MODERN LANGUAGES 2020 began in normal fashion, with our boys back from exchanges in Germany and Argentina and welcoming the following exchange students: Felipe Lejtman hosted by Yngve Jordan, Vladimir Boroda hosted by Jenner Johnson, and Valentino Pons hosted by Henri Quested, from Pestalozzi School in Buenos Aires; and Arne Schotz hosted by Toby Oliver, Tom Roesberger hosted by Ben Davis, Luis Frank hosted by Robbie McKeown, Tibor Riedel hosted by John Wong, and Erik Neels hosted by Charlie Chubb, being the last students to come to College under the New Zealand–Westphalian German exchange programme. As in other years, the boys took a full part in College life and were an excellent linguistic support in senior classes, helping our boys practise their Spanish and German speaking skills.
In early March senior French students had a very productive day in Akaroa, exploring the old French quarter as part of their in-depth study of French settlement in Banks Peninsula. After prior examination of primary sources, notably the correspondence between Charles Lavaud and the Nanto-Bordelaise company, the boys gained a deeper appreciation of the challenges and frustrations these early colonists experienced. It was also fun to ferret out the lesser-known vestiges of French colonisation in the 1840s. Lockdown in Term 1 presented new challenges to the Modern Languages department, and virtual interactions became our new normal. For us as teachers, it was constant digital delivery, review, rewrite and re- engage as we sought to deliver our teaching and learning programmes in a meaningful way for the boys. We solved problems we didn’t even
know existed and then did it all again as new issues emerged. The boys became more independent and resourceful in their learning and reported they enjoyed the experience overall. The senior assessment programme was not significantly impacted, and junior learning progressed smoothly. This year’s International Languages Service took as its theme “He aroha whakato ¯ , he aroha puta mai” (If kindness is sown, then kindness you shall receive). Toby Oliver read The Tower of Babel (Genesis 11: 1–9) in German, William Koko, Janindu Pahalawatta, Oscar Harcourt, Alistair Morgan, Andrew Kwak and Yusef Elnahas confidently delivered the Prayers of the Faithful in Te Reo, Sinhalese, Japanese, Spanish, Korean and Arabic, and Ethan Grant read The Lord’s Prayer in French. The boys performed particularly well this year. Their clear and expressive renditions of the prayers in so many beautiful languages of the world were a very special experience for the whole school assembled in our heritage Chapel. Special thanks go to our Chaplain Bosco Peters and Assistant Principal – Planning & Administration and Director of Music Robert Aburn for their continued support of this service. 2020 was our best service yet. Special mention needs to be made here of Year 13 French student Ethan Grant. In November, Ethan was successful in attaining the Diplôme d’Etudes en Langue Française (DELF) at level B2. This international qualification identifies him as having the appropriate language proficiency skills to either study at a French university or pursue employment opportunities in a French speaking environment. Ethan has worked very hard and is only the second College French student in the last 10 years to pass the examination at this level whilst still at school. We congratulate him on his very well-deserved success. Covid-19 limited many of our usual activities this year, but food days remained constant. Senior French
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