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Curtains Close for PKU International
Students‘ Chinese Speech Contest
PKU NEWS 2009--10—20
http://ennews.pku.edu.cn/news.php?s=256135222
Peking University, Beijing, Oct. 20, 2009: The final of the Chinese Speech Contest
for International Students was held on the evening of October 18 th at Peking
University. The contest was a great feast for both eyes and ears as one of the major
events of the 6 th Annual International Cultural Festival at Peking University. Seven
competitive speakers made it to the finals and impressed the audience not only with
their proficiency in Chinese speaking but also with their penetrative understanding of
the Chinese culture. Professor Xi Muli from California State University, Associate
Professor Sun Dongdong from PKU‘s Law School, Associate Professor Li Haiyan
from the International College for Chinese Language Studies, Professor Wang
Yunjia from the Department of Chinese Language and Literature and Mao Chuming,
director of the "Focus Interview" program on CCTV were invited as guest judges in
the competition.
In the first section, each contestant delivered a speech with the theme ―Affection for
Yanyuan & Love for China‖. They spoke of their learning and living experiences in
China and expressed their gratitude and deep affection for China and Peking
University. A Japanese contestant said that learning Chinese-Japanese relations at
PKU enabled her to gain a more objective and multi-dimensional perspective upon
the history and contemporary conditions of the two countries. Her speech conveyed
her sincere hope for better mutual understanding and long-standing friendship
between the two countries.
The following section, ―Culture Show‖, is the most eye-catching part of the
competition. In this section, contestants exhibited their own culture with their Chinese
partners. The director of the Language and Culture Communication Association
commented that this arrangement not only met the needs of international students to
introduce their culture to China, but also enabled the Chinese students to broaden
their knowledge of other cultures, and further showed how this event focuses on the
conception of culture communication and culture exchange. A Japanese student
presented kebana, some students presented traditional food from their countries;
and others sang folk songs from home. Finally, Ms. Li from South Korea came
dressed in traditional Korean clothing and played the Korean national instrument, the
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