Promoting culture: CAS celebrates the German connection
Most students opt to learn German to increase their chances of free higher education in Germany.
Most students opt to learn German to increase their chances of free higher education in Germany.
KARACHI:
The courtyard of Centre for Advanced Studies (CAS) took on a German flavour on Wednesday as students of the German Language department teamed up with the German Consulate General to celebrate ‘Pasch Day’. Pasch stands for the ‘Schools: Partners for the Future’ initiative of the German federal foreign office.
The school that enjoys ‘Pasch’ status, which makes it a member of a global network of around 1,500 schools that promote the teaching of German language, offered a tour of the four German provinces at the stalls set up for the purpose. The event highlighted the cultural and historical aspects of the country with traditional food and drinks being offered by students in German makeovers.
After the inaugural address by the chief guest, Hans Juergen Paschke, the German consul and deputy head of mission, a group of grade-seven students harmoniously sang a popular German song, ‘Ich bin ein Musikant’, to the delight of the audience.
Paschke told The Express Tribune that each of the students’ chosen states in the exhibit presented a broad view of Germany. “The four states, Hessen, Bayern, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Brandenburg have rich cultural traditions and history,” he said.
Presenting the Brot salad, as well as an abundance of information on the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state, Waleed Siraj and Miraj Lari, told The Express Tribune that the event was aimed at promoting German culture and traditions to their counterparts at the school as well as their invited guests from the Civilization Public School, located in North Nazimabad.
CAS offers courses in German, Spanish or French languages from grades seven to 11 as part of their O’ level programme. At least half of the students opt for German, said Baraka Ahmed, a grade eight student, who was presenting Oktoberfest cookies as well as caramel apple pancakes to the visitors at the Bayern stall.
Favoured destination for higher education
“The majority of students tend to prefer German because higher education opportunities at most of the state-run universities in Germany are free,” said Ahmed.
“The free educational opportunities make many of the CAS students see Germany as their favoured destination for higher studies,” said Maha Jafarey, who heads the German language department at the CAS.
She added that the school has been working in close coordination with the Goethe-Institut in Karachi, which had even provided a fully equipped language lab for teaching German as well as assisted the school in facilitating its student exchange programmes with Germany.
During the event, the students gave presentations to describe experiences at the Pasch summer and winter language camps held in Germany and India.
The event concluded with a talk offered by Ursula Saarbeck, a student counsellor from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) in Islamabad, on the status and opportunities of higher education in Germany.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 21st, 2013.
The courtyard of Centre for Advanced Studies (CAS) took on a German flavour on Wednesday as students of the German Language department teamed up with the German Consulate General to celebrate ‘Pasch Day’. Pasch stands for the ‘Schools: Partners for the Future’ initiative of the German federal foreign office.
The school that enjoys ‘Pasch’ status, which makes it a member of a global network of around 1,500 schools that promote the teaching of German language, offered a tour of the four German provinces at the stalls set up for the purpose. The event highlighted the cultural and historical aspects of the country with traditional food and drinks being offered by students in German makeovers.
After the inaugural address by the chief guest, Hans Juergen Paschke, the German consul and deputy head of mission, a group of grade-seven students harmoniously sang a popular German song, ‘Ich bin ein Musikant’, to the delight of the audience.
Paschke told The Express Tribune that each of the students’ chosen states in the exhibit presented a broad view of Germany. “The four states, Hessen, Bayern, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Brandenburg have rich cultural traditions and history,” he said.
Presenting the Brot salad, as well as an abundance of information on the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state, Waleed Siraj and Miraj Lari, told The Express Tribune that the event was aimed at promoting German culture and traditions to their counterparts at the school as well as their invited guests from the Civilization Public School, located in North Nazimabad.
CAS offers courses in German, Spanish or French languages from grades seven to 11 as part of their O’ level programme. At least half of the students opt for German, said Baraka Ahmed, a grade eight student, who was presenting Oktoberfest cookies as well as caramel apple pancakes to the visitors at the Bayern stall.
Favoured destination for higher education
“The majority of students tend to prefer German because higher education opportunities at most of the state-run universities in Germany are free,” said Ahmed.
“The free educational opportunities make many of the CAS students see Germany as their favoured destination for higher studies,” said Maha Jafarey, who heads the German language department at the CAS.
She added that the school has been working in close coordination with the Goethe-Institut in Karachi, which had even provided a fully equipped language lab for teaching German as well as assisted the school in facilitating its student exchange programmes with Germany.
During the event, the students gave presentations to describe experiences at the Pasch summer and winter language camps held in Germany and India.
The event concluded with a talk offered by Ursula Saarbeck, a student counsellor from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) in Islamabad, on the status and opportunities of higher education in Germany.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 21st, 2013.