Just thought I'd stop by and write a little bit about two features of German schools that I've learned about this year--Klassenfahrten (class trips) and Kurstreffen (course get-togethers).
I already wrote about the class trip to Spain, which is called a Klassenfahrt in German. The whole class travels together generally every two or three years starting in the 5th or 6th grade. Popular destinations include Spain, France, Berlin, and Prague. Students experience culture and history during the day and the teachers have their hands full with mischevious students at night.
A get-together of all of the students and the teacher of a specific course, called a Kurstreffen, takes place in the higher grades of the schools. A course, for example the music course in the 12th grade, will meet up at someone's house or a bar, drink a beer, and converse. I was at my first Kurstreffen last Wednesday. It was held at a friend's house and turned out well.
The Kurstreffen illustrates a few differences between Germany and America that I've noticed all year. Germans and Americans deal with alcohol completely differently. In Germany, beer and wine are legal at age 16, spirits at age 18. It's not unusual for teenagers to have a few drinks with adults, and above all, alcohol is not nearly as taboo.
The result: a teacher drinking alcohol with students is a customary occurence in the higher grades once a school year at the Kurstreffen. I feel like something like that could get a teacher fired at an American school. It's really just a matter of different perspectives.
What do you think of Klassenfahrten and Kurstreffen? Would it be good for classes at American schools to travel for a week, or is it unfair to expect that all of the students pay so much to travel? Do course get-togethers blur the line between school life and personal life too much? Do these two activities contribute to a better school community?
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
23.2.08
Research Paper
I'm back! You can blame the short break in posting on the research paper that was due two days ago. In Nordrhein-Westfalen (the state I'm living in), every student in the 12th grade has to write a research paper through one of his or her courses on a specific topic.
One friend of mine, for example, wrote about music in film through his English class, meaning he wrote his whole research paper in English. Another wrote about epilepsy and seizures through his biology class. Through my history class, I wrote my Facharbeit about the expulsion of 12-16 million Germans after World War II, something that I knew nothing about before I came to Germany.
The topic is very controversial and is therefore very hard to summarize, but I'll give it a shot. Throughout history, there have been many groups of German-speaking populations spread throughout Central Europe. Even the wide borders of the German Empire founded in 1871, which were much different than those of the currentBundesrepublik, didn't contain all German-speaking populations in Europe.
Image from Wikipedia. Please click for a larger version.
In addition, Nazi Germany annexed Austria in March of 1938, the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia, which had a very high German population of over 3 million, in November of 1938, and finally the rest of the "Czech" part of Czechoslovakia in March of 1939.
Image from Wikipedia. Please click for a larger version. The red border corresponds to the border in the first picture, and the dotted bluish border is the border of Nazi Germany in the middle of the war in 1943, not including all of the occupied territories and puppet governments throughout Europe.
After invading Poland in 1939 and the start of World War II, Nazi Germany acquired even more terrritory. The Nazis forced Polish citizens from their homes and settled more Germans in this newly acquired territory.
Then came World War II with all of the horrible atrocities committed by Nazi Germany, above all the 6 million Jews and 6 million political dissidents, homosexuals, handicapped people, and other minorities killed during the Holocaust.
But as the war came to a close and it became clear that the Allies were going to win, the question arose, among others: what should be done with these German populations living in other countries?
Meanwhile, the advancing Red Army caused many Germans living in Eastern Europe to flee. The Allies then set new borders for Germany, which can be seen on the first map in this post. They then decided to expel the Germans from the areas outside of these borders. Families were given sometimes just hours' notice and told they could take whatever they could carry with them.
The numbers are highly disputed, but it's safe to say that at least 12 million ethnic Germans made the long journey from countries like Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the former Yugoslavia. They took whatever they could with them using makeshift wagons and horses.
Upon arrival in Germany, they encountered a situation no better than the one they had just left in Eastern Europe. The country lay in ruins, there were hardly any jobs and there was even less to eat. Most of the expellees sought a new home in West Germany in fear of the Russian government.
After the Wirtschaftswunder (econonomic miracle) in the 1950s, the expellees could finally find jobs and homes in Germany. The expulsion, as well as many other topics about World War II, was still a little bit taboo. It took a backseat to the national guilt about the Holocaust.
From Wikipedia, a picture of Germans expelled from the Sudetenland area in Czechoslovakia.
Now, one finds many families in which a grandparent or relative was expelled way back then, and the issue is no longer taboo. But it, along with all of the atrocities associated with World War II, still have a large impact on the German national identity, and they're something that the modern, democratic Germany really struggles with. Images like the one above are still a very meaningful part of German history.
So that's a short summary of the results of my 2,500 word research paper, and hopefully a good enough excuse for why I didn't post last week.
For the Americans, I'd be curious: who had already heard of this event before they read this blog? I knew absolutely nothing about it until I got here.
One friend of mine, for example, wrote about music in film through his English class, meaning he wrote his whole research paper in English. Another wrote about epilepsy and seizures through his biology class. Through my history class, I wrote my Facharbeit about the expulsion of 12-16 million Germans after World War II, something that I knew nothing about before I came to Germany.
The topic is very controversial and is therefore very hard to summarize, but I'll give it a shot. Throughout history, there have been many groups of German-speaking populations spread throughout Central Europe. Even the wide borders of the German Empire founded in 1871, which were much different than those of the currentBundesrepublik, didn't contain all German-speaking populations in Europe.
Image from Wikipedia. Please click for a larger version.
In addition, Nazi Germany annexed Austria in March of 1938, the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia, which had a very high German population of over 3 million, in November of 1938, and finally the rest of the "Czech" part of Czechoslovakia in March of 1939.
Image from Wikipedia. Please click for a larger version. The red border corresponds to the border in the first picture, and the dotted bluish border is the border of Nazi Germany in the middle of the war in 1943, not including all of the occupied territories and puppet governments throughout Europe.
After invading Poland in 1939 and the start of World War II, Nazi Germany acquired even more terrritory. The Nazis forced Polish citizens from their homes and settled more Germans in this newly acquired territory.
Then came World War II with all of the horrible atrocities committed by Nazi Germany, above all the 6 million Jews and 6 million political dissidents, homosexuals, handicapped people, and other minorities killed during the Holocaust.
But as the war came to a close and it became clear that the Allies were going to win, the question arose, among others: what should be done with these German populations living in other countries?
Meanwhile, the advancing Red Army caused many Germans living in Eastern Europe to flee. The Allies then set new borders for Germany, which can be seen on the first map in this post. They then decided to expel the Germans from the areas outside of these borders. Families were given sometimes just hours' notice and told they could take whatever they could carry with them.
The numbers are highly disputed, but it's safe to say that at least 12 million ethnic Germans made the long journey from countries like Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the former Yugoslavia. They took whatever they could with them using makeshift wagons and horses.
Upon arrival in Germany, they encountered a situation no better than the one they had just left in Eastern Europe. The country lay in ruins, there were hardly any jobs and there was even less to eat. Most of the expellees sought a new home in West Germany in fear of the Russian government.
After the Wirtschaftswunder (econonomic miracle) in the 1950s, the expellees could finally find jobs and homes in Germany. The expulsion, as well as many other topics about World War II, was still a little bit taboo. It took a backseat to the national guilt about the Holocaust.
From Wikipedia, a picture of Germans expelled from the Sudetenland area in Czechoslovakia.
Now, one finds many families in which a grandparent or relative was expelled way back then, and the issue is no longer taboo. But it, along with all of the atrocities associated with World War II, still have a large impact on the German national identity, and they're something that the modern, democratic Germany really struggles with. Images like the one above are still a very meaningful part of German history.
So that's a short summary of the results of my 2,500 word research paper, and hopefully a good enough excuse for why I didn't post last week.
For the Americans, I'd be curious: who had already heard of this event before they read this blog? I knew absolutely nothing about it until I got here.
14.9.07
Janusz-Korczak Gesamtschule
Hello all and I'm writing today with good news! I'm leaving later today for the class trip to Barcelona, Spain. They found space for me, so I'll be able to celebrate my 18th birthday next Friday in Barcelona. Not to mention that the scholarship picks up the tab for a class trip. But before that, I'm going to Bielefeld this afternoon for another Arminia Bielefeld game. There's just such atmosphere in the stadium, I can't get enough of it. I'm also looking to go to the stadiums in Dortmund and Munich sometime this year.
Speaking of my class trip, school, and a smooth segue, I took some
pictures of my school.
"Janusz-Korczak Gesamtschule : Ohne Kinder wäre Nacht"
(Janusz Korczak was a children's author, teacher, and ran an orphanage during WW2. "Ohne Kinder wäre Nacht" translates directly to "Without children would be night")
Instead of a big parking lot (or a not big enough parking lot, as the case was at my school in America), they have lots of bike racks. A bike is a lot more a means of transportation and a lot less a hobby here.
You may have noticed the word "Gesamtschule" at the end of the name of the school. I'll explain this, but first a step back with a more general look at the German secondary education system, or at least what I understand of it at this point. Those of you who know more than I do about this, please let me know if I'm mistaken.
In Germany, the secondary school system is stratified after kindergarten and four to six years (depending on the state) of elementary school. The students are then divided based on the recommendation of the teacher and move on to Gymnasium (8-9 years), for the strongest students who will complete the Abitur (end of high school test) and go on to study at a university, Realschule (6 years), for intermediate students, or Hauptschule (6 years), for students who will pursue vocational education.
A Gesamtschule is a combination of all three. Some students leave after the Abschluss in 10th grade, which is the end of mandatory education. They then pursue vocational training, internships, or work. Other students continue and work towards their Abitur and continue their studies at a university.
It's hard to describe in text and it still looks convulted in a picture. What do you think? Is it better to have specific schools to prepare students for specific paths? Or is it unfair to judge a student after elementary school? Which system do you think serves the students better?
Speaking of my class trip, school, and a smooth segue, I took some
pictures of my school.
"Janusz-Korczak Gesamtschule : Ohne Kinder wäre Nacht"
(Janusz Korczak was a children's author, teacher, and ran an orphanage during WW2. "Ohne Kinder wäre Nacht" translates directly to "Without children would be night")
Instead of a big parking lot (or a not big enough parking lot, as the case was at my school in America), they have lots of bike racks. A bike is a lot more a means of transportation and a lot less a hobby here.
You may have noticed the word "Gesamtschule" at the end of the name of the school. I'll explain this, but first a step back with a more general look at the German secondary education system, or at least what I understand of it at this point. Those of you who know more than I do about this, please let me know if I'm mistaken.
In Germany, the secondary school system is stratified after kindergarten and four to six years (depending on the state) of elementary school. The students are then divided based on the recommendation of the teacher and move on to Gymnasium (8-9 years), for the strongest students who will complete the Abitur (end of high school test) and go on to study at a university, Realschule (6 years), for intermediate students, or Hauptschule (6 years), for students who will pursue vocational education.
A Gesamtschule is a combination of all three. Some students leave after the Abschluss in 10th grade, which is the end of mandatory education. They then pursue vocational training, internships, or work. Other students continue and work towards their Abitur and continue their studies at a university.
It's hard to describe in text and it still looks convulted in a picture. What do you think? Is it better to have specific schools to prepare students for specific paths? Or is it unfair to judge a student after elementary school? Which system do you think serves the students better?
25.8.07
Settling in
So I'm settling in here more and more in Rheda. School is slowing down to a regular pace and it's becoming less and less of a strain to understand everything going on in class. I can understand more and more of songs in German that I've listened to for months. Immersing myself in the language is really helping my comprehension.
I'm now teaching three times a week at school and it's turning out to be a lot of fun. Two times a week I have an English class and once a week I teach a cultural studies class. The students seem to enjoy it and it's rewarding for me. It's also good to be able to present my view of America and the world to students who usually only experience it filtered through mass media.
Now for some pictures...
Some of Friday afternoon and Saturday morning was spent with the host cousins. They are really cute, very energetic, and a lot of fun. We played the Swedish lawn game Kubb, which is actually really popular here in Germany (shout out to Bojö).
I spent Saturday afternoon and night in Bielefeld with my host sisters and my host brother. First we went to see a Bundesliga (German professional football [soccer] league) match between Hertha Berlin and my new favorite DSC Arminia Bielefeld.
Before kickoff, everyone singing.
Bielefeld scores! 1:0. DSC Arminia Bielefeld ended up winning 2:0 and was in 2nd place at the end of the day. I hope all of us Bielefeld fans took pictures, because that won't last too long, the 30-plus game season is only just underway.
Just a map with Rheda-Wiedenbrück marked. The dark points are larger cities. Just southwest of me you can see the Ruhrgebiet, a highly industrialized area of Germany.
That's about it. As always, feel free to comment, and keep in touch.
I'm now teaching three times a week at school and it's turning out to be a lot of fun. Two times a week I have an English class and once a week I teach a cultural studies class. The students seem to enjoy it and it's rewarding for me. It's also good to be able to present my view of America and the world to students who usually only experience it filtered through mass media.
Now for some pictures...
Some of Friday afternoon and Saturday morning was spent with the host cousins. They are really cute, very energetic, and a lot of fun. We played the Swedish lawn game Kubb, which is actually really popular here in Germany (shout out to Bojö).
I spent Saturday afternoon and night in Bielefeld with my host sisters and my host brother. First we went to see a Bundesliga (German professional football [soccer] league) match between Hertha Berlin and my new favorite DSC Arminia Bielefeld.
Before kickoff, everyone singing.
Bielefeld scores! 1:0. DSC Arminia Bielefeld ended up winning 2:0 and was in 2nd place at the end of the day. I hope all of us Bielefeld fans took pictures, because that won't last too long, the 30-plus game season is only just underway.
Just a map with Rheda-Wiedenbrück marked. The dark points are larger cities. Just southwest of me you can see the Ruhrgebiet, a highly industrialized area of Germany.
That's about it. As always, feel free to comment, and keep in touch.
21.8.07
Rheda
Hello, hello! Here I am with my second post from my host family here in Rheda. The last week (and a couple days) has been a whirlwind of activity while at the same time a tremendous experience so far.
Last last Saturday (the 11th) I took a train from Geisenheim (where we had the orientation camp) to Rheda, where my host family was waiting for me at the train station to pick me up. Once we got home we sat in their beautiful backyard garden, ate, relaxed, and got to know each other a little better.
About 36 hours after I first arrived here I got up for my first day of school. Somehow the day before a blood vessel in my eye popped at the local swimming pool. I was ecstatic to be going to school the first day with a slightly swollen, bright red eye. But I figured there wasn't much I could change about it (plus when I smile no one can see my eyes anyway) so I went on to school.
Fabian, my host brother who has awesome hair, and I on the first day of school. Note the apple and sandwich mama packed, and the cultural difference, like the picture with Alex in an earlier post, about when to smile in pictures.
As far as school goes, the kids are in general nice and very hospitable. I don't have any course requirements but I have tests and grades just like any other student there. I'm taking courses in philosophy, music, German, English, education, SoWi (kind of like psychology/economics), computer science, and a beginning Spanish course with the grade below me. I'm also helping teach a 10th grade English class two times a week which is turning out to be a lot of fun. My grade is going on a class trip to Barcelona at the end of September, and it's possible there will be space for me on the bus. The scholarship I'm here with allots a certain amount of money for class trips, but we'll have to see...
There's just so many topics here that I could post about, but that's about it for the overview. Feel free to comment, email, ICQ, facebook, or whatever. Just keep in mind with the comments that this is a very public blog. People of all ages on both sides of the Atlantic check in. Take it easy!
Last last Saturday (the 11th) I took a train from Geisenheim (where we had the orientation camp) to Rheda, where my host family was waiting for me at the train station to pick me up. Once we got home we sat in their beautiful backyard garden, ate, relaxed, and got to know each other a little better.
About 36 hours after I first arrived here I got up for my first day of school. Somehow the day before a blood vessel in my eye popped at the local swimming pool. I was ecstatic to be going to school the first day with a slightly swollen, bright red eye. But I figured there wasn't much I could change about it (plus when I smile no one can see my eyes anyway) so I went on to school.
Fabian, my host brother who has awesome hair, and I on the first day of school. Note the apple and sandwich mama packed, and the cultural difference, like the picture with Alex in an earlier post, about when to smile in pictures.
As far as school goes, the kids are in general nice and very hospitable. I don't have any course requirements but I have tests and grades just like any other student there. I'm taking courses in philosophy, music, German, English, education, SoWi (kind of like psychology/economics), computer science, and a beginning Spanish course with the grade below me. I'm also helping teach a 10th grade English class two times a week which is turning out to be a lot of fun. My grade is going on a class trip to Barcelona at the end of September, and it's possible there will be space for me on the bus. The scholarship I'm here with allots a certain amount of money for class trips, but we'll have to see...
There's just so many topics here that I could post about, but that's about it for the overview. Feel free to comment, email, ICQ, facebook, or whatever. Just keep in mind with the comments that this is a very public blog. People of all ages on both sides of the Atlantic check in. Take it easy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
