„Burgenland-Gymnasium Laucha“
School, Town and Background Information
The Grammar School of Laucha, situated in the county “Burgenlandkreis” in the south of Saxony-Anhalt, was founded in 1991. Its new building was opened in Laucha on the river Unstrut in 1993. Apart from the manufacturing of bells, Laucha has also been famous for gliding for more than 80 years. Even as early as 1993 the first steps were taken to introduce gliding at the Grammar School. At the opening the local government provided a glider ASK 21 called “Stürzi” (referring to “crash-land”) that could be used for youth work in this area and at the Grammar School. We cooperate with the town council of Laucha, the local “Aviation Club Laucha/Dorndorf” and the Federal Training Centre for Teenage Aviators that has its seat in Laucha and organizes the training courses for the young pilots of our school. Whether flying in a plane with a motor, gliding, para-gliding, hang-gliding or ballooning, on the airfield of Laucha/Dorndorf each of these activities can be carried out.
The Grammar School lays special emphasis on flying/gliding, aviation and space travel
Since its opening the Grammar School Laucha has laid special emphasis on flying/gliding, aviation and space travel. This development has always been supported by the Ministery of Education and the Arts of Saxony-Anhalt. It is our aim, in addition to the usual A-level courses, to offer courses that are linked with flying/gliding, aviation and space travel. In September 1999 the first students received their pilots’ licences (PPL-C), they were members of the Gliding Club.
In their 8th year the students take part in a project that informs them about the history of flying/gliding, English terms needed for navigation, the building of model aeroplanes, gliding on the airfield of Laucha/Dorndorf, and includes a visit of the international airport of Halle/Leipzig. Our school has a large club with several groups for the building of model aeroplanes, they have their own workshop, and a Gliding Club. The students of our school can take an optional course “Aviation and Space Travel”. In accordance to the educational guidelines of the Country of Saxony-Anhalt relevant contents are integrated into the different subjects and can be chosen as one part of a student’s A-levels after a special examination.
Physics- and Astronomy-courses offer projects such as the participation in the DARA-Project (exchange of data of satellites between Cape Canaveral and Germany via Internet), the participation in the 1st German Space Festival in Laucha in 1997, and the journey to a meeting of rocket builders in Bourges (France) in 1998 where the students successfully presented a self-constructed rocket model.
Since 1996 our PC’s have been connected with the Internet. Our homepage is presented in German, English, French, Russian, some parts are even in Latin. We are linked with the German Educational Server of the HU-Berlin (Humboldt University Berlin).
Several computer cabinets can be used to surf the Internet, not only in the different subjects and courses, but also to give our international exchange students the chance to keep in touch with their families at home (USA, Ecuador, Australia, Dominican Republic, …), or to get the latest news from our students abroad – not to forget the students that have already taken their exams and left our school.
The emphasis that we lay on gliding, aviation and space travel has often caused interest among the media (TV, radio, the press). German TV-stations (MDR, BR and Discovery) showed a report on “Women in Aviation and Space Travel” in their series “Aerospace” which concentrated on girls in their flying training. In 2003 the MDR (Middle German Radio Station) produced a 30-minutes report called “The Flying Grammar School” about us. Newspapers and magazines print articles (e.g. Frankfurter Rundschau April 19th, 2005; SPIEGEL-online October 28th, 2005) that arouse an interest among students and their parents from other German Federal States to learn here. It is basically no problem to change school, students can usually live with host families.
We want to get into contact with other schools in Europe that have carried out projects about flying/gliding, aviation and space travel, to cooperate on a joint project. We have already established a link with a school in Schoonhoven (the Netherlands) and are preparing links with a school in Jerewan (Armenia) and one in Israel.
The school vineyard – viniculture on the rivers Saale and Unstrut
The regional bond of the Grammar School to the “Burgenlandkreis” is not only created by a great interest in flying and gliding but also by activities related to the traditional viniculture in the wine-growing area on the rivers Saale and Unstrut. Based on a partnership with the “Agrargenossenschaft Gleina” (Agrarian Co-operative Gleina – a village near Laucha) and the “Winzergenossenschaft Freyburg” (Co-operative of Wine-Growers Freyburg – a small town near Laucha) students of our Viniculture Club have been running a small vineyard near the “Hotel Edelacker” since 1997. The vineyard is close to the “Wine and Jahn Town” Freyburg in the most northern wine-growing area of Germany. (Friedrich Ludwig Jahn was a sportsman/gymnast who lived and worked in Freyburg and is honoured there.)
Students can choose an optional course Viniculture. The students who attend the course learn something about the production, processing and marketing of the school’s own wine. As education at school is connected with wine-growing, contributions can be made to promote young professionals from that region, and to support economic education in co-operation with representatives of local businesses – and to keep traditional production technologies for the future.
As one of four schools in Saxony-Anhalt, the Grammar School of Laucha was supported by the “Foundation of the German Economy” in the project “Trans-Job” between 1999 and 2003. Furthermore students of the Economy Courses prepared material about management structures and procedures in the processing and marketing of wine together with the Viniculture Club. The results were presented on the fair “Prospects” in Magdeburg in autumn 2003.
Graduates of our school were elected to be “Wine-Queens” in this wine-growing area in recent years. The German Wine-Princess of 1999/2000, Sandra Polomski, took her A-levels in 1996. The best three graduates of each year plant a vine in the school’s own vineyard.
Other special qualities of our school
The Grammar School of Laucha provides general education connected with special contents.
Our school is perfectly suitable for disabled students and colleagues, therefore it offers best chances of living and teaching integration.
The Association of Sponsors/Promoters (parents, teachers, former students and local business and political representatives) supports a lot of activities.
In co-operation with one of the most famous and important castles of the Romanesque Period, Castle “Neuenburg” in Freyburg, students carry out research for their History lessons. There is an exhibition of the history of nearby villages at our school. Members of the History Club take part in traditional events and festivities of our region with costumes of the Middle Ages and informative stands.
The Choir, Theatre Club, several sports activities (e.g. football, volleyball, gymnastics) etc. are also offered here. In the foyer with a well-equipped stage and 350 seats cultural events take place, too. Here you cannot only experience theatre performances, concerts, slide shows and programmes of students but also of famous artists, such as the boys’ choir “Wiener Sängerknaben”, Mrs Masur, Ludwig Güttler or members of the “Gewandhaus-Orchestra Leipzig”.
We take care of our younger students until their bus journey home in the afternoon. They can have lunch here, use the library or do their homework in a separate room.
Our school has already been visited by Minister Presidents and Ministers of Education and the Arts. They all were impressed by our modern school, its clean but not sterile appearance, the pleasant working and learning conditions and atmosphere, and the variety of offers to our students.
Due to a combination of all aspects many of our graduates reached good and very good results in their final exams.
We hope you could gain an insight into the Grammar School of Laucha. Feel free to contact us in case of any questions.