On November 1, the 44th Uji City Junior High School Public Speaking Contest was held at the Uji City Cultural Center.

This annual event provides junior high school students in Uji City with the opportunity to share, in their own words, what they think, struggle with, and seek through their experiences at school, home, and in the local community.

This year, students from 11 junior high schools across the city participated. Representing our school was Shiru Seki, a student from Class 3-1, who won our school’s internal speech contest held last month.

In her speech, Seki spoke sincerely and powerfully about the emotions she experienced through personal events, including her time during the Kumamoto earthquake and saying goodbye to a close friend. Her heartfelt message deeply resonated with the audience and evoked strong empathy and emotion.

During the closing ceremony, the judges commented that her speech "prompted reflection on how to live each day to the fullest." This clearly showed that her words had a meaningful impact on many.

We are extremely proud of Seki’s hard work and confident delivery. We will continue to value opportunities for each of our students to express their thoughts and share their voices with society.