Day 3, Monday – First Day at Hansa Gymnasium

Today was my first day to visit my school in Germany, the Hansa Gymnasium. The school hosts students from grades 5 to 12; at the end of grade 12, students with passing grades of 1, 2, 3, or 4 (not 5 or 6) receive their Abitur. Each class begins with 28 students and ends up with 20 to 30 students. Libby and I shadowed Konrad’s (our mentor teacher’s) classes, which I think were on philosophy and then the theory of knowledge. The first class was taught in German with students around 15 years old, and the second class, which is an IB (International Baccalaureate) class, was taught in English with students who were a few years older. The photo below is of the view out of the window in the philosophy class.


In the philosophy class, the students discussed whether morality varied relative to culture. The class opened with a lengthy discussion on a cartoon depicting German tourists in Asia in a cart being pulled by an infant. In the cartoon, the Germans were saying something to the effect of, “This is fine for us to do because it is acceptable over here."

In the theory of knowledge class, the students spent class working in groups on presentations related to the theory of knowledge (TOK). This seems like an incredibly vague prompt, but it gives students a lot of freedom. They are supposed to discuss theories that contradict one another. Students also had the opportunity in class to conference with Konrad about their ideas.

Libby and I were able to talk to some of the students during this class. Many of them had spent time in the U.S. or other counties. It seemed like it was common for them to spend a year of their education living with a host family in another country. American culture surfaced in the classroom in a few funny ways. At one point, Libby and I explained that we would not be staying for the final class of the day, and the students responded by singing the Cops theme song. Also the image below was drawn on the chalkboard as a nod to the great American philosopher DJ Khaled.


I have a few other education-related observations from the day:
  • Students stay in their own rooms for the most part (a few classes include mixtures of students from other classes and therefore those classes change classrooms) while teachers are the ones who move from classroom to classroom based on the class they are teaching. Konrad pointed out that the two approaches (teachers v. students changing classrooms) each has its advantages, and one of the plusses of teachers having their own classrooms is that they can “decorate" the rooms a bit more intentionally, and the rooms tend to be a bit cleaner.
  • The students have 20-minute breaks in between classes, and they have a 50-minute lunch break. I think that having these longer breaks in the U.S. would be really helpful because students could conference quickly with a teacher or two, grab a snack, and socialize. I think this would make students more efficient and focused during class because they would be given opportunities to just be throughout the day. It is exhausting to be intellectually focused for 100% of the day, so these breaks give students and teachers a chance to recharge, which makes class time more productive in my opinion.
  • Konrad took time during his first class to conference with each of his students about their current grade and progress. I think this is very helpful as it keeps teachers accountable to the progress of each of their students and holds students more accountable for their own progress and learning. I think that face-to-face interactions tend to carry more weight for us as social creatures.
  • In gymnasium, students choose two major focuses for their 11th and 12th years. Each student must study English, German, and Math, and then they are allowed to choose from other majors such as arts (which includes arts and politics), history (which is 1/2 German history), science (chemistry and physics), or philosophy (which I think may have been grouped with biology).
  • Students are required to study religion (generally Christianity, Judaism, and Islam) until they are 14. At age 14, students are allowed to choose to study philosophy instead of religion.
  • The atmosphere in the classes we attended was very relaxed and casual. Students had time to sit around and talk and conference with Konrad. If Konrad left the room to conference with a student or something, students would often become quiet when he re-entered the room. At first, I thought that Konrad was a bit more aloof and formal as an instructor, but he also joked around with the students somewhat during discussion and seemed quite casual and comfortable with his second class of older students.
  • Much of the discussion in the first class followed the pattern of teacher-student-teacher-student-teacher, but the students talked most of the time, so it seemed that Konrad was more of a facilitator. This did not seem to be a problem to me.
  • The classroom management in the classes we watched was not very strict. Students often had small conversations on the side and Konrad would not chastise them. If students became quite disruptive, Konrad would either go stand near them or call them out (I think he called them out; this happened in the German-speaking class, so I am not sure).
  • At one point with the theory of knowledge class, students needed to finalize their groups (make sure that everyone was happy in their groups and find groups for one or two people). To accomplish this, Konrad instructed the students to find places for those few students and make sure that everyone was comfortable with their groups, and then he left the room. He told the students to retrieve him when they were finished. The students took about 45 seconds to actually complete this task. I found this interesting because it places some responsibility on students and gives them an opportunity to act autonomously and as leaders. The practice conveys trust and expectation at the same time, affirming while also challenging students.

Libby and I walked to Bergedorf for lunch and bought kebab sandwiches with pommes (french fries). This was a bit catastrophic as the men at the restaurant did not really speak English and we do not really speak German. My attempt to order a sandwich with only meat was interpreted as a request for a vegan sandwich. Also, one of the students from the theory of learning class led us to Bergedorf rather quickly, and we struggled a little to find our way back to the bus stop, arriving at it just as our bus was pulling away (actually we ran in front of it).

After school, Benny and I had a nice time playing outside, and he tried to eat my arm, nose, ear, and knee. Later in the evening, the American visiting students, our host families, the German buddies, our cooperating teachers, and the program coordinators all met at Gymnasium Bornbrook for a welcome evening. We had a lovely time sharing drinks, a buffet, and conversation. One of the foods we ate was a dessert called Rote Grütze, which is made from several red fruits served with whipped cream and a vanilla sauce.

Libby and I have plans to watch UNC in the national championship in men’s basketball, which airs at 3:19 a.m. in German time. Her host family packed us a “night picnic" of four very large beers and some pretzels, and my host family also contributed two traditional German shots. Fingers crossed that we can call ourselves national champions in about 8 hours!