French BELC member popularises Europe through a language challenge

Every year, secondary school students in Hauts-de-France, the northernmost region of France have the chance to win a trip to Brussels and discover European institutions. How do they have the opportunity to be selected? By taking part in a dictation competition!

The regional authority of La Somme and the Europe Direct Centre Hauts-de-France, organise annually ‘Ze Dictée’ , the dictation competition that is open to secondary schools to mark the European Day of Languages, observed on 26 September each year.

BELC member Isabelle de Waziers, who is also La Somme’s Vice President for Europe has a key role in this initiative. This year, she has organised the competition together with Valérie Devaux, county councillor for La Somme and Member of the European Parliament. On the dictation day, they welcomed students, answered questions and made sure that everything ran smoothly.

The annual competition that was launched in 2022 with just 50 participating pupils, has aimed to promote Europe through language learning and openness to other cultures. Thus, the dictation comes each year in four of the leading languages of Europe: English, German, Spanish and Italian. The 2024 edition that took place at the Université de Picardie Jules Verne attracted a record number of 1,500 participants. The popularity and the year-on-year growth is a proof that Europe, in all its linguistic diversity, appeals to young people.