A young linguist from Morinville is off to Montréal this summer to represent Canada as part of an international French dictation competition.
Jadynn Gansauge, 11, of Morinville was revealed earlier this month to be one of the 100 finalists headed to the Paul GĂ©rin-Lajoie Foundation’s La DictĂ©e Grand International Final later this May.
The Paul Gérin-Lajoie Foundation is a Montréal-based group that promotes access to education and sustainable development in developing nations. Its La Dictée event, now in its 22nd year, challenges students from around the world to take dictation in French.
Roughly 182,000 Canadian students took part in this year’s contest, says foundation spokesperson Anne-Marie Lafrance, which is meant to promote French-speaking skills and awareness of developing nations.
Gansauge will be up against students from across North America and Africa in the contest, all of whom are competing for bursaries of up to $2,000.
“It’s very challenging,” Lafrance says. “You have the best students of every school and the best ones of every province.”
Gansauge says she’s surprised she’s made it this far. “I didn’t think I’d even make it at my school level.”
A Grade 6 student at St. Albert’s Ă©cole Marie Poburan, Gansauge is one of only four Albertans who have made it to the final round of this contest.
Gansauge says she started learning French in pre-school and has been in French immersion since Grade 1. She’s stuck with it due to her love of learning and challenges.
“It’s like a gift, almost,” she says of knowing a second language. “If I ever go somewhere, like to France, I’ll be able to use it.”
The contest involves listening to a person read out a long passage in French, Gansauge explains, first normally, then slowly, then a little slower than normal. Whoever transcribes the passage with the fewest mistakes wins.
“Some of the words are really hard to spell,” Gansauge says, and you have to know your grammar well. She’s been reading up on her grammar and practicing dictation to prepare for this May’s event.
As part of the contest, Gansauge and her fellow Grade 6 students raised $800 in support of the foundation’s education programs in developing nations. Her school gets to keep half that cash for its end-of-the-year party.
Last year’s contest raised about $834,000 for sustainable development, the foundation’s website reports.
This is the second time that Marie Poburan has had a student reach internationals, says Gansauge’s teacher, Ginette Jolicoeur. “(Gansauge is) a very dedicated student, and deserves the honour of being our representative at the provincial level.”
Contests such as this are great ways to help students build vocabulary and learn to express their ideas in writing, Jolicouer says. The event should also give Gansauge a chance to meet French-speaking students from places such as Senegal.
While she doesn’t expect to win, Gansauge says she’s looking forward to meeting students from other parts of the world. “I’m really excited to go.”
The contest happens this May 26 in Montréal. Visit fondationpgl.ca for details.
