AP French
At Chamblee, French is often a forgotten language. Most students enter with a history of either Spanish and German and are reluctant to start over again with a new language in high school. AP French class is typically hosted in the same classroom as the French III class. However, the students don’t find the small class size to be a hindrance.
Despite sharing a room with French III, AP French students perform their own separate activities. Currently, there is only one student in AP French at Chamblee High, Eulalia Tran (‘27). She finds the class difficult.
“I think since I’m in a class with two other classes, it makes focusing and learning the topics so much harder. The only French teacher is focused on French 3 and not AP French.”
This makes it difficult to gauge what it is like for other students to take, whether the class has many students next year.
Additionally, she spoke on the subject of work.
Tran said, “There are zero hours [of work]. That’s the problem.”
In the past, students taking the AP French described the class as helpful and interesting, as there used to be more students enrolled in the course.
“In younger classes, we learn grammar, but in AP French we really just put it all together and learn to interact with people who are interested in the same,” said Ashley Michel (‘21).
A typical day consists mostly of activities such as writing or speaking in French.
“We do a lot of talking in French, which is good because it helps our fluency,” said Mahelet Asefa (‘20). “We also do a lot of writing, so that we are able to read and write and speak at the same time. We do a lot of activities where we’ll read articles about what’s going on in France to be able to get that global identity.”
Though the course was AP, most did not find it overly stressful or difficult. Homework was rare as long as all classwork was completed.
“We do the majority of stuff in class, but everyone in that class is very focused so we just kind of knock it out,” said Asefa.
Every student interviewed recommended the class to people interested in French.
AP German
AP German is a college-level course that involves learning about the German language and culture. The class is currently taught by Yesim Ozbarlas (Dr. O) and Aukini Anderson. The class is meant to prepare students for the College Board exam and can replace German IV in a student’s language track. Generally, it is required for the student to take German III or III+ before taking AP German.
Ozbarlas’s class was said to be fairly laid back with little to no homework.
Summer Palmer (‘27) said, “We get into class, watch the news, and talk about an article we read the day or night before. Sometimes, we get homework from workbook pages but, overall, little to no homework.”
Neil Daniel (‘27) agrees with this assessment of the class.
Daniel said, “Honestly, [the class] is not too hard.”
Students such as Palmer suggest taking the class to advance knowledge of German.
Palmer said, “I like and recommend the class because it’s been great at challenging my German skills and teaching me about German culture.”
AP Spanish
AP Spanish, also known as AP Spanish Language and Culture, is a college-level Spanish class taught by Coromoto Rodriguez. At Chamblee, the class is normally taken by seniors after three years of Spanish classes.
A large amount of work in AP Spanish takes place on the platform VHL Central, an online learning environment where students can take quizzes, do exercises, and practice Spanish.
Stefany Larrainzar Munoz (‘25) said, “Right now we’re learning about topics and world discussions [involving] Latin countries and America and preparing for the test.”
The difficulty of this class varies from student to student. Some found it fairly easy while others found it more difficult. Larrainzar Munoz gave it a 3/10 on difficulty, while John McNally (‘26) described the class was pretty hard.
Larrainzar Munoz shared her experience with the classwork.
She said, “I have no homework for this class ever and the workload is very light and easy to finish.”
A similar opinion is shared by another student.
McNally (‘26) said, “I don’t really get any homework, the class can be fun when learning about history or doing reading comprehension.”
It can be summarized that many students enjoy this class because of its light workload.