The results of the orthographic competition “Dictation 2015”

“These people like Polish, they speak Polish correctly, they like to read in Polish and have… mathematical talents” – said organizers of the competition about competitors. 50 pupils from 5-9 grades from Vilnius schools took part in the 8th edition of the competition. The final part of the competition took place in Szymon Konarski’s High School.

The orthographic competition has been organized by Koło Metodyczne Polonistów Miasta Wilna (the Club of the Vilnius Teachers of Polish) for several years now. Only the best pupils participate in the final part of the competition, one pupil from each school from each grade; they are the winners of the school level competitions.

“The texts were a bit more difficult than those pupils deal with on everyday basis at schools. There were some mistakes, it is unavoidable. Younger pupils made more mistakes, they have a lot to learn but their orthographic skills will be much better each year. Competitions such as this are indeed a school of hard knocks – undoubtedly a huge stress, but when defeated leads to better results” – said as a conclusion the chairperson of the jury Czesława Osipowicz, the teacher of Polish from the John Paul II’s Secondary School in Vilnius.

The fewer mistakes – actually only a half of a mistake – made Sebastian Salwiński, the 9th grade winner. The boy comes from the family of the teachers of Polish and according to teachers “one can feel it”. However, someone made 23,5 mistakes.

According to the teacher of Polish Lucyna Jaglińska, a mother of the 7th grade award winner – Aneta Jaglińska, it is difficult to assess whether the good knowledge of Polish depends mostly on the family or the school.

“It is difficult to assess what plays the decisive role. Every case is individual. Very often a mediocre child may achieve great results under the influence of a very good teacher and the other way roubd” said Lucyna Jaglińska. And what kinds of pupils participate in the competition?

“These people like Polish, they speak Polish correctly; after all it is unlikely for those who don’t speak correctly to write correctly. These people must like to read a lot, must have mathematical talents, must be able to apply logic. Nevertheless, dictation is always a lottery. Sometimes the final classification depends on one comma or someone having a bad day. Of course, there are pupils who make more frequent mistakes, but the names of the winners are often reoccurring” – underlined the teacher.

The jury announced three winners for each age category. The awards for the winners were funded by the Association of Poles in Lithuania – coupons for books from the bookstore of the Polish House in Vilnius.

“I think that the all the competitors, not only the award winners, will remember the experience they gained during the competition. How to write “na przykład” (transl. note: Polish for ‘for example’) or “naprawdę” (transl. note: Polish for ‘for real’/’really’) (transl. note: these are the examples of the often misspelled Polish words, i.e. ‘naprzykład’* or ‘na prawdę’*). I remember the olympiad that I competed in as a pupil. These were beautiful lessons, beautiful events. It is good that you broaden your knowledge, participate in the competitions, because we learn the world through our mother language” – congratulated the competitors Michał Mackiewicz, the chairperson of the Associaton of Poles in Lithuania.

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The „Dictation 2015” award winners
5th grade
1. Agnė Skubilovaitė, John Paul II’s Secondary School, teacher Lilia Tomaszewicz
2. Justyna Mieszkuniec, A. Wiwulski’s Agency of J. Lelewel’s High School, teacher Wiesława Mieszkuniec
3. Patrycja Łuksza, Szymon Konarski’s High School, teacher Jolanta Pacyno
6th grade
1. Reta Samonczyk, Szymon Konarski’s High School, teacher Jolanta Pacyno
2. Małgorzata Patrycja Minkel, John Paul II’s Secondary School, teacher Irena Szostak
3. Bartosz Borowski, Adam Mickiewicz’s Secondary School, teacher Elwira Bielawska
7th grade
1. Aneta Jaglińska, Szymon Konarski’s High School, teacher Lucyna Jaglińska
2. Łukasz Skórko, Wł. Syrkomla’s High School, teacher Danuta Korkus
3. Karina Masewicz, J. Lelewel’s High School, teacher Oswald Kuźmicki
8th grade
1. Emma Sinkevičiūtė, Szymon Konarski’s High School, teacher Jolanta Pacyno
2. Damian Michalczonok, J.I. Kraszewski’s Secondary School, teacher Wanda Andruszaniec
3. Katarzyna Jachimowicz, A. Wiwulski’s Agency of J. Lelewel’s High, teacher Regina Sinkiewicz
9th grade
1. Sebastian Salwiński, John Paul II’s Secondary School, teacher Anna Jasińska
2. Barbara Chatinowska, Wł. Syrkomla’s High School, teacher Danuta Korkus
3. Donat Jurewicz, J.I. Kraszewski’s Secondary School, teacher Łucja Czetyrkowska