German course continues with substitute teacher
By BRENDA SOMMER news1@leader-news.com

German courses - long a popular second language offering at El Campo High School - continue although a permanent teacher for the subject has not been hired.

German teacher Paul Soechting, who'd taught the language for ECISD for 38 years, retired at the end of the last school year.

El Campo ISD offers German and Spanish courses so students can earn full college exemptions from language requirements. The district offer four years of Spanish and three years of German to its students. A fourth year of German is available for college credit at Wharton County Junior College.

Since 1969, Soechting was the driving force behind the German program, which included its popular cultural dancing program and its own scholarship banquet.

His departure, announced this spring, led to recruitment of a certified German teacher who unexpectedly turned down the job just before school started.

"We still have the position posted, in hopes of getting a quality certified applicant, but it has not happened as of yet," said Rich DuBroc, principal of El Campo High School.

"For now, we have a substitute teaching the four classes. She is not certified, but has a bachelors degree in International Studies from Baylor University."

DuBroc said he is trying to use technology to assist German students this year.

"We are currently working on an agreement to have a 'virtual classroom' for the remainder of this semester for the four classes," he said. "The way that would work is, that we would keep our substitute and she would facilitate the classes in a computer lab, with an actual German teacher providing the curriculum and instruction online."

But that would only be a temporary measure, he said.

"My preference is to have a certified teacher in the class, but if we cannot find one, the virtual classroom with the highquality substitute that we have right now is a pretty good situation," DuBroc said.

The German dancing program, however, is no longer offered.

"We do not have German dancing right now because we don't have a sponsor," he said. "The teacher the board approved that did not come was not interested in doing the dance either."