From December 2010:

On November 16, it was announced that Chamblee will be the only public high school in Georgia to offer the Deutsches Sprachdiplom, or DSD2, to its seniors.

This exam is similar to the Advanced Placement German exam, which includes reading and listening comprehension components, an essay, and an oral presentation.

“There are higher standards than the AP German exam though,” said senior Anusha Ravi. “I did really bad [on the pilot exam] because of German grammar.”

The opportunity came about when the State Department recommended that the Chamblee German program get in touch with Petra Reuter, who is in charge of the DSD exams in the United States.

“We talked, and she saw we had a good [German] program,” said German teacher Uwe Neuhaus. “So we officially applied with the government in Berlin.”

Chamblee High conducted a pilot exam in April 2010 to determine whether the school would qualify to offer the DSD2. 60 AP German level or higher senior, junior, and sophomore students took the exam. Of the students, 45 passed on the C1 level, and not one student failed.

“I’m very proud of the number of students who passed the pilot exam,” said Neuhaus, who conducted the DSD2 pilot exam in April.

If a student passes on the C1 level, the highest possible, or the B2 level, the second highest level, then that student will receive an official diploma signed by the Secretary of Education in Berlin, Germany.

“It’s a really good opportunity, and it gives us the ability to study in Germany,” said senior Carol Anne Spangler.

The benefits of acquiring this diploma include access to universities in Germany without further testing and possible college credit in universities in the United States for passing on the C1 level. It can also provide evidence of exceptional language skills to German companies looking to hire employees.

“If I study abroad, it will make my classes easier,” said senior Andrew Robison, who is considering going to a university in Germany.

Around 40,000 students worldwide participate in this exam at over 800 schools. More than 60 countries partake in the DSD examinations.

At Chamblee High School, approximately 28 total seniors will take the exam in March 2011. However, not all the students feel the necessity of taking the DSD2.

“It’s obviously good to have,” said senior Ben Jernigan. “But I actually don’t think it will help me and I’m not sure if it’s necessary.”