Yuriko Sengoku, a third-year student at Den-en-chofu Futaba Junior High School in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo, won the top prize in the final round of the H.I.H. Prince Takamado Trophy 70th All Japan Inter-Middle School English Oratorical Contest that was held in Tokyo on Nov. 30.
The semifinals were held on Nov. 28-29 with 151 junior high school contestants who had won the preliminary rounds in their prefectures. The top 27 went on to the final held at Yomiuri Hall in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, and the top seven winners were then ranked.
After the final, Crown Prince Naruhito, his wife, Masako, and Princess Hisako of Takamado attended a reception for 800 people held at the Imperial Hotel in the same ward.
The crown prince said at the reception, “I want you to earnestly learn the history and culture of other countries as well as our nation, and develop your imagination to considerate the circumstances of people in other countries.”
Princess Hisako said, “Someday, one of you may work for Japan using English in the scenes of diplomacy. I am looking forward to meeting you again on that day.”
■1st place: Yuriko Sengoku
Happiness doesn’t show in a photo
Sengoku gave a speech titled “Measure of Happiness,” in which she expressed her thoughts about happiness. She pointed out that people ardently take photos to show how happy they are, but tend to forget how to be happy in recent years, during which time Instagram has become popular — “Insta-bae,” meaning instagrammable, was even selected as a buzzword in 2017. She asked, “Is it any wonder that students grow up thinking the number of ‘likes’ one gets on Instagram is the best way to measure happiness?”
Sengoku received acclaim after she said it is important to determine happiness by one’s own measure rather than someone else’s valuation.
Sengoku chose a theme that fitted with the modern age and had thought about happiness using her own experience. She won a high evaluation for her convictive speech, fluent English and great expressiveness.
After the contest she said: “I could not have imagined winning the prize, because it was like a dream just to pass the prefectural round. I want to express my joy to my teacher, who has taught me the beauty of English.”
■2nd place: Kanna Sakaguchi
Don’t judge immigrants on image
Sakaguchi delivered a speech about immigrants. She said she started thinking about immigrants after making a friend who emigrated to Germany from India. According to her research, about half of the Japanese population believe immigrants are dangerous and disagree about accepting them.
Showing data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry in Japan, she said “‘Immigrants are dangerous’ is just an image, not the fact.” She also called for recognition of the value and benefits brought by immigrants, as the only way to make immigrant a positive word. “I will treat immigrants here as I wish to be treated abroad,” she said.
“I just wanted the audience to listen to my speech. I took care of my cadence to deliver a memorable speech,” Sakaguchi said after winning second prize.
■3rd place: Mahiro Miyake
What solitude has brought me
Miyake said she had spent time alone without friends from a young age and had always asked herself the question, “Is solitude a negative thing?”
She used to think she was the unluckiest girl, but she has tried to make good use of her solitude by immersing herself in English.
Her English skills have grown better through her efforts and she said proudly that she has been able to make many friends in Japan and other countries through English. “English allows me to come out of my steel shell and relax a little bit,” she said.
“My dream is to become a film director,” she said after earning third place. “I want to move many people with movies that I make in English.”
■Top 7 winners and World Family Award winner
1st prize: Yuriko Sengoku, “Measure of Happiness”
Den-en-chofu Futaba Junior High School (Tokyo)
2nd prize: Kanna Sakaguchi, “A Word in Need of Change”
Seishin Junior High School (Okayama Pref.)
3rd prize: Mahiro Miyake, “My Friend English”
Fuji Girls’ Junior High School (Hokkaido)
4th prize: Mio Shimizu, “Tanshin-funin”
Otsuma Tama Junior High School (Tokyo)
5th prize: Hibiki Imai, “Pride in Being Human”
Kasahara Junior High School (Ibaraki Pref.)
6th prize: Konomi Onozato, “My Dream”
Oitahofu Junior High School (Oita Pref.)
7th prize: Subin Ko, “The Power of Voice”
Sasebo Kita Junior High School (Nagasaki Pref.)
The World Family Award for Human Connection:
Tetsuya Morio, “A Bridge that Connects Thailand to Japan”
Kishimoto Junior High School (Tottori Pref.)
■The following is the full text of Yuriko Sengoku’s speech, “Measure of Happiness.”
In 2017, the word “Instagrammable” was chosen as the word of the year. With close to a billion Instagram users, it’s not hard to understand why. It seems like everyone is using Instagram. Young girls show off popular sweets at a cafe and students stand shoulder-to-shoulder at beach barbeques. The photos are different, but they all have one thing in common: they are “Instagrammable.” What does that mean? Instagrammable means a photo that not only looks nice, but makes people wish the life shown in the photo was their own.
To make a photo Instagrammable, users often try to make themselves look more impressive than they are in real life. One friend always makes me wait in front of a delicious dinner while she tries to take the perfect picture for Instagram. Another constantly uploads modified pictures, air-brushed and cropped to make her look younger and more beautiful. These photos are designed to get as much approval and admiration as possible. And this approval is measured in “likes.” The more “likes” you get, the better people think your life is, and the more satisfied you are with yourself.
But here’s the problem: Instagram has taught us how to “look” happy but we’ve forgotten how to “be” happy. I have a silly confession: When the hands of a clock point to numbers that match the date of my mother’s birthday, it makes me smile. Every time. It’s a wonderful feeling, but not a very Instagrammable one. Does that mean I’m less happy than someone who got a hundred likes for their photo of a cheesecake? Asked another way, is the person with the most likes on Instagram really the happiest person in the world? No. Happiness cannot be quantified, and being true to who we are will surely bring us more happiness than a fake photo on Instagram.
But is it really so surprising that Instagram users care so much about “likes”? After all, young people are encouraged to chase after “likes” every day at school. We call them “grades.” And just as Instagram can cause users to forget the true meaning of happiness, the focus on test scores and grades can make students forget the true joy of learning. Many students never read for pleasure, or take a semester to study abroad, because they’re too focused on getting good grades. Even kindergarteners who can’t yet read go to cram school to prepare for elementary school entrance exams! Is it any wonder that students grow up thinking the number of “likes” one gets on Instagram is the best way to measure happiness?
When my grandmother took me to the musical “The Phantom of the Opera” for the first time, words could not describe how touched I was by the beautiful music and the Phantom’s sad love story. It became a passion. I memorized the lyrics to all the songs in English, I read the original novel that the musical was based on. I researched the history of the Paris Opera House and the lives of French people at the end of the 19th Century.
I knew I would never be tested on any of it. But I didn’t care. All of these things were fascinating to me and I still carry what I learned deep in my heart. This is the difference between studying and learning. Between looking happy and being happy.
So here is my challenge to you: the next time you get a bad score on a test, take a blurry picture of it and post it to Instagram. You might not get a lot of likes, but it will be a reminder to you, and maybe to others, of what’s truly important. Oh, look at the time. It’s only two hours until my mother’s birthday.Speech