Telephone exchange anyone? (German)

Name: zoe_page_1

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Product:	German
Date:	01/08/01 (119 review reads)
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If you’ve read my op on learning languages (and if not, why not?), you’ll know that at age 6 I showed off my skills and called the German mayor of our twin town an idiot. A few years later, at a Brownies show, my, ahem, “talent” was reciting a poem in German. Can still remember it, “6 mal 6 is 36 und die Kinder sind so Fleißig.....”

Although at GCSE I’d done more French than German in school terms, I knew a ton more of the latter and that’s why I chose to do it in 6th form (also started, and dropped French A/s, but that’s a long story). However, I detest the literature side of things and so opted for A/S which, with my exam board, included no set books.

I did NEAB (part of the AQA group) German in 1999, so I know it’s probably changed slightly since then, especially with the introduction of the new A/S levels. Still this is what I had to do:

Vocab Vocab Vocab

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Since I only had 8 months to learn everything (started in September and did the first exam the following April), I had to work hard. The main difference between this and GCSE was the level of vocab we needed. Essentially, we needed to be able to speak about every topic on earth, not just pets, brothers and sisters and where we went on holiday last year.... I learnt all sorts of useful words – “Vermittlungstelle” – telephone exchange, “Verfassungsgesetz” – constitutional law,,,,, you get the picture. I was all prepared , or so I thought. Jill Dando was murdered just a couple of days before my exam, and Mrs Summerdrought (not her real name) told me that the others had prepared a few sentences just in case the topic came up. She also thought I could do with a serious topic (but not Jill Dando as I was too young and tactless), and somehow we decided on Kosovo. I quickly learnt vocab (and to this day can still reel off wonderful sentences) along th
e lines of:

“Wir sollen keinen Bodentruppen hinein schicken – das würde eine schlechte Idee sein, mehr Leute würde ums leben kommen, und nicht nur die Soldaten sondern auch die armen Fluchtlinge”

Just like in a Miss America pageant you’re fine if you waffle about what a wonderul country it is, in an oral exam you can’t go wrong if you mention the poor refugees and manage to fit in a “würden” formation, not to mention a “nicht nur....sondern auch”. Oh, and my favourite phrase was also in there – ums leben kommen (to die). Don’t know why but it always tickles something in me (not in a ha ha death is funny way, more in a look what Germans say for it way)


References

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Since I wasn’t doing any German books, I decided I needed a few, ahem, literary quotes and references to drop into conversation should the need arise. Ended up with Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” and the sehr bekannte “Über alle Gipfeln.....” – oh so useful.....


Grammar

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As well as vocab, what most people find hard is the emphasis on correct word order. Having grown up surrounded my Germans this wasn’t a problem for me as it came naturally, but for others it caused no end of grief. Have to say though, the annoying thing I’m finding here in Vienna is so many people don’t use “school taught” language and it’s taking me a while to pick up the exceptions and learn when I don’t need to send the verb to the end and so on.


Exam

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The exam was a reading paper (answer in English) and a listening paper (ditto) which were each worth 30%. Topics included Wimbledon, house fires and the problems of the youth of today (believe me, die Jugend von Heute haben viele Probleme). The remaining 40% was taken up by an oral exam conducted by an extern
al examiner. Since there were only 4 of us from my school, we had to go over to the Comprehensive to take our exam there. That was an experience : we were frog marched through their school in the lunch hour when the place was streaming with students. Let’s just say we attracted a bit of attention in our uniform – our suits and blouses were not quite subtle enough to blend in with their 6th form “wear whatever you like” rule. Anyway, the exam went well although Kosovo never came up. Instead I talked about school, what I wanted to do at uni and why I was only 16 years old (“So young!” the examiner kept saying). I ran way over time before she shut me up. Came out with an A. I was happy.

Why chose a language at A Level?

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Languages are a useful skill to have, and one which can earn you more money at that. The majority of foreigners can converse in at least one foreign language, but why should they get all the jobs? As one of the other ops says, having proficiency in a 2nd language can often result in a higher salary and more job prospects. Plus, languages are fun – in what other subjects to you get parties involving wine and chocolate all in the name of research, or get to debate abortion, drugs and the environment for hours on end.


Who should do languages in the 6th form?

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At our school you had to have got a B or above at GCSE to continue studying any subject, and this is something I think is important for languages especially – unless you have the basic groundwork you’ll never make it. Sure if you just messed up your GCSE and can actually get by in German, give it a go, but otherwise steer well away.


P.S.
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Sorry for German typos above – remember I haven’t written much in German for years until I went to Wien, and then I was writing te
chnical documents, about files and program layouts, not refugees, and I’m using English Word so it won’t pick up German Fehler.

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