| Release Date: 6/10/2009 |
Contact: Diana L. Spencer 410-887-4243 |
TOWSON, MD. (June 10, 2009) - Forty Baltimore County Public Schools students from five schools achieved top 10 national rankings and earned medals in the 2009 Le Grand Concours.
Le Grand Concours, or the National French Contest, is an hour-long national test, produced and administered by the members of the American Association of Teachers of French. All students of French, from grades 1 through 12, are eligible to participate. In 2009, more than 101,000 students nationwide took the exam, and from that pool, 9,220 earned medals.
"Our students who excelled in the National French Contest are among our many outstanding students who understand the importance of being prepared to be a part of our global economy and culture," said Superintendent Dr. Joe A. Hairston. "We applaud them for their dedication to world languages."
The following BCPS students earned medals in the 2009 Le Grand Concours:
Silver medal (awarded to students with national ranks 2-3)
National rank 2nd
Bronze medal (awarded to students with national ranks 4-10)
National rank 4th
National rank 5th
National rank 6th
National rank 7th
National rank 8th
National rank 9rh
National rank 10th
Speaking of his students who participated in the exam, Arbutus Middle School French teacher Bob Scannell said, "They are some of the hardest-working and most self-motivated students I've ever had. They are always willing to go beyond my expectations for them. Their love for the language and the fun that we have every day in the classroom really paid off for them."
BCPS middle and high schools offer language courses in Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin, and Spanish. In addition, Wellwood International School, an elementary school, features a K-5 French immersion program where students spend half of the day learning math and language arts in French.
Visit the BCPS News Archive to explore more BCPS news!