Each year, the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) runs the VCAA Plain English Speaking Awards which are open to every school in the state. Schools may enter two senior students. Here is what Ishita, from Year 11, had to say about her experience in the 2021 regional final.
The VCAA Plain English-Speaking Award is a public speaking competition that provides students with an excellent opportunity to build self-confidence and extend their skills in oral communication, speech writing and research. Fortunately, Louis Harrison and I had the pleasure of participating in this competition on Tuesday, 25 May.
The regional final was held at St Monica’s College in Epping. Mr Parkin very kindly took the morning to accompany Louis and me to the event.
We were required to present both a prepared speech on a topic of our choice and then an impromptu speech on a blind topic for which we had only four minutes to prepare. My prepared speech was on the issue of sexual harassment targeted towards women while Louis wrote a fantastic speech entitled ‘The Eulogy’, on saving planet earth. That was just the easy part! We were given a room to ourselves with a blind topic in front of us and four minutes to write a three-minute speech. Never have I written so fast. That was not the end of it. Presenting a speech for which we had less than five minutes to prepare was nerve-racking and frightening but I would do anything to experience that feeling again.
Passionately presenting our speeches to a room filled with such talented public speakers from other schools and an experienced judge’s panel was exhilarating. There was nothing like it. This competition encouraged me to feel more comfortable with public speaking and sharpened my critical thinking skills, speech writing and how to manage myself in stressful situations. The other participants and judges were incredibly kind, and we all seemed to connect very well as the support and comfort they provided was beautiful.
Some believe public speaking is just standing in front of a room full of people and reading off a sheet of paper but it is so much more than that. It gives you a voice. It gives you an opportunity to say what you believe in and the power to influence many opinions, decisions, and feelings towards an issue. Not only does it make me feel powerful but public speaking also enhances so many important life skills such as effective communication, judgment, and cognitive thinking. This was a great experience that I will never forget, and I encourage everyone to try public speaking. It may scare some at first, but I promise there is nothing that makes you feel so significant and in control.
As runner up of this competition, I advise students to partake in activities like public speaking and experience the thrill. - Ishita Singh (11A)
Jennifer Johnston - Head of Curriculum (Secondary)