By Constance Dubois, French Language & Literature and French Individuals & Society Teacher
and Amina Maine, ISB French Language Coordinator and 4th Grade French Head Teacher
On April 3rd and 4th, ISB hosted the Ambassadeurs en Herbe North American regional finals, a debate competition among French schools from around the world. 40 students from eight different schools in North America participated in the regional finals. Participating schools included: Lycée Rochambeau of Washington, D.C., Lycée Claudel of Ottawa, Collège International Marie de France of Montreal, Lyceum Kennedy of New York, Collége Stanislas of Quebec City, International School Broward of Miami, and Lycée Francais de Toronto, and our very own International School of Brooklyn.
The ISB students who participated on ISB’s team first went through a selection process in their classes. After students volunteered, we ran debates in the classrooms to select the finalists for each class and role (roles included three orators, one mediator, and one moderator). ISB students Elsie M. (5th Grade), Samuel L. (7th Grade), Elea B. (7th Grade), Annabelle J. (8th Grade), and Athena Y. (8th Grade) were chosen through this process to represent our school in the regional finals.
For this stage of the Ambassadeurs en Herbe competition, students from the eight schools met and debated about this year’s topic, “Media literacy.”
During the event, students came together in groups of five, and each student had a specific role to play within their group. Each group had three orators; one moderator, who would lead the debate and ask questions to the orators; and one mediator, who would summarize the content of the debate. This kind of project presents a great opportunity for students to practice their language, debate, research, and critical thinking skills around current relevant issues.
ISB participated for the first time in the Ambassadeurs en Herbe competition last year. We are very excited that one of our 8th Graders, Annabelle J., was selected to represent our school on the North American team in Paris at this year’s world finals of the competition. Congratulations to Annabelle and to the other students selected for the North American team!
The final round of the debate will take place from May 9th to May 11th at the Comité National Olympique du sport français and the Conference Center of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development. The debate will be on the theme of “Olympic Spirit.” Stay tuned for updates!
