St Joseph's College,Summerhill

German Exchange

The Summerhill German Exchange Programme has now been running successfully since 1996. Our partner school is situated in the city of Dortmund in the northwestern German state of North Rhine Westfalia. Dortmund is a very interesting and pleasant city and the school is located within easy walking distance of the city centre. Major German cities such as Cologne and Dusseldorf are within easy access by road and rail.

Our pupils usually visit Germany during February and therefore meet their German partners for the first time on German soil. The Summerhill girls are welcomed into the homes of their host families and live with the German families for the duration of the exchange. All pupils attend school in Germany for each weekday morning and our German counterpart teachers organize a wide and varied itinerary of visits for the remainder of each day.

Such trips include visits to local castles and the cathedral and museums in Cologne. Fun activities such as ice skating, tobogganing, ski lessons and bowling are also possible.

When in Germany our pupils have the opportunity to experience German life and culture for themselves and to make the German language their own.

The German pupil's return visit to Ireland usually takes place at the end of October and we then have the opportunity to return their hospitality and show them our culture and landscape. When the Germans are here we arrange trips to local attractions such as Clonmacnoise, Strokestown House, Locke's Distillery and Belvedere House. A trip to Dublin and a visit to the Book of Kells is also always on the itinerary.

Many of our pupils have kept in contact with their partners in Germany and if this happens it is of course an excellent opportunity for further contact with the country in the future.