American Association of Teachers of German

German is a language that is universally recognized as a cornerstone for excellence. I trust that some of the points in this letter will convince you to reconsider this action.

Students today realize that the study of German is essential in many fields. The ability to read and discuss current events as well as the rich history of German-speaking Europe, to analyze and compare the fine literary contributions of  German-speaking authors, and to relate the contributions of German-speaking artists and musicians is among the many reasons why students choose the language and culture courses that the department has offered over the years.

In addition, consider the competitive environments of international business, where the language of trade is often the language of the client. A businessperson's ability to communicate in the language of the customer and to behave appropriately in the accompanying social situations is essential. Understanding foreign business practices is crucial to success in the international marketplace. German is considered by some in international business to be one of the two "most important languages for the year 2000 and beyond."

Some facts about Germany’s status as a world and U.S. trade partner:

• Germany was the world's biggest exporter in 2007 for a fifth consecutive year, even ahead of China. Technological innovation and the high-quality of German goods are seen as the main reasons behind Germany's first place finish. The most popular German export goods are vehicles and vehicle parts, machines, chemical products, and metals.
• Germany is the world’s fifth largest economy, Europe’s largest and  the world’s third most technologically powerful economy after the US and Japan.
• Germany continues to be the U.S.’s largest European trading partner and its fifth largest global partner.
• The United States imports more from Germany than from any other European country ($77.2 billion in 2004) and is the second largest market for German exports ($78 billion). 
• Over 2000 American companies conduct business in German-speaking countries, and more than 1000 companies based in German-speaking countries have subsidiaries in the U. S, according to the American-German Business Club.
• U.S. subsidiaries of German companies employ some 700,000 Americans according to recent figures from the German Chamber of Commerce (DIHK).
• The investments of German companies in the USA mean work for more than 1 million American.
• The volume of German  mergers and acquisitions in the United States in 2007 was over 24 billion dollars (fourth after Canada, Britain and Australia)
• There is more U. S. investment in Germany than in any other country, at over 100 billion Euros.
• The Institute for Management Development recently named the most competitive nations and in the world, and Germany remains #8 among the top ten.
• According to a poll of 1,200 leading executives from six EU nations, Germany's economy is the most competitive in Europe.
• A study, conducted by economic newspaper Handelsblatt, found that Germany has consistently enhanced its competitiveness more than any other country. On an international level, Germany and Switzerland are tied for second place behind China.
• Germany is the most attractive European country for investments and third after the US and China in the world, according to a 2008 survey of over 500 international executives by Ernst & Young.
• Some 40% of the companies want to invest in Germany in the near future.
• About half of the 547 billion euros of banknotes in the Euro region are spent in Germany, according to the Bundesbank.
• Europe's largest economy won particular praise for its state-of-the-art transportation and telecommunications infrastructure, high-tech research and development labs, well-trained workforce and large domestic market.
• Germany was recently named Europe’s most favorable manufacturing location for the foreseeable future by the firm of Healy & Baker and in a recent issue of Newsweek as the second most powerful country in the world after the United States, based on many criteria, especially economic reasons.
• Germany is now in third place after the US and Finland in the World Economic Forum’s recently released rankings of countries based on microeconomic factors such as innovativeness of local companies.
• Research by the Centre for European Economic Research also indicates that Germany possesses the "highest rate of participation in innovation, the highest share of companies with a research department, an above-average intensity of innovation and the highest innovation success rate."
  
• Germany tops the list of European nations in the number of new patents registered last year, according to figures from the European Patent Office in Munich. Altogether, German inventors managed to successfully register around 23,800 new patents in 2005 — fewer than only U.S. inventors, which topped the world at 32,700, but more than their Japanese counterparts, with 21,500.
• Profits for Germany's 30 leading blue-chip companies climbed by about 12 percent last year to hit a new record in 2007.
• Eighteen percent of all books published in the world are in German.

For the traveler, German is spoken by 95 million people as a mother tongue or official language in five European countries: the Federal Republic of Germany, Austria, Switzerland (German is the mother tongue of 64 percent of its citizens), Liechtenstein, and Luxembourg. Americans are the second largest group of visitors to Germany (the Dutch are the largest). Over 17 million foreign tourists visited Germany in 2006.

For students, there are numerous fellowship and exchange programs funded by both German and U.S. governments including the Fulbright Program, the Burns Fellowship Program, Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (since 1983), the Alexander Humboldt Foundation, Bundestag Internship Program, and the Robert Bosch Foundation. Germany is among the top ten destinations for U. S. students studying abroad, attracting over 5,000 students in 2007, and almost 10,000 German students enrolled in U. S. universities in the same year.

Over 25 million people all over the world study German as a second language. Developments in Central Europe have presented strong evidence that German remains the bridge language between the East and West. There are over nine million students of German in the republics of the former Soviet Union alone! Many international conferences held in those countries use German as the lingua franca. The EU Magazine in January 2001 reported that 29% of Europeans speak German as a mother tongue or have learned it as a second language followed by French with 19% and behind English with 37%. Today there are about 200,000 Americans living in Germany, 85,000 alone in the military.

Another aspect to consider is the ethnic background of your students. If they are of German descent, they usually want the opportunity to study the language of their parents or grandparents. Over 15% of American claim German ancestry, according to the 2000 census. German is the fourth leading language besides English most frequently spoken in American homes with 1,382,613 among people five or older.

I trust that these facts will clarify your perceptions and lead you to support the continued inclusion of German at the middle school and high school in your district.

Thank you in advance for your consideration and positive action.