2016
2016
K-12
:
Confucius Institute at Cleveland State University
Ohio Association of Teachers of Chinese
Confucius Institute at the University of Akron
1.
The Speech Contest is open to all K-12 students (including homeschooled students) whose native language is not Chinese. Heritage students (e.g., American-born Chinese) are eligible.
2.
Students will compete in 3 age categories. (The sub-categories in each age category may be slightly modified based on the number of contestants and the Chinese proficiency of contestants) :
I.
Elementary School (K-5)
A.
Grades K-2
B.
Grades 3-5
II.
Middle School (6-8)
A.
Students who have studied Chinese for less than two years in middle school
B.
Students who have studied Chinese for two or more years in middle school
III.
High School (9-12)
A.
Students who have studied Chinese for less than two years in high school
B.
Students who have studied Chinese for two or more years in high school
3.
Students may give their speeches on any topic. The speeches, in Mandarin Chinese, should be no more than four minutes in length. The text of the speeches must be written solely by the students

themselves. This means that no editing by teachers, parents, or others is allowed. Also, proper citation of sources is required if others’ words are quoted or paraphrased.
4.
There is a two-part online registration process. First, contestants must complete the online form at http://goo.gl/forms/QsPtILO4NV . Second, contestants must upload the audio file (in an MP3 format) of their speeches and then provide a link to that file. The deadline to complete both parts of the registration process is 11:59 pm EST on Friday, March 18, 2016.
5.
Finalists in each age category, who will be chosen based on the audio files of their speeches, will be notified by Friday, March 25, 2016 . The final round of the Speech Contest will then be held on
Saturday, April 16, 2016 at Cleveland State University, Main Classroom Building, 2121 Euclid Ave.,
Cleveland, Ohio 44115. (Contestants are responsible for arranging their own transportation.) Finalists may use the same speech that they previously submitted in the initial round or they may give a different speech.
6.
For the final round only, after giving their speeches contestants will be asked a few questions about their speeches, which the contestants will then have to answer extemporaneously.
1.
The Essay Contest is open to all K-12 students (including homeschooled students) whose native language is not Chinese. Heritage students (e.g., American-born Chinese) are eligible.
2.
Students will compete in 3 age categories. (The sub-categories in each age category may be slightly modified based on the number of contestants and the Chinese proficiency of contestants) :
I.
Elementary School (K-5)
A.
Grades K-2
B.
Grades 3-5
II.
Middle School (6-8)
A.
Students who have studied Chinese for less than two years in middle school
B.
Students who have studied Chinese for two or more years in middle school
III.
High School (9-12)
A.
Students who have studied Chinese for less than two years in high school
B.
Students who have studied Chinese for two or more years in high school

3.
Students may write their essays on any topic. The essays must be written in Chinese characters by hand and contain between 100-500 characters (including punctuation). Also, the essays must be written on the grid paper found at http://www.csuohio.edu/confucius/ohio-k-12-chinese-speech-essay-contests .
Finally, the essays must be written solely by the students themselves. This means that no editing by teachers, parents, or others is allowed. Also, proper citation of sources is required if others’ words are quoted or paraphrased.
4.
There is a two-part registration process. First, by 11:59 pm EST on Friday, March 18, 2016, contestants must complete the online form at http://goo.gl/forms/QsPtILO4NV . Second, contestants must snail-mail their essays to arrive by Friday, March 25, 2016, at the Confucius Institute, Cleveland
State University, 2121 Euclid Ave. RT 1214, Cleveland, OH 44115.
5.
Winners in each age category will be notified by Saturday, April 16, 2016 .
For commonly asked questions, please visit: http://www.csuohio.edu/confucius/ohio-k-12-chinese-speechessay-contests
, please visit www.csuohio.edu/confucius.
If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Xiaona Jin at tel. no. 216-523-7142 or e-mail her at x.jin23@csuohio.edu
.