Geschwister-Scholl-Gymnasium, Ludwigshafen (Germany)   

The Geschwister-Scholl Grammar School is in the south of Ludwigshafen and is attended by about 1,000 pupils from years 5 – 13. Lessons begin at 8 a.m. and end between 1.10 p.m. and4.50 p.m.

The school is named after Hans and Sophie Scholl who, as young people, fought courageously against the Nazi tyranny,resulting in their execution on the 22nd February 1943. It is Hans and Sophie Scholl with whom we feel a close connection and therefore see it as our duty to uphold their humanitarian values, which they defended in the face of a totalitarian state, in tribute to their memory. Our aim is to apply these values in everyday school life. Evidence of this is that the school is a member of the network ”School without racism – school with courage“ and also that we have a very active ”Amnesty International“ group. Political seminars lasting several days, meetings with victims of oppressive regimes and many other activities highlight the dedication of both pupils and teachers.

One of our goals is to develop sensitivity and understanding for cultural diversity within a coalescing Europe. For this reason, multilingualism is one of our goals and in order to make this a lasting achievement, we have become a ”CertiLingua“ school and offer pupils French as well as English as a first language in the 5th class.  Further foreign languages which can be taken at our school in the 6th class are English, French and Latin. In the 9th class, pupils can additionally choose either Spanish or Japanese. Some pupils take the French baccalaureate additionally to the German ”Abitur“. Those interested in following a bilingual course can take geography in French in the 7th class and history in French in the 9th class which they can continue studying until they take their ”Abitur”, respectively baccalaureate. It is particularly with our French friends and colleagues in Bischheim, Lauterbourg, Forbach and Lorient that we have close contact and a regular exchange of pupils. This is always a great motivation for more involvement with the language and culture of our neighbouring country. At the same time we also offer field trips to other European countries, e.g. Ireland, Italy and Spain.

Many of our pupils are also involved in extra-curricular work groups which are offered not only in the arts but also in science and IT. Regular performances of concerts and plays, which are perceived as cultural highlights by our school community, contribute to the ”corporate identity“ of our school. Those who are gifted in science can benefit from the project ”Jugend forscht“ (Youth and  Research) in which we have already won many prizes. In the last few years, our robotics work grouphas taken part in competitions and has either come first or  achieved a high ranking. Alongside this, the sports department regularly ensures that due to our pupils‘ successes in football as well as in rowing the name of the school becomes well-known.

Our home city of Ludwigshafen am Rhein which is in the county of Rheinland-Pfalz has a population of about 165,000 and is, after Mannheim, which lies directly opposite Ludwigshafen on the other side of the Rhine, the second largest city in the European metropole region of ”Rhein-Neckar“. We are little more than half an hour‘s drive from the French border. The headquarters of BASF, the largest chemical firm in the world, is in Ludwigshafen. The local production facilities extend over 10 square kilometres, making it the largest contiguous production area in the chemical industry. Also important to the region is the motor industry; in our neighbouring city Mannheim, the world famous Mercedes coaches and buses are produced. Ludwigshafen is a cosmopolitan city and since it offers such a large number of work places, there are many people from almost all countries here – more than a third of the population have family origins from abroad.

The countryside around Ludwigshafen is known for its excellent wines and good food. It is a region with many small towns and villages, vast woodlands with a mixed variety of trees, romantic castle ruins and impressive churches with the particularly imposing cathedral in Speyer being just 15 kilometres away. Although it was originally built as a burial place for the Salian ruling dynasty, some tombs of the Staufer and Habsburg monarchs are also in the cathedral. As a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, this largest well preserved Romanesque church in the world has earned itself a very special position.

Rüdiger Keil, OStD, Headmaster