CICERO
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"A Competition to promote Harmony in all areas of Europe"
The name CICERO is an acronym in Latin, and you can see the translation of it in italics above. This is an innovative competition organised by teachers of Latin in several different European countries for their 6th form students, illustrating that Latin provides a worthwhile and valid reason for young people to interact with each other across their national boundaries.
Under the patronage of the Right Hon Terry Davis, Secretary General of the Council of Europe.
IT WAS A HUGE SUCCESS! 80 STUDENTS TOOK PART IN MALVERN IN 2008.
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"Listen!"
to Boris Johnson, London's Mayor, who has sent us this personal message of support and encouragement.
A Ray of Hope, UNESCO Youth Ambassador for the Culture of Peace, praises this competition as a good example of a twinning project between schools in different countries and you can see all the academic and financial sponsors of the UK competition here.
AT THE JACT CONFERENCE ON 17 MAY BORIS JOHNSON GAVE HIS PERSONAL CONGRATULATIONS to Anne and the organisers of the competition. He asked Anne to pass on his delight and his genuine admiration for the high academic standards shown by all the competitors and he was particularly impressed by Ben Slingo of Bedford School, who was not only the European winner of the cultural test but also the winner of the Upper 6 Latin translation.
Anne with Professor Thomas Harrison, Chair of the JACT Council, with Anna Bayraktar the administrator of JACT whose support for CICERO made all the difference to the success of the first competition and with Judith Affleck, the Director of the Conference.
SLIDESHOW OF UK COMPETITION UK video
SLIDESHOW OF SPANISH COMPETITION
FRANCE 2008 and blog
The UK centre for the 2008 competition was Malvern St James, an independent school for girls which was established in September 2006 from the merger of Malvern Girls' College and St James's School.
It is located in the Midlands, 20 minutes from the M5 (J.7 or 8) and about 50 yards from Great Malvern railway station.
France (2 centres), Spain, Italy, Andorra and the UK took part in 2008.
Teachers in other countries are invited to contact the organisers if they would like to join us. The competition in each country can be as large or small as the organisers wish.
...............................................................................WHY NOT DECIDE TO ENTER NOW? PRIZES of £150, £100, £50!
DATE
Friday 18 APRIL 2008
11.45 - 12.45pm : Registration and lunch (please inform us of any dietary requirements).
12.45 - 3.45pm Competition - video-conferencing links with France, Italy, Spain and Andorra!
3.45pm Tea and depart.
(Programme of the day to download).
PLACE
Malvern St James (opposite Great Malvern station),
15 Avenue Road, Great Malvern, Worcs. WR14 3BA
ENTRANTS
6th Form (Years 12 - 13) students of Latin may enter both sections of the competition.
6th Form students of other Classical subjects (Classical Civilisation, Greek, Ancient History, Archaeology) may enter the Mythology section of the competition.
COMPETITION - enter one or both sections.
Language test : 1 hour 30 minutes.
Translation into English (using a dictionary) of a Latin prose text on a subject relevant to modern society (eg ideas of politics, government, citizenship ...)
You should bring your own dictionary : pocket or intermediate size. The passage will be taken from ANY Latin prose author.
Cultural test : 1 hour.
Questions on the myth of Hercules (Heracles is his Greek name) : Classical and later versions of the story and depictions in art, music, theatre ... through the ages.
Suggested links for you to research in preparation for the competition. Please use these as a starting-point - you may want to find more.
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/Herakles/
(follow the links on this webpage for more ideas)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hercules
http://www.answers.com/topic/hercules-of-the-forum-boarium
http://www.beastcoins.com/Topical/Hercules/Hercules.htm
http://www.jb.man.ac.uk/public/AList/Hercules.html
http://www.livius.org/he-hg/herodian/hre114.html
http://homepage.mac.com/cparada/GML/DisneyHercules.html
http://www.theoi.com/greek-mythology/heracles.html
http://www.theoi.com/GalleryS3.html
http://www.theoi.com/GalleryZ2.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hercules_(Handel)
You will need to know the stories as told by authors both ancient and modern, and be able to remember and comment on the design of (e.g.) selected paintings and sculptures. Anything about the tradition and reception of the myth could be relevant. There will be several short-answer questions : just answer as many as you can!
PRIZES
- Language test : national prizes : separate categories for L6 and U6 and an engraved cup for the school of the U6 winner to hold for one year.
- Cultural test : a European prize : entries from all countries will be marked together, and national prizes.
- a Cicero Diploma for each entrant and a prize from UNESCO 'A Ray of Hope' for the school of the European winner.
(We are very grateful to our financial sponsors for their generous support! First prizes will be £150, second £100 and third £50, and there are signed books from Boris Johnson, Lindsey Davis and Tony Robinson - more details on 'sponsores > UK').
APPLICATIONS
Please send entries before Wednesday 9th April - but this can be extended for those who have just seen the advert in JCT!
to Mrs Cathy Morgans,
Events, Malvern St James, 15, Avenue Road, Great Malvern, Worcs. WR14 3BA
Tel : 01684 892288
cicero@malvernstjames.co.uk
There will be a registration fee of £5 per school or college. (Cheques payable to 'Malvern St James').
Entry form to download.
If any individual 6th Formers wish to organise their own entry to the competition independently we will be delighted to see you and of course we will not charge you the £5 registration fee!
Lunch and a light tea will be provided : please let us know if you do not require this, and also if you have any specific dietary requests.
Limited assistance with travelling expenses may be available : please let us know if you will need to apply for this.
Advert to download for your noticeboard.
I would like to express my thanks to Mrs Judy Nesbit, Principal Examiner for OCR and teacher of Classics at the Royal Grammar School / Alice Ottley School in Worcester for her invaluable assistance with question-setting and marking.
Slideshow of Italian competition March 2008
More on the Italian competition
An account by one of the 2007 competitors, with slideshow.
Four slideshows from 2007
See last year's questions, which Classics teachers themselves think are really challenging!
2007 PRIZEWINNERS
Details of last year's competition in France
Please continue to check this website for updates about the arrangements and further details.