Weierhof grammar school

Weierhof grammar school
	Former classroom building, today boarding school and cafeteria
type of school	high school
founding	1867
place	Bolanden
country	Rhineland-Palatinate
Country	Germany
carrier	Private
student	about 850

The Gymnasium Weierhof is a private school with an attached boarding school , which is located in the hamlet Weierhof , belonging to the municipality of Bolanden in the Donnersbergkreis . There is no school fee . The school is attended by around 850 students.

history

The auditorium of the Weierhof grammar school

The Weierhof grammar school was founded in 1867 by the Mennonite preacher Michael Löwenberg. The school's distinctive auditorium was built in 1902.

In 1914, work began on a new school building in order to be able to teach science subjects. Due to the war that had broken out in the meantime and the subsequent poor economic situation in the Weimar Republic, the school building could only be occupied in 1928. In 1936 the school was nationalized under political pressure, from 1941 to 1945 it was a national political educational institution .

After the war, the school was closed for a long time and served as a barracks. The school was only able to reopen in 1959. In 1970 it became an all-day school, which was still very unusual at the time. In 2012 two new wings were built as an extension. The all-day house houses the upper level with specialist rooms, a separate lounge and a multi-purpose room for events. The second new building houses the school management, the teachers' room and the library.

particularities

Since 2008 the Abitur has been achieved in eight years at the Gymnasium Weierhof . The grammar school was one of the first nine schools in Rhineland-Palatinate to make this possible. The students of the lower and middle grades have several study times per week , those for German, mathematics, first and second foreign languages, as well as three "unbound" ones. The tasks of the respective subject teacher are processed during the learning times for the main subjects. In the "unbound" learning times, the students decide individually about their learning content. The classes are divided into the learning times in order to create a more intensive learning atmosphere. The learning times are intended to replace the homework that should not arise due to the afternoon classes. From the upper level onwards, this system is replaced by homework that is given in addition to the all-day lessons.

In the fifth grade, students choose English or French. In the sixth grade, English students can choose French or Latin, while French students must take English. In the eighth grade you can choose between Latin, French, Spanish, Japanese, natural science or computer science. Since the 2015/16 school year, culture has been available as an additional elective subject.

The school regularly runs student exchanges with its partner schools in France, Spain, Japan, China and Canada.

Due to the compulsory all-day form of teaching, a large number of working groups (AG) can be offered during lunch breaks. The school has a theater work group, a youth research group that has existed for over twenty years , in which students prepare their own science project for the youth research competitions with the help of the relevant specialist teachers, and a technology group that deals with the The school's event technology takes care of it. In addition, students can e.g. Take part in eg the beekeeping group, the cooking group, the vaulting group or the windsurfer group.

Former teachers and students (selection)

Paul Münch (1879–1951), teacher and dialect poet, was a student at the Weierhof.
Friedrich Düpmann (1908–1992), ceramist, teacher of fine arts and crafts.
Adolf Metzner (1910–1978), track and field athlete, Olympic participant (1932 and 1936) and doctor, was a student at the Weierhof.
Horst Penner (1910–2002), historian, headmaster at the Nordpfalzgymnasium in Kirchheimbolanden, teacher at the Weierhof from 1967 to 1977.
Georg Lind (* 1947), psychologist, was a student at the Weierhof.
Frank Nimsgern (* 1969), musician and composer, music producer, artistic director and lecturer, was a student at the Weierhof
Fred Jung (* 1970), founder of the plant construction company Juwi for renewable energy sources, was a student at the Weierhof
Sven Günther (* 1978), ancient historian, was a student at the Weierhof
Frank Rüttger (* 1971), politician, was a student at the Weierhof.