October 2002 - Nr. 10
German School Announced Winner
One of the 5 German Language Schools in Toronto announced a most unusual story. The winner of this year’s essay contest cannot take advantage of the first prize, which is a trip to Germany via Lufthansa.
One might well ask why that is. Unfortunately this particular young student does not have the right status to leave Canada and come back. The parents of Aaron Amadi came about two and a half years ago from Afghanistan and are still waiting for their due process! Refugee status is not hard to come by, especially not after last year and September 11, as his family can tell anyone. His older brother managed to be accepted at University of Toronto, but his parents have no work permit and no idea of what the future will hold. One thing is clear, Aaron Amadi is very bright and interested in almost anything; he knows that knowledge is power and he wants to learn German because he and his family arrived here after a while spent in Germany. He does not want to forget and likes the language.
His prize went to Omid Gharipour, originally from Iran. Both handed in intelligent and well-written essays.
It
is interesting to note that his, the 10th class, and about as
many students, is composed mainly of young people with other than German
roots. Mostly they are the children of families that lived in a German
speaking country for a while and the parents do not want them to forget what
they learned so naturally. In this class someone from Bosnia sits next to a
girl from China, sits next to the boy from Afghanistan, next to the boy from
Germany, who, by the way does not care to attend German school. We can only
imagine what he feels like going to German school in Canada with mainly none
Germans in the class. A bit of protest would be natural, we think. Besides,
often we hear that kids from German households prefer to fit in with the
Canadians, rather than separate themselves out.
As
international as the student’s backgrounds are so is the faculty, which
hails from various European countries. But the administration is still in
the able hands of Annemarie Heinze, who showed us around the school and
classes. She hopes to reinstate some of the teachers that used to work
there. The government cuts have also affected the German Schools of Toronto,
whose courses count as proper credits in the system. This years Annual
German Gala Ball is for the benefit of these schools.
For more information on learning German in Toronto call 905-773-5601. In the meantime we would like to congratulate the many children and youths, as well as adults, who have the desire to learn German in a friendly environment. SFR.
