German language learners compete at Berlin 'Olympics'

Aparna, 16, is from India. Together with one other lucky participant, she was chosen to represent her country at this year's International Deutscholympiade. Every two years, world's largest German language competition takes place in a different German city. This year, it's Berlin's turn to host the games, accommodating 125 youths from 64 countries through July 30.

The idea of these linguistic games was originally developed by the Goethe-Institut with the aim of boosting interest in learning German.

Aparna Mukherjee attends a school in Bangalore where she has been taking German courses since the seventh grade - for the past four years. She very much enjoys her German courses, she says, since being able to express herself in a foreign language makes her feel international: "Good German skills will enable me to study in German - that's yet another reason why I chose German."

First prize: three weeks in Germany

This unusual Olympic contest doesn't involve sports, but rather creative and fun language tests, explains the young student: "There are three parts to the exam. The first one involves a newspaper on a wall, and we have to write an essay on a topic that we'll get later. And each group has a minimum amount of words they have to write."

The newspaper wall is one of the most popular disciplines at the Deutscholympiade. In addition to words and sentences, the young participants, aged 14-19, may also include pictures, graphics, newspaper clips and colors.

The entire contest lasts for two weeks, after which a jury will announce the winners for each level. The first prize - a big motivator for participants - is a grant for a three-week stay in Germany.

Learning German can be fun

Olivier Kouadio, a German teacher in his home country, Ivory Coast, has come to Berlin to support the competition. Kouadio started learning German in ninth grade, and stuck with it in high school. What fascinates him most about the German language is its logic and sound, he told DW.

"I'm in love with the German language," says Kouadio. "I am fascinated by its structure and the composition of sentences. And I also have a passion for the German mentality and culture, the way of life, and German history."

Kouadio's teaching methods back home in Ivory Coast are rather unconventional: "German is a very difficult language, which is why I try to teach it to my students in a fun way with songs, lyrics and music. When I ask them, say, to interpret songs of Xavier Naidoo, they are very enthusiastic about it."

The teachers accompanying the Deutscholympiade in Berlin have also come to learn something new themselves. They attend advanced training courses in German and new teaching methods. Teachers and students visit a school in Berlin to experience contemporary German styles of teaching.

Learn together, party together

Aparna doesn't have much time for an interview. She's a bit nervous and thinks she still needs time to prepare for two exams she needs to pass, together with the other participants. The slogan of "intercultural competence" has been put into practice in Berlin, as the participants all contribute new ideas and approaches from their own home countries, German teacher Olivier Kouadio says.

The diverse cultural background of the students gives rise to lively discussions among them. Open-mindedness and tolerance are not foreign words here - both during the group activities and during parties in the evenings.

"The second part of the contest is a quiz consisting of diverse challenges," explains Aparna. "For example, you need to complete a picture where some parts are missing. The third part of the contest is an oral presentation which we're given a lot of time for. The topic is given to us, but we can choose how we want to present it. We get 15 minutes to present."

The goal is to study in Germany

Aparna from India is pursuing a concrete goal by participating in the Deutscholympiade in Berlin, she told DW: "I want to study design, I want to become a designer, and the University of the Arts in Berlin, the UDK, offers excellent courses in this field."

She is particularly impressed by the accompanying program offered to the Deutscholympiade participants in Berlin, aimed at showing them some of the city's biggest attractions. "That's a lot of fun and teaches us a lot. We saw many beautiful buildings and sights in the city. That is really absolutely fantastic."

The International Deutscholympiade takes place from July 17-30. It is organized by the Goethe-Institut and the International Association of German Teachers and is sponsored by Germany's Federal Foreign Office.