Keenly aware of Ireland’s need to develop foreign language skills, the German Teachers’ Association of Ireland in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut in Dublin, organised “The All Ireland German Debating Competition,” sponsored by Siemens, the final of which has taken place in the Goethe-Institut, 37 Merrion Square, on Thursday May 8th.

 

“Ireland should continue to develop foreign language skills, such as German, in order to remain competitive, both in attracting foreign direct investment as well as for indigenous firms involved in the export market,” said Josef Ruetzel, German Language Advisor to the Department of Education and Science and the Goethe-Institut. “In the modern world you should be multilingual.”

 

Now in its 12 th year, the competition aims to give pupils an opportunity to develop German speaking abilities, sharpen skills of argument, build confidence and teamwork skills and use knowledge of the German language beyond the confines of the classroom.

 

* Source: German-Irish Chamber of Industry and Commerce, **Dept of Education and Science

A novel way to teach a foreign language

Out of 160 pupils from 40 secondary schools nationwide, two teams from Our Lady’s College, Greenhills, Drogheda and St. Mary’s Knockbeg College, Carlow have successfully battled their way to the final. The two teams will debate the motion “Irland verliert seine Identität (Ireland is losing its identity)” in a bid to win the title of the competition, which was formerly awarded European Label for Innovative Language Learning and Teaching.

 

 

Speaking about the relevance of sponsoring such an event, Mr. Brian Sweeney, Chairman, Siemens Limited said “Given the international nature of Ireland’s economy, we believe it’s important to help students develop the necessary skills to avail themselves of the career opportunities open to them.

 

But gaining competence in the German language is not purely about communication and comprehension-- it is also the means of gaining an understanding of the culture and mores of the country and its people.”

 

According to Ruetzel, “Participating students not only improve their competency in language, debating and teamwork but also experience great enjoyment from the event which is seen as a novel way to teach a foreign language. The competition and prizes provide an extra incentive, thanks to generous sponsorship from Siemens Ireland.”

Siemens in Ireland

Siemens has a long-standing tradition of delivering key infrastructure projects in Ireland including the first direct Trans-Atlantic cable in 1874 and Shannon Hydro-electric Scheme which continues to produce green electricity. The company recently completed the largest on-shore wind farm in Ireland for Airtricity. The first electrical railway in Ireland, the Giants Causeway tramway was built by the company in 1882 and brought holiday makers from Portrush to the great natural wonder of the North Antrim coast. More recently in 1984 Siemens delivered the overhead line system for the DART network.

 

Siemens is one of the world’s leading engineering and electronics companies. The company pioneered electric rail transportation with the first electric railway presented at the Berlin Trade Fair 1879. More recently the company has developed the Metro in Bangkok, Boston, Japan and Germany. Siemens has offices in Dublin, Cork and Belfast and employs more than 1100 people in Ireland.