Education secretary welcomes the contest as a channel to equip local students with 21st century learning skills
Participants of the 21st Century Cup National English Speaking Competition 2020 take a group photo with the mascot panda of VDO English, an online English learning platform developed by the organizer China Daily. (PARKER ZHENG / CHINA DAILY)
The five winners of the Hong Kong contest will represent the city in the final round of the nationwide English-speaking competition in March this year.
Sham Pui-yan from ESF Shatin College and Carol Chan Ka-lo from St. Paul Convent School respectively won the top prizes in the junior and senior secondary school categories in the Hong Kong’s regional contest of the “21st Century Cup” National English Speaking Competition.
The regional contest, held by China Daily and VDO English, an online English learning platform developed by China Daily, saw a record number of thousands of participants this year. Thousands of students from universities, primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong vied for the top prizes.
This year was also the first time that the contest is open to primary school students and university students.
Ng Nok-hin from Fukien Secondary School Affiliated School and Zhou Hanyi from Chinese International School were winners in two Junior Primary categories. The top prize in the University category went to Cheung Ho-yan from the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
The five students will represent Hong Kong in the National Grand Final to be held in March. In last year’s contest, Suen Chung-man, the Hong Kong Region Secondary School champion, won the national contest, showcasing Hong Kong students’ mastery of English.
Kevin Yeung Yun-hung (1st left), Hong Kong’s secretary for education; Winnie Tam (2nd right, back row), chairman of Hong Kong Bar Association; Zhou Li (1st right, back row), deputy editor-in-chief of China Daily Group and publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily Asia Pacific, pose with winners of the regional contest of the 21st Century Cup National English Speaking Competition in Hong Kong on Saturday. Winners include (from left) Cheung Ho-yan, Chan Ka-lo, Sham Pui-yan, Zhou Hanyi and Ng Nok-hin. (PARKER ZHENG / CHINA DAILY)
Each year, more than 1 million students take part in the national competition, the largest of its kind in China. Winners of the national competition will represent China at the annual international contest in London.
At the award ceremony, Hong Kong’s Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung said he hoped the experience of the contestants and their accomplishments will continue to inspire more young people to participate in this prestigious competition.
“The 21st century cup competition indeed resonates closely with the key learning goals of our school curriculum. Through school education, we thrive to equip and develop our students as effective 21st century learners, we attach great importance to their performance in biliterate and trilingual communication. ... We also encourage them to acquire good understanding of different issues, that would have an impact on their daily lives,” Yeung said.
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“It is our mission (to teach) Hong Kong students to be well informed and responsible citizens with a sense of global and national identity as well as accomplished individuals with positive values and attitudes,” said Yeung.
Also addressing the awards ceremony, Zhou Li, deputy chief editor of China Daily, and publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily Asia Pacific, said the company held the 21st Century National English Speaking Competition “with an eye on the future”.
“We, China Daily, have taken it as our mission to help the preparation of young people for the future. We have always been committed to promoting English language education,” said Zhou. “We wish all of our award-winning speakers good luck and great success in the forthcoming competitions and in achieving all their dreams in the future,” Zhou added.
Judges listen to the contestants intently, assessing their performance from a professional perspective. (PARKER ZHENG / CHINA DAILY)
The “21st Century Cup” Competition, established in 1996, introduced the Hong Kong division in 2017 to provide a stage for local students to demonstrate their English proficiency. It also has established a platform for youth exchanges between Hong Kong and the mainland.
Carol Chan Ka-lo, a 15-year-old high school champion, said she was “thrilled” at winning the award. Chan took part in the competition the year before and was a finalist in the junior group. To hone her skill, she watched many videos about English-speaking competitions to learn other people’s techniques and has been practicing diligently to improve her own.
“I believed in ‘never giving up’. Just by keeping up the efforts, you ultimately will succeed,” said Chan.
Zhou Hanyi, 10, the winner of the primary category (senior), said she felt nervous before she went on stage. “But when I start speaking, I just enjoy it,” she said.
Around 50 judges have taken part in the competition from the preliminary stages through to the final. They came from different institutions, including the Education Bureau, English Speaking Union Hong Kong, British Council, Hong Kong Baptist University, Education University of Hong Kong, and Open University of Hong Kong.
