Students of French and German continue to enjoy educational trips to France and Germany, which are organised by their teachers. Each year, the department of Modern Languages organises a school tour, going to France and Germany every alternate year.
Junior Cycle French students normally enjoy an action-packed tour to Paris, organised by their French teacher Ms Cadinot. They anticipate each year’s tour with great excitement when they visit many of the magnificent sights that Paris has to offer, such as the Louvre Museum, home to the renowned Mona Lisa, the historic area of Montmartre which is dominated by the beautiful church of the Sacré Coeur, the Stade De France, a cruise on the river Seine and, of course, the Eiffel Tower. Their visit to Paris culminates in a full day in Disneyland, which for many is often the highlight of this trip and visiting this world famous theme park in December always adds an extra magical touch.
Junior Cycle German students can look forward to experiencing the Christmas markets on their tour to the Rheinland organised by their German teacher Ms Byrne. On the last tour the students enjoyed the guided walking tour of the city of Heidelberg and the guided tour of Heidelberg Castle. Furthermore, they also travelled to the city of Cologne and visited the famous Cathedral there. This was followed by an afternoon of fun in the Phantasialand Theme Park. On their final day they travelled to Bonn and enjoyed a guided tour of the city which was very interesting as it was once the former capital of Germany. On route to the airport for their return flight home, they had a tour of the Bay Arena football stadium. This tour always takes place in December as the students can experience the Christmas markets. This is always a wonderful experience for the students and adds an extra magical dimension to the tour.
Teachers in the Modern Language Department have seen the benefits for students over the years of giving them the opportunity to visit the country of the language they are studying. Students are encouraged to enter language competitions. In 2018 Meadhbh Broderick and Fiona Butler were both finalists in the German Olympiad. Meadhbh was awarded First Place in Ireland and was awarded a three week scholarship to represent Ireland at the International Olympiad in Germany.
Debating is also promoted in Presentation College. Students reached the Quarter Final in The All Ireland Siemens German Debating Competition. We have also won The Austrian Essay Competition. Over eighty students have pen pals which adds yet another dimension to language learning.
For many years, Presentation College has hosted Foreign Language Assistants from France and Germany. Modern Language teachers have seen the benefits of having a native speaker to assist in the teaching and learning of French and German in the classroom. In many ways, teachers have found that the presence of a native speaker in language classes greatly enhances the learning experience and brings the language to life for the students.
All of these opportunities help to further motivate students in their French / German studies and indeed help to bring their language learning to life. Teachers organise these trips and activities as they know that wonderful memories are made for students which will remain with them long after they have finished in Presentation College.
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