Exchange and travel opportunities have become an integral part of Rockway’s curriculum. The following points outline our vision and rationale for these programs.
- Exchange and travel opportunities enrich our curriculum. They afford students and faculty opportunities to learn in new ways and create bridges to the broader world. Students gain cross-cultural awareness and global perspectives on various issues. Teachers benefit as new questions and insights are brought into the classroom.
- Exchange and travel opportunities open students to larger issues of Christian faith service and lifestyle. Students grow in their understanding of the dialogue and relationships so fundamental to a witness of Christian service and peacemaking in our world.
- Exchange and travel opportunities extend Rockway’s second language teaching. Students use their language skills and learn to appreciate first-hand the cultures of France and Germany. Our Mandarin instruction serves to open students to the language, culture, and history of the Chinese people. Our Spanish lessons facilitate the opportunity for students to speak directly with the Guatemalans they meet and work alongside.
- Our exchange and travel opportunities are funded by the students themselves, either through group fundraising or individual contributions.
- Rockway’s exchange and travel opportunities seek to accommodate as many students as reasonable for each trip. Student participation is based on:
- demonstrated commitment and openness to experiencing a new culture;
- positive school involvement;
- successful completion of any necessary prerequisite courses;
- a commitment to share in group fundraising initiatives;
- and the ability to pay the individual monetary portion.
- Student participation is also premised on adequate supervisory staffing, including at least one male and one female for each trip.
France/Germany Exchange
Partnering with Weierhof Gymnasium
The Rockway/Weierhof Exchange has been a highlight in many students’ Rockway experience. The exchange is designed to give French and German language students a unique cultural and linguistic opportunity, to enrich and broaden their high school experience, and to provide a context for future language studies. As well, this travel opportunity is a means to gain international travel experience and to enjoy European history and cultural diversity.
This past summer nine Grade 11 French and German language students, along with their teacher chaperones Rosemarie Tossell and Dennis Wikerd, embarked on a eighteen day exchange with our host school Weierhof Gymnasium, Germany. Living with families from the Weierhof school community, the participants had a glimpse into the lives of their European host families. The hosting experience included numerous day excursions in the local community, a Rhine River cruise, a visit to the historical cities of Heidelberg and Mainz and to the Burg Eltz castle, as well as a guided tour of the Roman ruins in the city of Trier.
Following their stay in the Rhineland-Palatinate region of Germany, the group traveled to Paris, France for a four day visit. Highlights included: Sunday mass at Notre Dame Cathedral; a tour of the Louvre and d’Orsay museums, climb up the Eiffel tower; a visit to Versailles, Montmartre and the Latin Quarters, as well as a stroll down the Champs-Elysées – all memorable moments in Paris.
After their visit to Paris, the group traveled to Strasbourg, France. During their six day stay in Alsace, the students gained an appreciation for the unique blend of French and German culture that makes this one of the most beautiful and interesting regions in France. The itinerary included: a visit to the European Parliament, an important symbol for bridging cultural diversity among the twenty-eight member nations of the European Union; a tour of two medieval castles, Fleckenstein and Haut-Koingsburg; Camp Struthof, a former German concentration camp in the Vosges mountains; Notre Dame de Strasbourg; and numerous cultural sites in the Strasbourg area.
Our students look forward to the reciprocal part of the exchange in late September during which they will welcome their German host partners into their families and school community.
Sheri Wideman, Chaperone
