Graduation
Jonny | June 12, 2009
Storms have been unexpectedly tearing through othewise sunny, tranquil days in Frydlant. The setting sun splashed watercolors on the backside of a particularly rainy evening last Tuesday, lighting the sky over our town square with pink and peach. We experience the same kind of chaos-charged calm in June at BMA.
It is the last month of school and everyone, students and teachers alike, are ready for the holidays. Grades are finished in some classes, leaving those remaining, government-required class hours entirely meaningless. Other teachers wait until the last week to give their most important exams and students are understandably frazzled after facing an exam each day. Next Friday is the deadline for finalized grades and class trips start the following day.
We also have been basking in the satisfaction of sending off a capable, mature senior class. Our students conquered the dreaded “Maturita” oral examinations most impressively; four of fifteen students received perfect marks and the highest honors. They have been applying to various universities around the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, and the United States. So far, we know that our students have been accepted at Moody Bible Institute, Brown University, the University of Manchester, and many Czech institutions.
Directly following the exams, the entire BMA community (parents, teachers, students, and friends) celebrated at a touching graduation ceremony. My colleague, Paul Till, had been the class teacher (or homeroom teacher) for the graduates and made a deeply touching speech before the gathering in the elegant and packed town hall. Tears flowed and as he honored the students and lifted up the name of Jesus. He spoke stunningly good Czech and his open heart was a refreshing surprise in a culture where emotions are often closely guarded.
On a large scale, the exam process and graduation were satisfying because we saw the finished product after years of dedicated work. Talented students are leaving our school academically sound, speaking fluent English, and have weekly heard and discussed Jesus’ message of hope and love. For me, the exams were also a triumph because the technology curriculum I designed was tested and shone (two students chose, for the first time, to do exams in Information Technology) and, also for the first time, I examined students in Czech (in accordance with Czech law).
We will be taking some school trips in the coming weeks. I am going hiking and camping with my class in Slovakia. Other students are heading to the northern Czech Republic and on to Dresden, Germany. Then Lisa and I will be flying to America at the end of the month for a summer with our families and friends. Maybe we will see you! Drop us an email.