You think that English is a mundane, nerdy subject? Think twice. On Sunday, some 500 high school students from several cities participated in competitions and games at the first Youthspeak Fun Day.
The event at the International Sports Club Indonesia in Ciputat, Tangerang opened with a spectacular angklung performance from State High School No. 8 (SMAN 8) Jakarta, and aimed to increase students, teachers and others' English skills.
"The event aims to increase the appreciation of the written word, especially in English, as our English literacy levels need increasing" said Sofyan Wanandi, a PT Bina Media Tenggara commissioner that publishes The Jakarta Post, in his opening speech.
The first Youthspeak Fun Day was organized by the Post's Newspaper in Education program and was supported by the Embassy of the United States of America and ExxonMobil among others.
Counsellor for Public Events at the Embassy of the United States of America Michael Anderson said bridging the language barrier could help bridge the gap between cultures.
One of the highlights of the day was a workshop on photography techniques, before students were on the field capturing images.
Another highlight that budding young journalists did not want to miss was the workshop by Metro TV anchor Ralph Tampubolon.
Students asked questions about how to read news in front of the camera, while others practiced their scripts reading for the final round of a news reading competition.
Before the Sunday event, Youthspeak Fun Day held preliminary rounds for a news reading and spelling bee contest and a debate in English. The news reading winners will have a chance to tour the Metro TV station.
Sixteen students competed for the final round of the spelling bee to be awarded the title of the Bee King or Bee Queen.
The event also featured a song lyric competition where students were asked to create their own music. They performed two of their own songs and one from an established band.
Outdoor, various stands were set up for participants' recreation. There were game stands where people could play scrabble, make posters, write love letters and design clothes out of newspapers.
Darrian Jovan from Santa Laurensia high school was one of the photography contest participants.
"Apart from improving my photography, I also want to improve my English," he said.
The Fun Day also featured dance performances from schools. Later it was time for the students to sing and dance together with bands Music for Sale and RAN.
List of winners:
Debate
Champion: Farid Hamka, Yurico Mandali, Alice Chloe (SMAK 3 Jakarta)
First runner up: Floriza, Hurriyah, Ivan (SMAN 3 Bandung)
Second runner up: Karen Fiona, Jonatham (SMA Tarakanita 2)
Photography
Senior high school:
Champion: Astari Ayu Nadya (SMA 39)
First runner up: Adhi Fadhlih (SMAN 24)
Second runner up: Ruben Tota (SMA Gandhi Ancol)
Junior high school:
Champion: Rizky Syahputra (SMP Islam Dian Didaktika)
First runner up: Diyani Diwasari (SMP Islam Dian Didaktika)
Second runner up: Jessica Tiffani (SMP St. Laurensia)
Essay writing
Champion: Faiqori Yusnieta (SMAN 2 Jember)
Favorite: Putri Dannis (SMKN 1 Rota, Klaten)
Song writing&lyric
Champion: SMAK 3 Penabur
Favorite: MAN Insan Cendekia
Spelling bee
Champion: Kevin Alexander (SMAK 1)
First runner up: Muhammad Farhan (Lab School)
Second runner up: Billy Irianto (St. Laurensia)
