Posted 31 Aug 2010

* Temporary Upper School Special Education teacher effective 11 October 2010 until 31 July 2011 to replace a teacher on parental leave

* Upper School Design & Technology technician effective immediately

Applications should be in writing and directed to Rhiannon Wood with copy to Rita De La Cruz within seven working days of this notice.

What’s in a name? New parents might like to give their child a trendy name, but to play it safe, tried-and true names might get their children better grades in school.

A new study, run by scientists in Oldenburg/Germany, revealed that a student’s name can have an influence on the teacher’s grading criteria. The Educational Science Institute tested 200 elementary school teachers and their reactions to a student’s writing. Unbeknown to the teachers, each writing assignment came from the same student, but each signed with a different first name. Professor Astrid Kaiser stated that a piece of writing signed with the name Maximilian generally got a higher grade than one signed with Kevin.

The article Namensbezogene Vorurteile der Lehrer, based on the study,  listed the following first names as positive – Alexander, Maximilian, Simon, Lukas, Jakob, Katarina, Hannah, Emma, Marie and Sophie generated a higher grade.

Names with negative tendencies in regards to teachers’ prejudices were Marvin, Maurice, Cedric, Jaqueline, Angelina, Vanessa, Chantal, Mandy and Celina.

First names with a neutral reaction were Nick und Leon.

The Top 40 list of German first names, compiled in 2009, does not even include the name Kevin anymore.

A list of the most attractive-sounding names in Germany is Attraktive Vornamen.

A blog post in German, defying the correlation between name choice and educational level, tells how mother Mandy, 36 years old, gets upset at reactions over her son’s stigmatized name, Kevin. In the 70s and 80s, Mandy was a popular name in the Eastern part of Germany and Kevin became somewhat popular in Germany after the movie Kevin Alone at Home came out in the 90s.

Personally, I am glad we stuck to fairly classical names for both of our children. Our first-born arrived in Japan and as the doctor had told us to expect a girl, we had initially chosen the name Sophia. But then a son was born to us and we named him Thomas. Our second child, a daughter born in Frankfurt, we named Margo, the French version of Margaret. So far they both have been getting good grades. But they are not in the German school system, either.

The important thing is not so much that every child should be taught, as that every child should be given the wish to learn.

-  John Lubbock -

The Pleasures of Life: Volume 2 from Amazon.de

The following mini-lesson titled “Capsule Course in Human Relations”, I found tucked away in an old book from a previous trip to the U.S.A. The article might have been originally published by Forbes Magazine in the 1950s.

Five most important words: I AM PROUD OF YOU.

Four most important words: WHAT IS YOUR OPINION?

Three most important words: IF YOU PLEASE.

Two most important words: THANK YOU.

Least important word: I.

I am proud of you for wanting to improve your relations. What is your opinion of this mini-lesson? Print it out and put it on your fridge, if you please. Thank you.

I used to think that moving here to Germany would mark the end of my transition process. I was wrong in my belief as our international environment constantly keeps changing. Being an expat family requires continuous adjustment to new circumstances and after a few years we just got so used to it without realizing how often we still adjust.

The beginning of each new school year reminds us of the changes we need to make for another smooth transition. There will be newly hired teachers, some of whom I will never get to meet (except by e-mail). New classmates for my children, some of whom I might get to know by name at the end of the school year – just before they move away again. Private students change their lesson times as they start other projects. Friends move overseas, with some of our older ones already having left for retirement. Every year, there are Goodbye parties and Welcome Back parties.

Toytown Germany (with a very helpful platform I can recommend) probably has more newcomers posting their queries at this time of year, but transitions take place all year long. I have come to realize that we can stay put in one place, but our surroundings keep moving, affecting us with their sometimes challenging transitions.

Here is a little piece of advice I had given a while ago to a newcomer to the Frankfurt area (most likely applicable to non-working spouses):

If you have some financial security (e.g. no real pressure to find work right away), then I would suggest volunteering at first. This is what I did three times when moving overseas. I started volunteering two hours a week, made contacts, learned more about the city, got job offers soon after.
Places to volunteer: Frankfurt soup kitchen, hospitals, maybe the British Women’s Club of the Taunus, contact the “International Stammtisch at the English Theatre”, etc.
Teaching assistants do not get paid well. For part-time work at the international schools, the pay is about € 400 a month. Again, any job could help lead to more lucrative ones.
I frequently post available positions at Frankfurt International School on my blog category Vacancies at Frankfurt International School which also include teaching assistant positions. This is for you only to learn what is out there.
… and try to learn some German before coming here. Others have said that before and this is the best advice.

You may also want to read my initial post, with more details:  How to Smooth Transitions