American Association of Teachers of German

1.  I am a member of AATG because I am a professional educator and AATG is the professional organization that represents me.  What I pay in dues each year is more than rewarded with benefits I get from AATG.  Just as doctors belong to the AMA, German teachers need to belong to AATG.

2.  What I have gotten, and continue to get, from AATG far outweighs what I've paid in dues over the past 22 years.  I'm a member of TraiNDaF, which provided for paid workshops in Germany, Washington, and the ACTFL conference in Philadelphia.  I've gotten to participate for free in Goethe Institut seminars because I'm in AATG.  I've gotten lots of materials for little or no cost to help me sustain and improve my German program.  We now have TWO full time German teachers at my high school.

3.  Membership in AATG puts me in contact with some of the finest educators in the USA and around the world.  When I go to national conferences, like ACTFL, people know me because I am a member of AATG.  Through the membership I have, I have been able to interact with so many people.

4.  Belonging to AATG is the right thing to do.  When I applied for my new position in 2001, my principal and my superintendent read my resume and both of them commented that it was impressive that I had been a member of AATG for 15 years then.

5.  Not belonging to AATG is sort of like reading the newspaper of the person seated next to you in the airplane while he/she is reading it.  That person probably won't mind, but you are benefiting from finding out the news, so why not buy a paper?  Same with AATG--a person does not have to belong in order to give the National Tests, read/contribute to the Listserv, apply for Goethe-Institut seminars, etc, but why not do the ultimate thing and display some real professionalism by joining our professional organization?

6.  Each year, when Helene & Cherry Hill sends out the membership renewal letter, I am very impressed by the listings of accomplishments, new projects, and goals stated therein.  I want to be a member of such an organization.

7.  I teach in a school where most of the parents have advanced degrees and belong to their professional organizations (AMA, AIA, etc) and they are impressed that such a group also exists for German teachers AND that I take the time to be a member.  It shows to them that I am a dedicated educator who is striving to teach their children in the very best ways possible.

8.  It impresses my students.  Numerous times kids have been impressed that I am/was very up-to-date on some issues in Germany.  They have found out that I got the information from an AATG meeting or seminar, and often the comment has been "I wish my other teachers belonged to groups that kept them informed about current stuff and trends." 

9.  Solidarity.  We German teachers are not the default language instructors.  We have to stick together and our memberships in AATG provide us a very reasonably priced venue to do so.  By sticking together, we can offer support when school boards threaten to slash programs.  My experiences have taught me that school boards are much more impressed with long membership times than with "joined after found out program was being cut" people.

I have already written a bunch of reasons to Anne Green about the benefits of membership in AATG and now I'd like to address the readers of the Listserv.

I'm now in my 22nd year of teaching and I have been a member of AATG since 1986, when my first year salary was, ahem, $16,000 BEFORE taxes. Why did I join AATG then?  I considered myself a professional educator and professionals did (and still do) things like join their professional organizations. Besides, I saw AATG as a goldmine of information for me as a brand-new teacher.

I have continued to be a member of AATG because, in part, I still consider myself a professional educator.

How have I benefited from my membership?  If I had to pay just one dollar for each tip, idea, book, game, tape, workshop, seminar in Germany, etc. that I have received due to my membership, my debt to our organization would be almost incalculable.  Think about this, those of you who lurk on this List and are considering not being members, or are not members.  Suppose you actually had to pay for all the ideas and advice you have gleaned from this Listserv alone.  The membership fee pales in comparison, doesn't it?

I belong to AATG because my membership has put me in contact with some of the finest German teachers around the world.  Through my membership I have made friendships with people from Alaska to Florida, Denmark to Greece, and within my state.  I know that I can contact any of them with questions, ask for advice, or simply maintain friendships.  The AATG staff at Cherry Hill is among the most efficient and professional I have ever encountered, and I think any of you who have dealt with them will agree.  They work hard to make our lives as German teachers much easier.

I am an AATG member because I am a professional German teacher.

All the best,
Doug Philipp
Colorado Springs, CO

First and foremost to support your professional foreign language organization.
To share ideas with other teachers and receive help with any teaching situation you confront.
To get information about programs that can help you as a teacher or your students.

Maureen Helinski
Baltimore, MD

1)  Getting the most practical journal for teaching practitioners by teaching practitioners: Unterrichtspraxis, with helpful hints for the classroom, research, book reviews.

2)  An excellent newsletter with tons of good ideas.

3)  The most active professional FL membership of any language out there -- look at our representation at any and all conferences!

4)  Inside information on study opportunities, workshops, teaching materials for teachers, and study opportunities for students

5)  The opportunity to network with the few OTHER German teachers out there in your state at chapter meetings -- you are not (totally) alone!

6)  The active support of and connection to the Goethe Institut in your area

7)  Doing the right thing before German disappears from the curriculum

J. Douglas Guy
Beverly, MA

I'd say the professional contact and collegiality.   The contact with colleagues who are dealing with the same issues and challenges that I face (also as the only full-time German teacher) is the best in-service I get - at conferences, through the Listserv and from the various publications.

A hearty thank you to all of you who contribute above and beyond to help ensure the continuation of the AATG!

Frances Roller
Urbandale, IA

To support the teaching of German
The support and help I receive from fellow members
Sharing the love of knowing and teaching German
The camaraderie of others who teach German (we are more often than not the only German teacher in our schools)
The enthusiasm and inspiration I get from the group
The mentoring and sharing by colleagues on the listserv and events, including materials from folk like yourself at the university/college level
All that AATG offers for sale and develops
I don’t understand why anyone would not want to be a member of this wonderful association!

Kathy Gearhart
Odenton, MD

The huge benefits that I only discovered late in my career are the seminars and everything else offered by the Goethe-Institut.
The films and such available through the AATG are also much more reasonable if you're a member.
I just can't imagine being a German teacher and not being a member.

Deb File
Lima, OH

AATG has helped me be a better German teacher.
I know that most of the "benefits" I receive I could get if I weren't a member, i.e. the listserv and the materials center, BUT I feel a professional responsibility to support the organization that has done more for me than my college studies did.
This answer won't help you convince those who feel no professional responsibility.

Julie Baird
Syracuse, IN

The chance to get together with other German teachers from time to time. Most of us are going it alone at our individual schools and it gets lonely.  When I discuss my classes with myself, it gets really boring.

Judy Fullerton
Tempe, AZ

The only way we will ever be able to move anything is if we stand together beyond a somewhat narrow-minded concern how we or our students can benefit financially. 

There is a lot to be learned from others, even just knowing who else teaches German where and what they do to keep the subject alive.  There is advocacy that must be done at various levels for foreign languages and for German in particular.  If German teachers see themselves and if others see German teachers as part of a somewhat coherent profession, they will be more willing and ready to study German and see to it that it is offered in schools.  Just to have an Association which promotes professionalism and political support is an important public relations tool that will strengthen anyone's position who is in the business of teaching German. 

Eckhard Kuhn-Osius
New York, NY

I have benefited greatly as a teacher and as person from AATG.  I am proud to be apart of such a FANTASTIC organization and I could not imagine not continuing my membership.  Being apart of this group, allows me not to feel so alone as I "fight the fight" to promote the learning of German!  Believe me, I have days where I ask myself, "why  am I doing this", when I see colleagues who have "job security" doing  less to attract the numbers, but this organization and its members  motivate me to keep that fire burning and continue trying to win the "fight".

Linda Zins-Adams
Fort Thomas, KY

1. people who are professionals should belong to the appropriate professional organizations for support, opportunities and to contribute to a better profession. WE WANT TO BE treated as professionals, so act like one.

2. Other languages envy our organization - why

3 Listserve - advice and ideas and materials - all the time.

4. published materials - cheap.

5. support for "experiences for students" - trips along with GAPP

6. Lots of low cost or free professional experience here and in Germany – we can constantly improve our skills.

Joan MacDonald
Nashville, TN

The AATG promotes the study of German and that is reason enough for me to belong to the AATG. Officially I am retired and I teach three classes at a middle school, because there would not be a program otherwise. There are not enough teachers who can afford to teach part-time. Teaching German is my passion and I will promote the AATG and the study of German financially and any other way I can.

I suppose I am old-fashioned, but I don't believe in doing things only for financial gain.

German teachers were always envied by other language teachers for the fantastic professional development programs and teaching materials they offer. That can only continue if we all support each other and the AATG.

Christa Wolf
St. Louis, MO

I heartily second everything the others have said so far.

I usually refrain from voicing my opinions here, but I'm very saddened that there are people who are so selfish to only think of the National Exam and their own personal gain.  The AATG benefits the profession, and I've never even   considered not paying my dues.  Besides the study trips, cheap materials, and professional enrichment like in no other subject, imagine if we *didn't* have a National Organization -- where would we be as professionals?  How could we be taken seriously?  Thank goodness for the AATG, and for such fabulous colleagues who support it!

Ann Schroeder
Cincinnati OH

I want to second all the supportive comments made about the benefits of being an AATG member. I am retired and could certainly use the annual dues to buy a nice bottle of wine or play a round of golf, but my time as a German teacher was not a job, it was a profession and a passion, and I feel a responsibility to support the State and National AATG as a partial return on the many benefits I have received, and as an investment in the future of German in the US educational system.

Barry Thomas
Athens, OH

Unified and unifying professional organizations need and deserve our support.  Here are a few reasons off the top of my head for remaining with AATG:

- The Listserv alone is worth the membership.  I know of few organizations whose members support one another so well electronically, from giving teaching advice to offering a shoulder to cry on.  Just lurking is a learning experience.

- Es geht um Geld.  The AATG needs funding to carry out its mission of encouraging German language instruction.  The dues are a small price for even a poor churchmouse teacher like me to pay in order to help the organization accomplish its goals.

- For the same reason that I have remained certified since retiring (for the second time), I am retaining membership in professional organizations, e.g. AATG, NEA, in order to keep my hand in.  I'm still a teacher, even in retirement.

- The AATG is a good resource for literature and research, for both professional and personal use.  The Unterrichtspraxis is an excellent journal for teachers and a pleasure to read.

- The AATG offers really nice materials for bargain prices.

- The AATG offers travel and learning opportunities for students and teachers.  If I were still teaching, I'd probably be applying for that upcoming seminar in Leipzig, or some similar experience I'd learned about through AATG membership.

- The AATG works closely with the Goethe Institute and other organizations, which have been very good to me and other teachers in offering advice and educational experiences.

- AATG members get together frequently, maybe at a "Sprachbad", have a beer, bond and pick up teaching suggestions from workshop leaders and one another.

- It's a good, solid professional organization. And we're professionals.

- Einigkeit macht stark.

Bruce Brown
Augusta, GA

If lawyers and judges belong to the ABA, and medical doctors to the AMA, why can't we as professionals, who teach German or do research in the  field, be members of our professional organization. It never ceases to amaze me how energetic, creative and dedicated my colleagues in the AATG are. I feel fortunate that many of them have become friends. Just think, if I hadn't been introduced to the AATG as a grad student many years ago, I might never have found the success I've had as a teacher. Four years ago I was National Board certified as a German teacher. Joe Wipf and John Lalande, two AATG colleagues, were instrumental in giving me the confidence to attempt the process. I truly feel that I would not have attempted certification, had it not been for their support and encouragement. So, as we used to say in the old days: Be there or be square!

John Stark
Aurora, IL

At my school: Spanish 2 = 300 students, German 2 = 40, AP Spanish = 8, AP German = 16, why? because our German program is recognized for its quality and   matters to students in high school and beyond (they report). Why is the program of such high quality? - because I am active member of the AATG and constantly have  access to the latest in my field. My communication with colleagues and my choice to actively participate in my professional field has enhanced my teaching in  measurable ways (student scores on the OPI, college entrance exams, students choosing majors and fields using the language, etc). And all of this in a school in a state which is not at all required to offer German courses. My membership has enabled me to develop a quality program that matters to families who pay taxes and demand that the board of education continue to offer this program. I would not have achieved this without regular networking within AATG.  I cannot envision a year of teaching without the immediate connection to my colleagues through the many avenues of the AATG. Shame on any teacher who would take advantage of what AATG provides without supporting the organization financially.

Christopher Gwin
Haddonfield, NJ 

I taught since 1972 and have been active with AATG much of that time. Back then we had NFSG and other activities and I never would have been able to have the programs I had without the organization. We were always the envy of the other languages because we had the AATG organization and the Goethe Institute who would supply us with materials at such reasonable prices that we could spoil our students by our many offerings. I could not have done my GAPP programs without AATG nor could I have experienced many programs which developed my teaching style without their help. The listserve was/is an information artery second to none and the heartfelt help each of you has offered during the years has been what kept me going. I thought I had retired and left all my material with my school, but lo and behold I am back teaching German 1 & 2 in grad school. Once again I am able to see your great span of knowledge and your kind willingness to help even with questions which you have answered any number of times before. What can one say to such a group of people? You are wonderful, you are AATG as well as the great people in Cherry Hill! What a team! To be a part of something like that is an honor for us all, and I know we all appreciate it. Thanks to all.

Inge Schmidt
Scottsdale, AZ

Buying a book that tells you how to teach German...... $30

Attending conferences around the country..... $1000

Getting an education in German studies and everything you need to know.....$an arm and a leg

Learning from this educated, creative, and thought-provoking group of people on this list alone and having a great depot full of resources ......priceless!!

My two cents of reasons for being an AATG member and belonging to this list and happy to pay every cent of it.

Antje Carlson, Ph.D.
Anchorage, AK

I don't want to sound like a commercial in this space here, but I have many Gruende of my own to tout membership of the AATG.

The organization has been open and willing to encourage the use of technology in the German classroom. Numerous workshops I attended from 1996 at the Illinois Math and Science Academy, 1997 and 1998 at St. Olaf College were especially helpful to me, then the Maine Chapter supported the digital media workshop at Deutsche Woche in Bar Harbor in 2006. In summary, there have been ample opportunities to use various technologies in the classroom, as well as develop sound pedagogy too.

In addition, I had the privilege to be a Reisebegleiter for the Preistraeger in Deutschland in the Sommer 2005 and Sommer 2006. If you want to describe the word "priceless", the best moment was watching the Schueler enjoy the World Cup during the Viertelfinale match on the Berlin Fan Mile. I'm sure it is an experience that they will never forget.

Peter Schultz
Freeland, PA 

I have belonged to numerous professional organizations over the years, but the one membership I will never allow to lapse is with AATG. I echo what others have said about the benefits--wonderful, affordable teaching materials, workshops and seminars, our wonderful State German Convention with activities for our students, new ideas, the Listserv, and the countless opportunities to network with German teachers around the world. Every other organization of which I have been a member truly pales in comparison. Our colleagues in other teaching fields view us as fortunate. The AATG has much to offer that one can't get anywhere else, and that's why so many of us appreciate our professional organization.

Marge Duvall
Dunwoody, GA

I haven't taught German since 2000-2001. I'm still here. Why? I’m a professional teacher of languages. Part of being a professional is being a member of professional organizations. German teachers belong to the AATG.

Janet Holzer
Indianapolis, IN 

I have to echo many of the sentiments I just read over the past few days. AATG made it possible for me to be part of a seminar, which contributed materials available for others to use. Like others, I have met many wonderful people who have supported my efforts in the classroom and have served as my mentors, when none have been available to me locally. Without all of the great contributors on the AATG listserv, I would not be as successful, nor as creative in the classroom. Furthermore, I would never have been nominated nor received the New FL Teacher of the Year Award from the state of Wisconsin. Every AATG seminar I attend, Unterrichtspraxis I read makes me a better professional in my chosen field. It allows me to stay on top of current trends in DaF/FL education, gives me insights into new materials, exposes me to post-secondary German education issues and needs - just to name a few. Without AATG I would be terribly lacking as a German teacher. At this point I cannot imagine teaching without this valuable network.

Bobbette Leu-Timmermann
Wisconsin Rapids, WI

Another great reason to belong to AATG... the staff This past summer I took a ride over to South Jersey to visit the AATG office and met Anita, Mercedes, Martha, and Deb. (Helene was in Germany. Anne Green, editor). They allowed me to browse through the materials center. My kids and I hung around for a couple of hours and we had great conversation. It was mutually a very beneficial experience for they do not have the opportunity to actually see most of the members. When in the northeast, please make an effort to visit their office.

Kevin Nerz
Berwyn, PA

My personal reasons:

1) Through AATG I have gotten to know not only every active German teacher in my area, but also many of the big names in German that you see on the ListServ or who present at national conferences or who write articles. These people inspire me, and by interacting with them, I realize that they are normal people who aren't that different from anyone else. This gives me a feeling that we all have talents and we all have something to contribute, and it pushes me towards achievements in my career that I wouldn't have dreamed of before.

2) Through AATG I attended a Wiesneck Seminar in the Schwarzwald and a technology workshop in München. Wiesneck was the first time that I saw the Southwest region of Germany, and in both instances I got to know some great people. And both were subsidized in part or totally, allowing me opportunities which I otherwise would not have been able to afford.

3) I was able to participate in a leadership program called TraiNDaF which helped me to become more aware of what we need to do to keep AATG and the German teaching profession strong in years to come.

4) I am so thankful that we have such a lively ListServ where you can get speedy answers to tough and not so tough questions. Generally, nothing is off limits and no one makes you feel bad if you need help regardless of the request.

5) The testing program has allowed me to send several students to Germany. Students know that the National German Exam is a big deal and that the prizes are good.

6) I was able to get to know and host a German author, Karin Gündisch, whose works are extremely popular with German teachers worldwide.

7) Knowing that I am not alone out there and having positive role models and great materials through AATG make all the difference in the world, especially in regards to my motivation and my professionalism.

8) I don't know how other professionals stay abreast of new trends, technology, teaching materials and pedagogy without an organization like AATG. My colleagues are in awe of all that we do and of the "kinship" shared by AATG members.

Peg Grasso
Pittsburgh, PA