Concours d’art oratoire

Concours d’art oratoire is an annual public speaking event for students from grades one to 12 who are studying French as a second-language in Saskatchewan and across the country. The objective of this event is to further stimulate the interest of students in the learning of French. Researching, preparing, writing, memorizing, and delivering speeches are activities that contribute to the development of language skills.

Schools around the province host their own public speaking competitions for students beginning in grade one. The winners progress to competitions held by local school divisions. Students in grades six to 12 who place first or second at their divisional event are given the opportunity to participate at the provincial level. Provincial winners from grades 11 and 12 advances to the national competition. All levels of participation – classroom, school, divisional, provincial, and national – are extremely important.

Students in all French-second-language programs in the province are encouraged to get involved. School division finals are usually open to French immersion students. Both Core French and French immersion students are eligible to participate in the provincial and national events.

Schools are sent preliminary information in September and asked to indicate if they will participate in the Concours d’art oratoire.

Since 2019, Canadian Parents for French – Saskatchewan has added a new category for grade nine to 12 students, Impromptu. This activity encourages a fresh approach to public speaking. Students require a significant level of mental preparedness to be able to draw on skills acquires during previous years of public speaking. Speech preparation time is limited and topics are predetermined.