The CLTA-AZ First Chinese Speech Competition was successfully held on February 25, 2023. CEAS and the Department of East Asian Studies at UA sponsored this event. Alice Yu, the Associate Director of CEAS, was invited to serve as a judge at the final contest on the ASU campus in Tempe, AZ.
Over 200 K-12 students from various school districts in Arizona participated in the preliminary contest. Eventually, 70 students were invited to compete in the final round. Contestants were divided into 7 groups based on their grades and Chinese proficiency levels. At the final contest, we saw over 100 attendees including Chinese teachers, students, and their families. During the awarding ceremony, Yu congratulated all the contestants and delivered a speech to introduce CEAS and EAS. "We offer four years of Chinese language courses at the Department of East Asian Studies. We also offer Classical Chinese and Chinese-English translation. We have about 150 students enrolled in our language program each semester. Other than courses offered at UA, we also host Study Abroad programs in major East Asian regions."
Students and parents were excited to learn the Department recognizes AP course credits in Chinese, and CEAS is organizing a series of activities that support the learning of East Asian languages and cultures. This event was organized and supported by CLTA-AZ, a non-profit regional chapter of Chinese Language Teachers Association. For the detailed information about the Speech Contest, please go to the official website: https://sites.google.com/view/clta-azchinesespeechcontest/home
