Teaching staff on a professional development trip to Strasbourg

As every year, the staff of Schiffer Berufskolleg planned a professional development trip for this year’s last summer holiday week. This time, Strasbourg was the destination, to learn about aspects of inland navigation and, of course, to strengthen team spirit. The program initially included the Strasbourg training school for French inland navigation, “Lycee-ufa-Emile-Mathis”. The “training session” for the staff on “Similarities and Differences in Inland Navigation Training” was spontaneously moved by the training director to the German-French fireboat of the ports of Strasbourg and Kehl. In excellent weather, during the trip through both ports, the boat’s functionality was presented, and the pedagogical and curricular specifics of both schools were also compared.

Afterwards, the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine (CCNR) was on the agenda. Jörg Rusche, the Deputy Secretary General of the CCNR, provided information on the tasks and bodies of the CCNR, their various areas of activity, and how member states reach decisions. The architectural features of the meeting building, the Palais du Rhin, were also presented.

Finally, they visited the Iffezheim lock. Verena Beßler, an employee of the WSA Oberrhein, provided information on the special features of the lock as a “gateway to the North Sea” and the repair measures after the serious accident in November 2023. The specifics of sediment addition below the lock were demonstrated during a trip on a dredge to the dumping area.

In addition, the SBKR colleagues had ample time during tours and trips through beautiful Strasbourg to explore the city’s gastronomic and architectural diversity. After three days, they returned to Homberg with many new insights and strengthened as a team.