winning speeches in this contest.

The majority of contestants successfully demonstrated Japanese language command with correct grammar, a variety of vocabulary and expressions.  Some speakers, however, talked a little too fast, which made it difficult for the audience to comprehend.  Some speakers can improve their speeches by paying more attention to the understanding of the audience.  There were some participants whose speech missed marks due to a rather monotonous tone, although they gained high marks for its content, development and expressions.  There is room for some contestants to improve speech delivery and to develop presentation skills.

We wish the contestants all the best for their Japanese studies.  Also, we would like to thank all the teachers and the members of the JSANZ Speech Contest Committee who have been involved in organizing the event. 

2015 JSANZ Tertiary Japanese Language Speech Contest

Name & Institution Speech Title
Robyn Hwang  Massey University The Benefits of Learning a Second Language
Nada El Hosseny  Massey University My Favourite Japanese Crafts
Jordan Tuinman  University of Otago The Misunderstandings of Wasei-eigo
Aidan Watkin  University of Otago The Future of Humanity
Toby Birkbeck-Jones  University of Canterbury A Takumi Story
Brennan Galpin  University of Canterbury My Life and Karate
Simon Hsieh  University of Auckland My Wabi-Sabi
Roxanne Yu  University of Auckland My Secret Gadget “Kaiwagomu”
Yeyoung You  Auckland University of Technology Cyber Bullying
Wai Chi  Ng  Auckland University of Technology Same Sex Marriage in Japan
Hao Ming Lee  CPIT Don’t Bully!
Jolene Skeen  University of WaikatoExpression of Masculinity and Femininity through Langauge 
Jazmen Apiti  University of Waikato The Similarities between Japanese and Maori
Jay Tweddle  Victoria University of Wellington Fujimura Shinichi and the Relaltionship between Archaeological Fraud and Science Fiction
Calvina Deng  Victoria University of Wellington 3 Reasons Why You Should Travel