YMCA Plain English Speaking Awards (PESA) 2021
YMCA Plain English Speaking Awards (PESA) 2021
The YMCA Plain English Speaking Awards (PESA) 2021 is a national competition organised by YMCA of Singapore, in partnership with the Ministry of Education and the Speak Good English Movement. Happening annually, PESA promotes public speaking in Plain English and provides a platform for students to hone their oratorical skills and cultivate confidence in public speaking.
After a hiatus last year due to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, PESA re-emerged this year with all its rounds taking place virtually in light of the ongoing pandemic. RGS fielded six students to participate in the competition—three for the lower secondary category and three for the upper secondary category.
Under the guidance of RGS teacher-coaches (Mr Alwin Ho, Ms Daphne Chua and Ms Sharon Ong) , the students attained the school’s best performance in PESA in more than five years!
| Names of Students | Award | Year | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Filomena Litani Magha Amelia | Champion | 1 | Lower Secondary |
| Hannah Chua Yun Han | First Runner-Up | 1 | Lower Secondary |
| Claire-Leia Ng Shean Ee | Certificate of Participation | 1 | Lower Secondary |
| Nurani Kaseh Binte Isa | First Runner-Up | 3 | Upper Secondary |
| Kenzie Li Zhixian | Semi-Finalist | 3 | Upper Secondary |
| Calyss Ng Kee | Certificate of Participation | 3 | Upper Secondary |
The judges’ comments for each round of the competition and the virtual Awards Ceremony can be viewed on the YMCA PESA Facebook page.
Below are selected speeches made by two of the RGS participants in the competition. The students delivered the speeches again after the competition and recorded them for display on this website.
Filomena responding to the prompt “BBT or BTS?”
Hannah responding to the prompt “I Wish I Had”
Congratulations to all the students and teacher-coaches for their excellent work in the competition!