School Matters 36

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VI GERMAN STUDY DAY Sixth Form Germanists attended

a German Study Day at the BFI titled ‘The legacy of East Germany through film’. Dr Judith Rifeser, Lecturer at Goldsmiths, University of London, explored key themes and styles of contemporary German cinema in her tour de force presentation. Using clips from films such as Das Leben der Anderen, Ballon, Sonnenallee and Goodbye Lenin! she led German- language discussions with pupils analysing cinematic techniques and the concept of ‘Ostalgie’ (nostalgia for the former East Germany) to stitch together an appreciation of the challenges that German reunification posed to inhabitants of the former GDR in particular. Our Sixth Formers commented on Dr Rifeser’s GOLD DofE This story begins nearly four years ago when a group of pupils went on their first DofE expedition to the Ashdown Forest. Their packs were filled with too much or too little food, many couldn’t navigate their way along the most obvious of footpaths and watching the groups cook their first meals on a camping stove was like something from a spoof comedy sketch. 44 months and several postponed trips later, many of our LVI and UVI went on their Gold Practice and Assessed expeditions, respectively. For our UVI this was the end of a long, fragmented but wonderful DofE journey that, despite the many setbacks that Covid19 had thrown at us (this was the third ‘alternative trip’ for this group) they took it in their stride and passed this aspect of their award with flying colours. The groups loaded themselves with enough food, water and kit for four days hiking and survival in the mountains, confident in their training and each other. The days were filled with more than nine hours of hiking up and down many thousands of feet of Welsh trail, shale and rocks. The groups discovered

GERMAN FILM

SCREENING PVI and VI Germanists were treated to a screening of the Oscar-winning film Das Leben der Andere n (The Lives of Others) in the Theatre. Before the screening, A-level pupils delivered an excellent presentation in German, with subtitles in English, to provide the PVIs with contextual information about the political and social situation in the former East Germany in which the film is set. Well done to all involved.

insightful evaluation, her engaging presentational style and the positive impact of six hours of German language immersion. They now look forward to delving deeper into Dr Rifeser’s ideas in German lessons at School over the coming weeks. Mr Oli Williams, Head of Modern Foreign Languages

some beautiful caves and many of the awe-inspiring waterfalls that the Brecon Beacons offers. The achievements of these pupils should not go without the recognition they deserve. Each of them has spent more than three weeks learning to survive in the wild. They have spent over three years volunteering their time to support a charity or someone who is in need, and they have each developed and honed one or many skills and involvement in sports.

These pupils, in these conditions, are a big success story! I am not sure I would have demonstrated this level of patience, resilience and positive attitude at their age. They have shown that the DofE award is so much more than something to pop on applications and your CV. It is a catalyst for self-improvement and problem-solving, a badge that says, “I won’t quit”. Mr Ross Greenwood, Head of Pupil Development