High School Division Application

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Application Period is Now- September 24th

*You may not be able to access the application form if you use a high school Google account.  Please use your private account to fill out the form.

High School Division Application Form

*The application form (Google Form) will ask you for your Google account.

• High School Division Eligibility
• High School Division 2024 Schedule
• High School Division Application Guidelines
• Video Submission Guidelines and Requirements
• Video Upload Instructions
• Information about Travel Support

 

High School Division Eligibility

Based on teacher recommendation (and subject to review by the selection committee) applicants enter one of the two competition categories: HS I, and II. All applicants must have all basic qualifications, as well as the relevant category-specific qualifications. Heritage speakers who have the basic qualifications are encouraged to apply. Notes: The selection committee reserves the right to place a contestant in a different category based on the committee’s evaluation of his/her YouTube video submission, and/or online interview to be conducted if necessary. In the event there are not enough successful applicants in HS II, the selection committee will merge HS I and II.

Basic Qualifications

• A high school student recommended by a teacher who is a member of the American Association of Teachers of Japanese or its affiliate.
• Japanese is not his/her dominant language.*
• Has spent less than one year (combined) at full-time, secondary-level (grades 3-12) Japanese educational institutions accredited by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan

*The dominant language is the language which a bilingual or multilingual speaker has greatest proficiency with and/or uses more often.

Category-Specific Qualifications

These levels are determined by teacher recommendation based on the “ACTFL oral proficiency guidelines 2024” — not the level of the course in which the student enrolls — and subject to review by the selection committee.

HS I

• Possesses intermediate-low to intermediate-mid level speaking proficiency
• Has not won any award in previous J.LIVE Talk competitions

HS II

• Possesses intermediate-high and above speaking proficiency
• Has not won any award in previous J.LIVE Talk competitions

 

High School Division 2024 Schedule

 

High School Division Application Guidelines

In order to participate in an individual division of J.LIVE Talk, applicants must submit the relevant online application form by the submission deadline:

• High School Division Application Form

Before You Submit the Application Form

• Download the endorsement form and get it completed by your recommending instructor.
• Complete a video for submission.

 

 

Video Submission Guidelines and Requirements

As a competitor, you are required to provide a short video of you speaking Japanese (see below for specifics). This video will be used to evaluate your qualification and proficiency level. Therefore, you may not enlist the assistance of your instructor or a native speaker of Japanese.  This online accent dictionary may be helpful.

Your video should be 2-3 minutes long and show you speaking for its entire duration. (No slideshows, please.)

• Begin your video by stating your name. Do not mention the name of your school.  Make sure you do not wear clothes with college logos.
• Learning is a lifelong process. Describe what you would like to learn as you grow into adulthood. For example, you can talk about what you plan to study in college, or what kind of skills you would like to master, etc. Explain why.
• You are expected to speak naturally.  Do not edit your speech.  You will be disqualified if you read from a pre-written script.  Imagine an audience in front of you and talk to this audience. Pay attention to your gestures, voice volume and eye contact.  Our Tips for Preliminary Round Video Presentation may be helpful. 
• Upload your video to YouTube and select "Unlisted" as the privacy setting.

If you have any questions regarding how to upload the video to YouTube, see Video Upload Instructions below.

Please note that, if we decide to use any part of your video for promotional or other purposes in the future, we will obtain your consent beforehand.

 

Video Upload Instructions

1. Go to YouTube.
2. Click 'Sign in' in the upper right corner. You can sign in with your Gmail account. If you do not have a Gmail account, create one. Or, you will need to create a separate YouTube account using your email address.
3. Once you create (and sign into your) YouTube account, click 'Upload' in the upper right corner.
4. Select a file to upload. Make sure to use the following format for the title of your video: 'JLIVE Talk + Your Name' (e.g., JLIVE Talk Sachiko Suzuki).
5. Select the privacy setting "Unlisted."

You may ignore the other fields (Description, Tags and Category).

Note: There are many video tutorials on uploading to YouTube, such as this tutorial.

Once your video is uploaded, YouTube will create a URL link for your video. Provide this URL link when submitting the online application form.

If you cannot upload to YouTube or prefer to send your video in a different way, please notify the J.LIVE Talk Committee at [email protected].

 

Information about Travel Support

Travel subsidies of up to $500 in total to cover all or part of the following travel expenses will be provided to eligible finalists whose home institution is located more than 100 miles away in driving distance from George Washington University (See Google map):

• transportation (air, train, or gas for auto travel) between a finalist’s school address and GW
• one night's accommodation (up to $150)
• parking fee at the George Washington University campus

Meal expenses are not covered, although breakfast and lunch will be provided on the day of the competition. The maximum subsidy for accommodation expenses is $150. For instance, if your flight ticket costs $200 and your hotel stay costs $250, we will reimburse you $350 since the maximum allowance for accommodations is $150, and your transportation cost is $200.

Travel subsidies are given only on a reimbursement-basis, and will be processed after the completion of the event. We need your social security number to process your reimbursement. Please provide it when you come to GW for the contest. To receive your reimbursement, you must also provide all the receipts within two weeks of the final round. An E-ticket itinerary is OK as long as it shows the total cost for the ticket and your credit card information.