Students shed light on issues at WLMS Voices of Youth

Columbia Flier Article

By Medina Roshan
mroshan@patuxent.com

Posted 1/21/10

Photo by Don Watkins

Kalere Kaldwell appealed to the emotions of her audience as she recounted the story of a young boy named Eric. "Have you ever been bullied?" she asked those gathered at Wilde Lake Middle School.

Kalere went on to tell Eric's tragic story, in which classmates teased and taunted the boy. One student told him, "Why don't you go home and shoot yourself?," after which the boy committed suicide.

Kalere's persuasive essay on the topic of bullying was one of 29 presentations delivered by seventh-graders during Voices of the Youth, a charity fundraiser held at the Columbia school Jan. 7.

About $500 in proceeds from the event's admission fee will be donated to Animal Advocates of Howard County, a nonprofit selected by the students.

English teacher Jeanette Swank, who coordinated the event, said the students were asked to write an essay about a "hot" topic and to deliver a two- to three-minute presentation based on their essay. Students chose to address topics including global warming, obesity, school uniforms, the war in Iraq and animal abuse, among others.

Audience members were asked to choose their favorite speaker at the event based on criteria including the quality of the speech's content, as well as the quality of delivery, including eye contact and clarity. Andrew Johnson's speech about greed in our society was the audience favorite and he won a $50 Target gift card as a prize.

Andrew's topic was inspired by what he perceived as greedy practices by CEOs, such as giving themselves exorbitant bonuses, during the country's recession.

Parents who attended the event noted the passionate nature of many of the students' essays and speeches.

"He put more emotion into the writing," parent Laurie Reynolds said of her son, Dylan, whose topic was animal abuse.

Dylan's love for animals and aspirations to become an animal rescuer or veterinarian prompted him to choose his topic. Though he admitted he was nervous at the start of his speech, he became more comfortable as the speech went on.

"As I went along, it got easier for me. The moments before were really intense," Dylan said.

Reynolds said she thought the exercise was a great lesson in public speaking.

"It's just really put a different perspective in their minds," she said. "They're not just writing something to turn in."

Parents also were impressed by the diverse and polarizing topics chosen by the students.

"It encourages them to think about current events and to be aware of the world around them," said Marjorie Anderson, whose daughter, Katie, participated in the event.

For their teacher, the event was a lesson in empowering her students.

"I saw that the students were actually feeling like their voice mattered and they were doing an assignment that actually meant something," Swank said.

Congratulations to all of our student orators for making such passionate speeches and to Ms. Swank and Ms. Miller for doing such a great job organizing this event for our school.