Germany in Class
May 28, 2010

Editorial

Dear Educators,

Welcome to the May 2010 edition of "Germany in Class!" With June around the corner, summer is one of the primary thoughts in minds across the United States. The last of the proms are underway and graduation for seniors is just around the corner. Most colleges have already sent their newly minted graduates into the world. Teachers and professors alike can rejoice that another summer has arrived. While it doesn't always mean getting the break we want, summer at least means slowing down a little bit.

We're very excited to announce the winners of the 2010 German Information Center Annual Essay Contest! Thank you to everyone who sent in an essay! Several hundred students from American schools around the world participated and the jury had a hard time narrowing the finalists down. With just a single first place for each level and then only ten honorable mentions, there just wasn't enough spaces to honor all of the excellent entries. A special thanks goes out to all of the teachers who motivated their students to participate. Each first place winner and his/her teacher will receive an amazon.com e-certificate. All of the honorable mentions- and their teachers!- will receive goody bags from Germany.info. Want to know who won? Check out the winners below!

Today also marks the relaunch of "Germany for Kids." Philipp felt that he needed a makeover of sorts after Katja stepped into the scene and so the sibling rivalry began! Philipp prepared his section carefully over the last few months and has plans to keep it fresh and interesting far into the future. He may not blog like his sister, but he can still introduce kids everywhere to life in Germany and include everything from daily life and school to holidays and other special events. Head over to "Germany for Kids" and check him out!

Sincerely,

Jennifer Clardy

dz-12[at]germanembassy.us

"Germany in Class" is looking for a few good educators to share their wealth of knowledge! Have a great classroom idea of your own that is begging to be shared? It can a lesson plan or article that provides food for thought. Send it to dz-12[at]germanembassy.us and if your lesson plan is featured in "Germany in Class," you'll receive a gift bag full of Germany Info goodies for your own classroom!

Annual Essay Contest Winners
"Germany for Kids" Relaunch!
German Language
Social Studies
Announcements
 

Annual Essay Contest Winners

Imagine how the Earth would be in 50 years if no one cared about it. There would be a toxic waste dump all over the world. The Eiffel Tower would be covered in trash. The great pyramid of Giza would be a big dirt hill. I doubt anyone/thing would be alive because of the lack of food and global warming would burn everything up. Sapce would be covered in trash. Huge dust clouds would blow every once in a while. The whole world would look like it did in the movie Wall-E. If they had the technology to make giant space ships and hover chairs then all there would be is fat people in space. Imagine the North Pole. It would be a whole new ocean. Everwhere on or near the equator would burn up. Even under water would be hot! A worm would probably disintegrate when it burrowed up out of the dry soil. The equator would cause cracks in the earth because of the heat. There would either be bigger tsunamis because of the water level or your eyes would burn because of the salt blowing in your eyes due to salt water evaporation. I bet the bottom of Marianas trench would break off. The crust would be much much much thinner! It might even get as thing as an apple's skin! It would be like in the movie 2012 where the Earth heated up a lot, volcanoes exploded, tsunamis broke aircraft carriers in half, and gigantic earthquakes happened because of the Earth's core tearing colossal cracks in the Earth. I hope more people start recycling and more people help scientists make things produce les poluttion. This is important if people want to live here any longer. Even if the Earth is not here in 50 years we MUST start doing simple things like unplugging items that are not being used. Turnning off the light when leaving a roon. Whenever I leave a room I made it a habit to reach out and turn off the light even when I am only coming out for a minute or two. That is why we need to start caring for the Earth.

by: Jonathan Wright

Teacher: Jason Palmer

(© Jonathan Wright)

Jonathan Wright is in 5th Grade at The Sullivans School (DoDEA) in Yokosuka, Japan. He will be turning 11 on May 29th, so the entire "Germany in Class" team wishes him a very Happy Birthday! In school Jonthan's favorite subject is Science and he especially enjoys Biology. When not in school, Jonathan likes practicing basball and "doing stuff" on the computer. Righ now he think he would like to be either a musician or a lawyer when he grows up. Jonathan gathered ideas for his essay from a number of places: movies, museum visits with his mother and his Geology teacher. Congratulations, Jonathan!

If nothing more is done to protect the environment from the harmful pollutants humans are generating, climate changes may occur. There would be many changes to my daily life caused by climate change. One change that could occur is that when I wake up in the morning and look out the window, it may not be clear enough for me to see the sun. Not because of clouds, but because of smog. According to ScienceDaily, Smog is a kind of air pollution that “can inflame breathing passages, decrease the lungs’ working capacity, cause shortness of breath, pain when inhaling deeply, wheezing, and coughing.” Smog is appearing in many cities around the world; mostly large cities that have a large amount of cars and other things that emit dangerous fumes, like factories.

If the environment is not protected from pollution, when I walk outside and looked around, I will definitely see a very large amount of pollution. Air pollution, such as the fumes released by cars, tobacco, and the combustion of coal; water pollution, like sewage, pesticide runoff from agricultural areas, and waste discharged from factories; and land pollution, like soil pollution (herbicides and pesticides), and waste disposal are all types of potential pollution that I would see if nothing was being done to stop creating these things.

In the backyard, my dad’s rose garden would surely be different. From all of the pollution, the rose bushes would be growing smaller; the roses would not be as high quality. Air pollution blocking the sun and coating the leaves of the roses, as well as pollution absorbed in the water would make the rose bushes less able to use carbon dioxide and water to produce their food (Grosvenor, C.). Trees would also not be able to get as much sunlight, and they would be less healthy. Life exists on Earth largely because of the ability of plants to produce oxygen. Without the radiant energy from the sun, plants will not be able to engage in photosynthesis (using carbon dioxide and water to produce food, and releasing oxygen).

Without environmental protection I would also notice different weather conditions. “In 2007, a United Nations panel of 2,500 scientists from 130 countries concluded that temperatures are likely to rise 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit (3 degrees Celsius) by the year 2100” (Gourley, Bruce). Some others, though, believe that global warming is not genuine. If it is true that the temperature of the Earth is rising, then our polar ice caps are melting. While 5.4 degrees may not seem like a very large temperature increase, it would significantly affect a lot of plants and animals. Over many centuries, plants and animals have evolved to survive in their current environments. Most plants and animals do not have the capability for quickly adapting to sudden changes in temperature. Plants, which are food for the animals, might die out in certain area because of temperature changes—the animals would then need to move, find different things to eat, or they would die.

Much more rain is also anticipated in coming decades as the ice caps melt (Gourley, Bruce). “Tropical hurricanes may actually become less frequent, according to a United Nations panel of scientists, but may nonetheless increase in severity. At the same time, drier weather is anticipated in much of the American West, especially in the Southwest” (Gourley, Bruce). Drier weather in an already dry place will have a negative effect on anything living there. Widespread drought would result in the death of many species in the area. As temperatures increase and the polar ice melts, there will be a loss of polar bear life because the bears depend on well-frozen ice to hunt seals. “Polar bears are in danger of becoming extinct, as the ice shelves disappear and they are forced to swim further distances, resulting in many drowning” (Gourley, Bruce). The loss of polar bears will lead to irreversible changes in Canadian Inuit life.

Animal life will be quite different if the environment is not protected. Climate change will have a large impact on the lives of many animals. As the planet grows ever warmer, and former cold zones give way to rising temperatures, plant and animal species are being affected.

“Wading birds such as the ringed plover now spend winters in the east of Britain rather than on the west coast. Harlequin frogs are dying, the result of a fungus spurred on by the warmer weather. Krill shrimp, the food of Adeline penguins, are decreasing in population because warmer ocean waters are killing algae, in turn shrinking the penguins' habitat. Monarch butterflies' migration path has changed. Cold water fish and arctic reefs are in danger from warmer sea temperatures.” (Gourley, Bruce)

Thankfully, there are things being done to help our environment. Without environmental protection, our world would be at the mercy of the pollutants which can destroy our plants, animals, and climate. If we continue to pollute the Earth, major changes to our way of life will occur.

References

Gourley, B. (2007). Climate change: Weather patterns. Retrieved April 11, 2010 from:

http://climatechange.ws/weather/

Grosvenor, C. (2010). Effects on Animals and Plants. Love to Know: Green Living. Retrieved April 11, 2010 from: http://greenliving.lovetoknow.com/Air_Pollution_Facts

ScienceDaily (2010). Smog. Retrieved April 11, 2010 from:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/articles/s/smog.htm

By: Dale Buhl

Teacher: Eva Miller

(© Dale Buhl)

Dale is in 8th Grade and takes German at Northview High School in Grand Rapids, MI. He is 14 years old and enjoys a wide variety of activities: soccer, reading, archery and physical fitness. Dale counts German, Math and History as his favorite subjects in school. He's not sure what career he wants, but has considered plenty of different jobs during career exploration sessions at school. Dale has big plans for the summer: exploring mathematics and mechanical engineering at Michigan State University's MST summer session. After his German teacher told him about the essay contest, Dale did lots of research and asked around his fmaily and friends for essay ideas. Congratulations, Dale! 

Imagine a world without any wildlife and plants. It is a dull brown color all the time; the sky is overcast with heavy gray clouds. The air smells of smog, dust, and gasoline. This is the world without climate change protection.

Climate change is an interesting topic because so much can be said about how our world is affected by this problem. The immediate problems we can see happening in our world are greenhouse gases, extremities in weather, and possibly others. Scientist believe automobile and factory emissions are the cause of greenhouse gases. This is because the emissions are able to trap the sun's rays in the atmosphere, and cause the rays to bounce back and forth from the earth's surface to the atmosphere. This is similar to what happens to a car in the summer when it is sitting in the sun. The earth can be compared to the car's interior, because the earth's temperature is increasing. This heating causes the polar ice caps to melt; this melting makes the ocean levels rise, which affects our weather patterns. This would incite hurricanes, tsunamis, extreme cold, large amounts of snow and rain, and much more. But simple steps can be taken to help stop, and possibly reverse climate change.

Germany has a very good example of a government on the forefront of climate protection. They have initiated many governmental acts and programs in order to help shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy. By using renewable energy such as wind power, solar energy, and other such sources, Germany has been able to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels by over 25%. Certain programs, such as the “CO2 Building Renovation Program” are helping by converting old buildings into new modern office buildings that use solar power. This would reduce energy used in buildings by as much as 90%, and would save about 36 tons of CO2 every year. Germany has also begun to invent automobiles, such as the Smart Car, which run on electricity. Another action which is taking place is the Transatlantic Climate Bridge. This is an agreement between Germany and the United States to help create cleaner sources of energy. This initiative will not only help our environment, but will also create new jobs.

If action is not taken to stop climate change, horrible consequences could occur. Automobile and factory emissions would continue to build up in the atmosphere, and the earth would heat up to unsafe levels. The polar ice caps would melt, causing the oceans to rise to extreme levels. This would initiate weather pattern changes which could potentially become catastrophic. Essentially, the earth would have its revenge on the human race for not being treated the way it should be.

In summation, climate change solutions would be beneficial for the human race overall. It would create jobs that we desperately need in this economy, and would help create new and better technology. The earth would be cleaner and greener with climate change protection.

By: Kristin Reed

Teacher: Emily Combs

(© Kristin Reed)

Kristin Reed is a 17-year-old junior at Teays Valley High School in Ashville, OH. Her favorite subjects in school are German, English and Band. In her free time, Kristin enjoys reading, writing, texting her friends, listening to music and walking in the park. She is planning a career in the english field, either writing or doing editorial work. Kristin came up with her essay idea after learning about the climate in science class and "pondering" what she believes the world would be like without climate protection after all she learned. Congratulations, Kristin!

Congratulations to all of the Honorable Mentions in the 2010 German Information Center Annual Essay Contest!

Thomas Arnold

9th Grade, Cherry Creek High School

Teacher: Susanne Smith

Gabriela Barnet

5th Grade, The Sullivans School

Teacher: Jason Palmer

George Cooper

6th Grade, Kaiserlautern Middle School

Teacher: Flipina Baumgartner

Courtney Benson

12th Grade, South Oldham High School

Teacher: Norman Effingham

Claire Gleason

9th Grade, Home Schooled

Teacher: Susan Gleason

Stephen Holton

12th Grade, Teays Valley High School

Teacher: Emily Combs

Merrick Misiewicz

5th Grade, The Sullivans School

Teacher: Jason Palmer

Colette Nicholas

8th Grade, Southeastern Middle School

Teacher: Joanna Wallace

Mallory Smith

9th Grade, Northview High School

Teacher: Eva Miller

Sara Steck

Teays Valley High School

Teacher: Emily Combs 

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"Germany for Kids" Relaunch!

(© German Information Center USA)

Philipp, the star of "Germany for Kids," got a makeover and is debuting his new look today on his website. Ever since his sister launched her "Germany for Teens" section, Philipp felt he needed to step up his game. And now he has!

"Germany for Kids" remains the best place to look for all that information students need to complete projects such as country reports, but now Philipp will talk more about his own life as a kid growing up in Germany. From food to sports to holidays and everything in between, Philipp will cover it all! Stay tuned throughout the summer and year as Philipp takes kids through all that Germany has to offer.

Want to check out Philipp's new look? "Germany for Kids" 

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German Language

Too many cases, too many genders, too many rules? Is German really so difficult? No, says bestseller writer Bastian Sick.

"Can you give ten good reasons for learning German?” I was asked recently in an interview.

“You want ten?” I replied, shocked.  “Does it have to be that many? I’d be happy if I could give you just three!”

There are more than 100 million people who have grown up with the German language if you count those living in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and the neighbouring regions--not exactly a tiny languague community. In fact, within Europe, German is the language with the most native speakers, even more than English or French.

But outside of Europe things look slightly different. In the list of universal languages German ranks behind English, Chinese, and Hindi, but it is still in the first twelve, clearly ahead of Japanese, Korean, and Finnish. Sorry, I should say “finish,” because that’s the end of my list.

When students in other countries, such as Spain or France, have to choose between German and another foreign language, they often opt for the other one. German is not exactly the most popular language.

When you ask why this is, the response is often that German is not particularly easy. Too many cases, too many genders, too many rules, too many exceptions. That puts people off! But that should in fact be an especially good reason for learning German. Who wants to do something that’s easy? After all, anyone can do easy things. But if you are fluent in German, you can do something special, something that not everyone can do – not even every German. Among languages English is the world's Volkswagen, but German is the Rolls Royce.

Another of the most common preconceptions about the German language maintains that it doesn’t have a very attractive sound. It’s by no means as melodious as French, not as soft as English, not as lively as Italian, not as melancholy as Russian, and not as aggressive as Japanese. German, they say, sounds more like a cement mixer, or like a gaggle of geese who have just raced into a tree in a stolen cement mixer.

But anyone who devotes a little more attention to the German language will find a wonderful, powerful beauty in the sonorous interplay of the syllables. And, as with every language, it’s a matter of who is speaking it, and how. It’s not what you say, but how you say it.

This is also one of the reasons why German was the leading language of music for a long time. From Johann Sebastian Bach to Johann Strauss: German was, and still is, one of the most important languages on the world’s opera and concert stages. German is unavoidable if you happen to be studying classical singing. But pop music can be just as good a reason for learning German. Music was the reason I learned French, and it can work the other way round as well.

Good reasons for learning German

The best way to find out what's so great about German is to ask people who have embarked on the hazardous enterprise themselves, and they can be found all around the globe: in France, in Spain, in Russia, in Poland, in the Netherlands, in Denmark, in Chile, in Argentina, in Africa, in China, and even in Baden-Württemberg (“we’re good at everything, except high German”).

“Germany is a fantastic country!” enthused an elderly lady recently when I was in Buenos Aires, “You have so much culture, so many interesting cities, so many different landscapes, the best infrastructure!”

“By that I suppose you mean the autobahns?” I asked.

She smiled and replied: “I meant the pharmacies! There’s a pharmacy every 50 metres. No other country in the world offers that!”

For many young people in other parts of the world Germany is the gateway to a secure future. The number of those applying for scholarships to study in Germany is steadily growing. Business studies, mechanical engineering, medicine, or the humanities – whatever the subject, Germany is a popular place to study.

For many others, Germany is a vital workplace. German opens doors to successful careers in the German-speaking countries and beyond, in places where there are German companies, or where German tourists romp around the world.

When I asked my French friend Suzanne why she had learned German, she said: “Ze reason I learnt German? Despite ze complicated grammer and ze ’ard pronunciation? I will tell you ze secret: my reason was big and blue-eyed and ’is name was Martin. ’e was 24 and we met on ze beach in Biarritz. Hmmm! Zer was no better reason to learn German in ze ’ole wide world!”

And if anyone still isn’t satisfied, I’ve compiled a list with ten more reasons for learning German:

1. So you can understand the lyrics of Tokio Hotel songs and sing along with the right pronunciation.

2. So you can write a love letter to Bill Kaulitz (Tokio Hotel singer).

3. So you don’t have to squint at the subtitles when watching German TV series, such as Derrick, Ein Fall für zwei, and Sturm der Liebe.

4. So you can impress your friends with words like Fussballweltmeisterschaftsendrundenteilnehmer or Überschallgeschwindigkeitsflugzeug.

5. So you can read Goethe in the original. And of course, not just Goethe but all the other classics in German literature, including Heinz Erhardt, Wilhelm Busch and Loriot.

6. So you will be able, as a Porsche driver, not only to flaunt it to everyone, but also to tell them that your car isn’t called a “Porsch” or a “Porschie.”

7. So that, if you happen to be a cleaner, you can understand serious warnings on German household substances, for instance Augenkontakt unbedingt vermeiden! or Dämpfe nicht einatmen!

8. So you can say in German at the Bambi awards: “Ich danke meinen Eltern! Und allen Leuten von Sony Music! Und natürlich meinem Publikum! Ihr seid so ­ wundervoll! Ich liebe euch alle!”

9. So you can ask questions in German, if you happen to be a foreign journalist at a press conference in Germany.

10. So you can get the role of the villain in the next James Bond film. 

by: Bastian Sick

Source: Young Germany

(© picture-alliance)

Der Frühling ist eine merkwürdige Jahreszeit in Deutschland: Es ist die einzige Zeit im Jahr, zu der es keine größere Verkaufsaktion in den Läden gibt.

Der Winterschlussverkauf endet Anfang März, und mit dem Sommerschlussverkauf kann es schon Anfang Juni losgehen – je nachdem, wann die Schulferien beginnen. Der als "Herbstaktion"  betitelte Herbstschlussverkauf zieht sich bis Weihnachten. Fast könnte man meinen, die Deutschen griffen nur in die Tasche, wenn ihnen 40 Prozent Preisnachlass gewiss sind. Aber im Frühling ist alles anders. Dann müssen die Deutschen auf ihr altbewährtes Sparverhalten zurückgreifen.

Nehmen wir einmal meinen Freund und Nachbarn Rainer. Er ist 69, mittlerweile in Rente, doch immer noch ein erfolgreicher Geschäftsmann. Vor seinem Haus stehen drei Autos, alle von BMW, denn so bekommt er Rabatt. Jeden zweiten Samstag fährt er mit einem dieser BMW 40 Minuten quer durch Berlin zur Keksfabrik von Bahlsen. Dort kauft er Keksbruch (sogenannte "Kekse 2"). Das kann ich durchaus nachvollziehen, denn Anfang der Sechzigerjahre fuhren meine Eltern immer mit mir zur Bahlsen-Fabrik in Hannover-Linden, und ich erinnere mich noch an den süßen Backduft, der die Straße hinunterwehte. Das war die Ära, in der die Menschen unter dem Eindruck des Krieges und verschiedener Nachkriegs-Engpässe noch Verpackungsschnur aufbewahrten.
Das Schamgefühl ist verschwunden

Diese Sparmentalität wurde nie völlig überwunden, und nun kommt man wieder auf sie zurück, nicht nur, weil es Frühling ist, sondern weil die Leute durch die Finanzkrise merken, dass das Geld knapp ist. Deutschland hat dem Konsumsoziologen Kai-Uwe Hellmann zufolge im europäischen Vergleich die geringsten Gewinnmargen im Einzelhandel.

Der Discounter Aldi beispielsweise versorgt seit 1945 die zahlreichen Deutschen, die sich nichts aus fescher Werbung oder Markenprodukten machen. Wer bei Aldi einkauft, fischt No-Name-Kartoffelchipstüten aus braunen Kartons, denn der Discounter kann die Preise deshalb niedrig halten, weil er auf Regalauffüllkräfte verzichtet. Keiner behauptet, dass ein Einkauf bei Aldi ein Genuss für die Sinne sei. Das Unternehmen wurde von den Brüdern Karl und Theo Albrecht gegründet (Aldi steht für Albrecht-Discounter), und seit dem Bestehen sind die Läden so aufgebaut, dass man darin mit geschlossenen Augen einkaufen kann. Der Kaffee steht links neben dem Eingang, dann kommt die Marmelade, dann die Kekse – gleich gegenüber vom Weinregal. Die beiden Brüder, die zu den reichsten Männern Deutschlands geworden sind, teilten das Land unter sich auf, denn Karl wollte keine Zigaretten bei Aldi vertreiben. Also übernahm Karl den Süden und verbannte den Tabak aus seinen Geschäften. Theo hingegen war für den Norden zuständig und verkaufte Zigaretten.

Aldi stand jahrelang als Synonym für Armut. Doch dann wurde offensichtlich, dass die Mittelschicht hier einkaufte und Lebensmittel, Getränke und Putzmittel in Tüten von schickeren oder teureren Läden stopfte. Durch die Finanzkrise im Jahr 2008 wurde sogar diese kleine Finte überflüssig. Das Schamgefühl ist verschwunden – die absolute Notwendigkeit, die Lebenshaltungskosten zu senken, hat es vertrieben.

Schnäppchen jagen

Dieser Trend wird in meiner gut situierten Straße in Berlin nur allzu offenbar. Da ist nicht nur Rainer, der Kekse zweiter Wahl kauft. Ein Nachbar ist Stammgast auf der Fundsachen-Versteigerung, die von den Berliner Verkehrsbetrieben organisiert wird. Er ist auf Schirme fixiert. In den Sechzigerjahren wäre es nicht schwer gewesen, ein Reparaturgeschäft für einen kaputten Schirm zu finden. Heute kauft mein Nachbar auf diesen Auktionen gleich zehn billige Schirme auf einmal. Doch das Ausbessern kommt wieder in Mode. Schneidergeschäfte florieren im ganzen Land.

Zumindest in den Städten trifft das auch auf Reparaturwerkstätten für DVD-Player und Mobiltelefone zu. Noch vor zwei Jahren hätte man diese Geräte einfach weggeworfen, wenn sie nicht mehr funktioniert hätten. Und die sogenannte Schnäppchenjagd ist zu einem natürlichen Zeitvertreib geworden. Die Engländer jagen Füchse (oder würden es gern), die Schweden jagen Elche, und die Deutschen jagen Puma-Trainingsanzüge mit einem Preisnachlass von 30 Prozent. Eine Familie in unserer Straße plante die Rückreise aus dem jährlichen Skiurlaub immer so, dass sie ein paar Stunden in der Adidas-Fabrik in Herzogenaurach verbringen konnte, um verbilligte Turnschuhe für die Kinder zu kaufen. Dieses Jahr wurde der Skiurlaub ganz gestrichen.

Also lässt sich ein Muster erkennen: Die Deutschen haben eine natürliche Veranlagung, das Geld zusammenzuhalten, und fühlen sich in Zeiten der Krise schuldig, wenn sie es für etwas ausgeben, das man für eine Verschwendung halten könnte. Ist das Geiz oder gutes Wirtschaften? Der sorgsame Umgang mit Geld galt immer als deutsche Tugend; im Mittelalter wählten die Männer sich die Frauen nach der Fähigkeit aus, gesunde Erben zur Welt bringen und geschickt mit dem Haushaltsgeld umgehen zu können. Manchmal fragt man sich, ob ähnliche Prinzipien immer noch gelten. Was den Geiz anbelangt – der wird nicht länger als ein Laster angesehen. Ein augenscheinlich erfolgreicher Werbeslogan eines deutschen Elektrofachmarktes, der Verbrauchergeräte zu relativ günstigen Preisen vertreibt, lautet "Geiz ist geil!". Natürlich ist Geiz keinesfalls geil, aber er ist auch nichts Anstößiges.

Genetisch bedingte Sparsamkeit

"Diese starke Fixierung auf den Preis ist typisch deutsch", sagt der Soziologe Hellmann. Die Franzosen sind bereit, mehr Geld für gutes Essen auszugeben, die Italiener und Spanier vertrauen auf und pflegen ihre Tante-Emma-Läden, die zwar teurer, aber dafür persönlicher sind, und für die Briten tragen Discounter den Stempel der Unterschicht.

Hier ist also eine psychologische Erklärung dafür, warum sich die deutsche Wirtschaftspolitik so schwer beeinflussen lässt. Die USA und andere Bündnispartner drängen die deutsche Regierung dazu, den Inlandsverbrauch anzukurbeln, anstatt sich nur auf den Lorbeeren des Export-Weltmeisters (oder nun Vizeweltmeisters nach China) auszuruhen. "Verbraucht mehr, kauft mehr, importiert mehr!", so kritisiert man die Deutschen. Die Erholung der europäischen Wirtschaft hängt davon ab, dass die Deutschen mehr Geld in den Läden lassen. Aber wird es dazu kommen? Wahrscheinlich nicht. Sparsamkeit ist nicht nur eine deutsche Tugend – sie scheint dem Land auch in den Genen zu liegen. Und die Deutschen fangen sogar an, mich zu bekehren: Zerbrochene Kekse schmecken genauso gut wie ganze und kosten nur die Hälfte.

Quelle: Goethe.de

2009-2010 AATG Executive Council

(© AATG)

The American Association of Teachers of German (AATG) represents the interests of some 5,500 teachers in the United States. A conversation with AATG President Carol Anne Costabile-Heming

Professor Costabile-Heming, what kind of reputation does the German language have in the United States?

It’s still very good. On the one hand, it’s rooted in the history of German immigrants to the US. That’s why German is still traditionally cultivated in states like Kentucky and Ohio. But German as a foreign language also attracts a lot of people for very practical, present-day reasons. Germany is a very interesting economic partner for the USA where brands like Siemens, BASF, Volkswagen and Mercedes are household names. German companies invest a great deal in the United States. Anyone interested in finding out more about them is well-equipped if they speak German. But Germany is an important partner for the USA in international relations as well, for instance in the area of security policy. All this makes the language additionally attractive. And German can also play an important role as a “mediating language.” Take the example of Eastern Europe or Russia. If exchanges don’t work in Russian or English, then German is often the key to better mutual understanding.

What kind of cultural attraction does German have?

A young woman contemplates a bust of J.S. Bach.

(© picture-alliance/ ZB )

It naturally has a great cultural attraction. It’s almost impossible to look into philosophy without encountering the influence of German intellectuals. People who have mastered German can read such things freely without having to rely on the interpretations of translators. This makes individual access so much easier. But I think that knowledge of the language makes other areas of culture more accessible as well, for instance the music of Johann Sebastian Bach.

How did you discover your own interest in German?

I took a roundabout route: I’d learned Spanish as a foreign language at high school. At university I studied chemistry and parallel to that, German, because it’s an important language in science. In the end my German grades were better than those in chemistry, and my interest in the language eventually led to my work as a professor.

What kind of image of Germany does your association want to convey to students?

Contemporary Germany is an open, multicultural country. This is a point we particularly want to convey to our school and university students. Germany certainly has a very complex history about which many people would like to learn more. But in this case as well, they hope to gain a better understanding through the German language. Of course, our basic intention is not simply to teach language skills, but also to direct attention to questions about society.

How is this illustrated in your work?

One example is migration policy in Germany and the USA, which we compare in our courses. In our classes we make a conscious effort to broaden perspectives, which in turn helps in the analysis of issues in the domestic context, too. We also use media from Germany which offer additional valuable viewpoints on the USA. In this respect exchanges between schools on both sides of the Atlantic are especially helpful. Today’s technologies, such as Facebook, Twitter and blogs, offer us entirely new ways of communicating with each other. Skype is a fantastic instrument as well, because it enables German and American partner schools to engage in direct interchange. And of course, we not only support virtual exchanges, we also offer exchange programs. We want to convey a living image of Germany.

(© AATG)

School teachers form a major group in your organization. The other main group consists of university professors. What role does this play in the work of the AATG?

A very important role. Our aim is to provide a central thread to young teachers of German in schools and universities. That’s why the majority of our further training seminars and workshops are designed for both teachers and professors. We also like to keep a balance in the organization of the AATG. That includes the position of president as well: my deputy represents the school teachers’ group and will be replacing me in two years’ time. In addition to this, all of our members have Internet access to our two specialist journals: Die Unterrichts­praxis/Teaching German, which focuses on teaching theories and The German Quarterly, which takes an in-depth approach to cultural topics.

In which projects is the AATG currently involved?

One example is Goethe-Institut’s trilingual online community Todo Alemán which was developed with the help of AATG experts. Linking up with Spanish is important for us American teachers, too, because this language is becoming more and more important in the US. We also cooperate closely with Goethe-Institut in further education for teachers, who then act as multipliers by training other German teachers away from the big cities. And then in June we’re holding our second AATG seminar in Berlin “Neuer Blick, neue Stimmen.” It will center on the intercultural diversity of the Federal Republic and certainly be of great benefit in providing us with inspiration and impulses for our work.

Interview by Johannes Göbel

Source: Deutschland Magazin 

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Social Studies

Rainer Merkle, a master carpenter, at the topping out ceremony of the first seven-story wood-construction building in Berlin in 2007. New wood construction buildings have been cropping up in Berlin since then.

(© picture-alliance/dpa)

There's a happening Berlin premier that's not on the red carpet of the film or fashion worlds, but rather in the capital city's architecture scene - multi-story houses built from wood. A pine forest is contained in the walls of the chic five-story buildings - the first wood houses of their kind in Germany.

The long wooden planks are not visible, as a eight-inch thick white plastered layer of insulation is attached to the facade. All of the ceilings and interior walls are also covered with plasterboard. Invisible, four inch thick pine boards are located in between. They support the massive buildings and at the same time regulate heat and moisture.

To achieve the same passive house standard by conventional construction, the wall thickness would have to be increased by half. Architect Fank Müller was thus able to save enough space with the wood houses for another apartment. The 41 parties involved in the project achieved their goal exactly one year after the beginning of construction.

Benefits to wood construction

Better insulation, a pleasant interior climate, fewer cold sports and a shorter construction time -- builders and architects have known about the benefits of building with wood for years. Already in the past year, the first wood buildings sprung up just around the corner in which two 7-story structures used significant amounts of wood and only small amounts of iron and concrete.

The pioneer was in 2006. A 6-story residential building in Steinhausen near Zurich was constructed up to earthquake-proof standards. At the end of 2008 in the London district of Hackney, a 9-story housing block was completed in which even the staircase and elevator were constructed entirely from wood. In Germany, this remains impossible due to fire safety laws.

Although wood has a 15 percent market share as a building material for single-family and two-family homes, it plays a significantly smaller roll in commercial structures and multi-story residential buildings. The new structures in Berlin's Prenzlauer Berg were only possible with special exemptions - including the requirement that staircases be cast in concrete and that all wooden parts be disguised due to fear of fire. Conflagrations were commonplace in Medieval cities. Today, however, fire protection is much more possible in wood construction than in the past.

More than one floor per week

The wooden planks are up to 52 feet-long and ten feet wide when they leave the factory in the southeastern Austrian state of Styria. Three to seven layers of wood are assembled as lumber-core plywood for high stability. They are cut to the millimeter in the factory by computer-controlled machines to include all necessary cut-outs for pipes, cables, sockets and switches. The wooden structure can then be built at a rate of more than one floor per week.

It is estimated that the reduced construction time amounts to some ten percent in cost savings. The exact cutting of the ceilings and walls in the factory enables a more exact planning. Some architects maintain that in the coming decades buildings will be constructed almost exclusively in this way.

Ecological benefits and reduced greenhouse gases

The ecological benefits from wood construction are also significantly better than that with stone and concrete. The wooden planks used in the Berlin buildings were completely untreated, and the glue is solvent and formaldehyde free. According to architect Tom Kaden who designed the 7-story residential and commercial building in Berlin's Esmarchstraße, there is a 60 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in wooden construction compared to conventional construction - and that includes the energy required for the cutting down and transport of the trees.

In terms of living in a wood house, residents only notice a difference if they try to attach a shelf or cupboard to the wall. To do this, long screws must be drilled through the drywall directly into the wooden wall. Not every wall, however, is actually comprised of wood. In some places, there is only insulation and in all the walls that border the staircase there is only concrete.

Source: Young Germany

Hans and Sophie Scholl

(© picture-alliance/dpa)

They stood up to an evil dictatorship - and paid for it with their lives. A photo exhibition chronicling the brief yet intense bloom of the Munich-based White Rose resistance movement is now on display in New York.

The black-and-white historic photo exhibition comes to the US courtesy of The White Rose Foundation in Munich and with financial support from the Goethe-Institut. It is on display now through May 31 at the Arts Center on the Hudson in Mechanicville, New York.

Die Weiße Rose (The White Rose) was formed in 1942 by a group of students and supported by a philosophy professor at the University of Munich in a bold bid to stand up to Germany's brutal Nazi regime. By distributing flyers denouncing crimes against humanity committed by the Nazi dictatorship they were putting their lives on the line. They were eventually apprehended, tried for treason by the so-called People's Court, and executed in 1943.

Today they are admired as heroes. Countless schools and other public places across Germany have been named after two siblings, Hans and Sophie Scholl, who were members of the White Rose group. Two award-winning major motion pictures were also made in Germany about their brief but inspiring lives - The White Rose (1982), directed by Michael Verhoeven, and Sophie Scholl - The Final Days (2005), directed by Marc Rothemund.

Sophie Scholl's final words before her execution were a plea for people to stand  up and do the right thing: "How can we expect righteousness to prevail when there is hardly anyone willing to give himself up individually to a righteous cause.  Such a fine, sunny day, and I have to go, but what does my death matter if, through us, thousands of people are awakened and stirred to action."

As the Arts Center on the Hudson states on its website, the legacy of The White Rose did live on: "Following Sophie's death, the Allied Forces received a smuggled copy of the sixth leaflet written by The White Rose and later dropped millions of propaganda copies of the leaflet over Germany.  Many believe that this courageous movement by The White Rose was the most spectacular moment of resistance in the 20th century."

In addition to offering the White Rose Foundation exhibit, the Arts Center on the Hudson is displaying over 200 works of art (paintings, drawings, poetry, sculptures, essays, etc.) created by local students and children from over 30 countries from around the world that depict "The Courage to Stand Alone".

Related Links:

Arts Center on the Hudson - Mechanicville, New York

White Rose - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Weiße Rose Stiftung - White Rose Foundation (in German)

A view of the courtyard at the new Topography of Terror museum.

(© picture-alliance/dpa)

All that remains of the site where the Nazis masterminded their regime of terror is an empty space in the center of Berlin - where the ghostly foundations of the old SS and Gestapo headquarters are partly overgrown by a thicket of shrubs and trees.

Until recently, visitors to the so-called "Topography of Terror" exhibition followed a series of outdoor information placards along the outlines of the buildings, which were reduced to rubble at the end of World War II.

Now a sleek new documentation center houses the exhibit, offering space for sombre analysis and reflection on the Nazi power structures controlled from central Berlin.

The white building, positioned within the former Gestapo site, is minimalist in design but from it can be seen symbols of more than 70 troubled years of German history, from the fascist Air Ministry of the Third Reich to remnants of the Berlin Wall.

"The building is meant to hover over the site. The foyer is intended as a viewing platform, from which you can see the layers of history," said Andreas Nachama, who heads the Topography of Terror foundation.

The exhibition focuses on the role of the police and the SS as the violent enforcers of the Nazi regime, helping visitors understand what happened when the principle of equality before the law was eroded by racial policies and near-absolute police powers.

"Here in Wilhelmstrasse, we are at the former epicenter of Nazi power," Nachama told the German Press Agency, dpa.

"We are not trying to make the history emotional, we want to report it as factually as possible," Nachama said in his sleek glass- fronted office in the new documentation center.

The building includes a 27,000-volume library, including study material in English, as well as meeting rooms to research and discuss the Nazi terror regime.

 

A card from an SS card catalogue is on display in the new Topography of Terror.

(© picture-alliance/dpa)

With time, Nachama said they would like to compile a database of Nazi officers and perpetrators under Hitler, although he added that legal complications made it difficult for such information to be publicly accessible.

The exhibition also tells the story of the millions of individuals caught up in the Nazi terror network. One of them is Rudolf Weckerling, a 98-year-old priest who was arrested by the Gestapo after he refused to comply with the fascist regime.

Weckerling was invited to attend the official museum opening on May 6 - exactly 70 years to the day after he was summoned to the Reich Security Head Office, which stood on the present-day site.

However, the museum has had its own problematic history. For more than a decade, it was dogged by delays and funding problems. Swiss architect Peter Zumthor won an initial competition for the project, but his design was abandoned after spiraling costs threatened to overrun the budget.

Berlin architect Ursula Wilm then took over. Her design comprises a sleek rectangular hall, sheathed inside a metallic mesh, permeated by light and offering views of the original Gestapo site - which it makes clear is the real exhibit.

The museum is surrounded by an expanse of coarse gravel stones. All that remains of the original buildings are submerged walls and corner stones, left in place after 1945.

The 11-acre plot bears traces of 40 years of abandonment, before the Topography of Terror foundation acquired it in 1987. By then a number of trees had grown in its midst, which have been left as a metaphor for the way the past has also become buried.

"The compound, with its natural stone cover, the locust trees and this building, is like an open scar in the city. There should not be a city park here, or a mellow place," Nachama warned.

The site also includes 560 feet of the Berlin Wall - one of the longest stretches left in central Berlin - and even the remnants of a car track where West Berlin teenagers learned to drive in the 1970s.

 

The foundation walls of a former SS mess hall are visible outside the new Topography of Terror in Berlin.

(© picture-alliance/dpa)

Walking across the grounds once occupied by the 19th century buildings, the old car tires, tarmac tracks and birdsong filtering through the trees crowd out images of the Nazi state apparatus.

Turn the corner however, and a jagged path leads through the scree, tracing the layout of an underground air raid shelter. At the end of the path lies an open cellar, which housed the Nazi-era kitchens.

Here, Gestapo and SS officers enjoyed lavish lunches, while political inmates in the prison block next door were paraded in the courtyard and deliberately taunted by the smell of cooking.

Such architectural details are amongst the few tangible remnants of the Nazi-era, offering visitors a glimpse onto the genocidal regime engineered by Adolf Hitler.  And standing in the heart of Berlin, little more than a mile from Germany's present day seat of government, the historical significance of the location weighs heavy.

But Nachama says it is wrong to associate the evils of fascism too closely with the location itself.

"It is not the buildings that were evil, it was the people in them", he warns.

Source: dpa 

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Announcements

(© www.colourbox.com)

DAAD New York’s Young Ambassador and Research Ambassador programs occupy a central role in the organization’s latest outreach strategies to recruit fresh, dynamic voices on the importance and value-adding experience of transatlantic study and research. 

Since 2005, DAAD New York has been operating its highly successful Young Ambassadors program, consisting of recently-returned undergraduate students who have studied in Germany and are willing and excited to promote Germany as a study and research destination on their campuses.  The DAAD Young Ambassadors program is for undergraduate students from North America who have recently studied in Germany and are interested in promoting study in Germany at their home institutions.

Launched in 2009, the DAAD Research Ambassadors program consists of scholars and scientists in North America who have conducted advanced long-term research projects in Germany and are interested in promoting research in Germany at their home universities and among their peers and students. Research Ambassadors help inspire and inform others about the rich and varied opportunities to conduct research, receive funding for projects, and launch collaborative initiatives with colleagues in Germany. 

DAAD Research Ambassadors' primary role is to inform students and researchers in the USA and Canada about Germany as a research destination and to foster collaborations with German colleagues. The main responsibility of a DAAD Research Ambassador is to promote research opportunities in Germany in his/her professional community, university or organization, and discipline.

For information on how to become, or get in touch with a DAAD Young Ambassador, visit http://www.daad.org/?p=ambassadors

For information on how to become, or get in touch with a DAAD Research Ambassador, visit http://www.daad.org/?p=ra-program

Please note that the deadline for applications for both programs is June 11. 

(© www.daad.de)

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is the German national agency for the support of international academic cooperation.

The DAAD offers programs and funding for students, faculty, researchers and others in higher education providing financial support to over 55,000 individuals per year. DAAD also represents the German higher education system abroad, promoting Germany as an academic and research destination and establishes ties among institutions around the world. 

Mayor Umstattd, Principal Huckaby, Goethe-Institut Deputy Director Brodersen, Ambassador Scharioth, Superintendent Hatrick, and German teacher Harald Boland

(© German Embassy, Washington, DC)

German Ambassador Klaus Scharioth attended a ceremony at Heritage High School in Leesburg, Virginia, on May 21 to present the school with a plaque officially inducting it into the Network of German Partner Schools (PASCH), now with over 1,400 members worldwide.

In the presence of Mayor Kristen Umstattd of Leesburg and Superintendent Edgar Hatrick of Loudon County, Ambassador Scharioth and the deputy director of the Goethe-Institut in Washington, Klaus Brodersen, were able to present the prized PASCH plaque to the principal of Heritage High School, Margaret Huckaby.

Ambassador Scharioth presents the scholarship recipients with their awards.

(© German Embassy, Washington, DC)

In his congratulatory remarks, Ambassador Scharioth stressed that Heritage High School, along with its dedicated German teacher, Harald Boland, and his excellent German language program, clearly set itself apart from other schools and was therefore accepted into the PASCH network. With the membership, the school will receive intensive support from the Goethe-Institut for the German program as well as three Goethe-Institut scholarships enabling the recipients to attend a several-week language course in Germany.

“We want the partner schools to develop fruitful and lasting ties with Germany and inspire them to enjoy an open exchange of views and engage in cooperation” was the key message Ambassador Scharioth conveyed in his remarks before numerous guests, as he called on the overwhelmingly young listeners to seize every opportunity for exchange. The ambassador furthermore expressed his gratitude to the principal of Heritage High School. Thanks to her support, students are able to participate in an outstanding German program, the ambassador said.

But the right environment is also important for successful cooperation. For that, Ambassador Scharioth thanked Edgar Hatrick, whose far-sighted promotion of foreign languages already at the middle-school level has contributed to the success of numerous German language programs in Loudon County.

The ceremony was followed by brief presentations by last year’s three scholarship recipients, who reported on their experiences in Germany. Their travel and stays in Germany for three weeks were funded through PASCH funds.

(© www.germanyandafrica.diplo.de)

Partner School Initiative PASCH

The initiative Schools: Partners for the Future was established in 2008. Currently, 1,414 schools belong to the network worldwide, of which 83 are located in the United States. This permanent cultural-relations initiative is intended to spur young people’s interest in and enthusiasm for modern-day Germany.

The initiative’s website is a particularly important tool in linking and communicating with students and teachers. Apart from the many interactive offerings through which a student can improve his or her German language skills, the site also offers educational games and international competitions for students. Educators can practice cutting-edge digital instructional techniques on the website, pursue continuing education, and find suggestions for improving and innovating with German language instruction.

The PASCH initiative is coordinated by the German Foreign Office and jointly implemented by the Central Agency for Schools Abroad, the Goethe-Institut, the Educational Exchange Service of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the States of the Federal Republic of Germany, and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

For further information, please visit: www.pasch-net.de

Many of the Goethe-Instituts around the United States will be showing soccer games during the upcoming FIFA World Cup. To find out whether or not your area Goethe-Institut is showing a game or two, contact the Goethe-Institut or Geothe-Zentrum nearest you directly. The websites for the Goethe-Instituts around the United States are listed below:

Goethe-Zentrum Atlanta

Goethe-Institut Boston

Goethe-Institut Chicago

Goethe-Institut Los Angeles

Goethe-Institut New York

Goethe-Institut San Francisco

Goethe-Institut Washington 

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