High-school French teachers from the Greater Toronto Area sent 100 of their best students to York in early May to participate in the annual French Contest of the Ontario Modern Language Teachers’ Association (OMLTA). The contest, which alternates between the University of Toronto and York University, was held this year at York’s Keele campus. On May 25, the winners were honoured at a reception at York.
Left: Lorna R. Marsden (far left of the photograph) poses with the winners of the annual French contest
Approximately 40 high school instructors and 35 professors from York’s Departments of French Studies from the Keele and Glendon campuses worked together to conduct various aspects of testing and evaluations for the contest, held May 3. The students, who came from a variety of high-school French programs, spent the morning in York’s Multimedia Language Centre completing seven different activities to test their competencies in the French language and culture. On their break they enjoyed lunch at the Underground restaurant on York’s Keele campus and were offered an additional taste of York life through a campus tour. In the afternoon, they returned to the Department of French Studies to participate in activities which tested their oral fluency.
At the May 25 reception, trophies, medals and book prizes were awarded by York University President and Vice-Chancellor Lorna R. Marsden; Robert Tiffin, vice-president students; Marilyn Lambert-Drache, associate dean Faculty of Arts; Alain Favrod, Chair, Department of French Studies, Faculty of Arts; and Pascal Sim, representing the French Consulate.
The contest was organized by York Professors Anat Avitzur and Elsa Michael of the Department of French Studies, Faculty of Arts and by Dorothy de Souza of the OMLTA, with assistance from the staff of the Department of French Studies and Favrod. Contest prizes were provided by York University, the OMLTA, and the French and Belgian consulates.