A Grade 12 student in Nanaimo has taken second place in a national French-speaking video contest.
Elise Therrien, who attends Nanaimo District Secondary School, placed second in the Grade 11-12 francophone category of the Concours virtuel competition, put on by Canadian Parents for French, a national network promoting French as a second language, and Conseil jeunesse francophone de la Colombie-Britannique, representing French-speaking youth in B.C.
The competition saw participants documenting their social isolation experiences, said a press release.
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Therrien won $200 for her Conflits du confinement (translates to containment conflicts) video and Canadian Parents for French B.C. and Yukon matched that with a $200 charitable donation that will go to World Animal Protection.
After a long-running Canadian Parents for French-hosted public speaking competition, Concours d’art oratoire, was cancelled in March due to COVID-19 pandemic social distancing measures, the organizations and their partners saw an opportunity to connect French-speaking students in a virtual community online with the competition, the press release said.
“We weren’t going to let a year go by without giving kids a chance to flex their French, but we were amazed with just how quickly Concours virtuel caught on,” said Glyn Lewis, executive director of Canadian Parents for French B.C. and Yukon, in the press release.
Over 950 students from across Canada took part.
Conflits du confinement from Elise Therrien on Vimeo.