Interview with Žarko Tomšič – the head master of our school
The generation of 1993 is leaving the school this year. Would you like to tell them anything?
It is important that in your life you accomplish your goals and that you always establish new goals to accomplish.
What are the duties of a head master? What do you do?
A head master has a small sea of things to do. He makes sure that the school works according to all the rules and regulations, he cares for the finances of the school, safety and comfort of the students and also the teachers. The head master has to bring new things to the school, the kitchen. The job takes a lot of patience with parents. As a manager he also plans the renovation and building of school buildings – you could say that the job of a head master is like the job of a “girl for everything”.
You are also a judge for sports. Can you tell us anything about this privilege?
I am a judge for many different basketball tournaments. I judge for normal basketball games and also “wheelchair” basketball, in which invalids compete. They can have only a minor type of invalidity or be seriously invalid. They compete in wheelchairs. In the past I also competed in basketball, but I broke my arm and was unable to continue with the sport. Then I started judging, which actually poisoned me. This job requires the knowledge of many languages and I have to travel a lot to many different countries.
Where have you travelled and which trip was your favorite?
I have visited every continent except South America. I just visited China, where the pre-Olympic tournament will take place and in July I will visit Turkey. My most interesting trips were to Australia, Japan and Canada. Of course, I also travel a lot with my family, which I enjoy very much. We travel around Europe. We usually travel by car, stopping at camps.
Can you tell us anything about your schooling?
I visited Primary school in Radenci and then I continued my schooling at the gymnasium in Murska Sobota. After I finished there, I visited the Faculty of Art in Ljubljana. At the weekends I had to travel for four hours on a packed bus.
Do you remember any significant memory from your childhood?
I remember when I fell out of a tree. When I fell I got the air knocked out of me and I couldn’t breathe. I panicked. I also remember when I lived in a hostel for youth with my mother. The girls who lived there would always fight over who would push my stroller. Even then I wanted to learn about my surroundings and I decided to study Geography.
Do you play any sports during your free time?
Basketball takes up a lot of my free time, but I also make sure I'm fit. When the weather is nice I walk and ride a bike. In winter I ski and in summer I swim with my family. But as I get older I am also less fit.
Interviewers: Tina Ahačič and Gorazd Jakoš
Bye, bye Poljane school! The 9-graders have told us:
- Primary school.
The place where you first start to learn counting and reading. The place where you learn about people and enjoy your friends. We have been here for a long time. Secondary school. The unknown. Will it be good? Will I have a lot of friends? What will it be like?
Meagan Jackson
- Teachers have taught us a lot. So good-bye Poljane school.
- Good-bye Poljane school: It's been really well all those eight years.
- Good-bye Poljane school! Leaving the school means that you are starting a new life in the
real world.
- A sad thing it shall be indeed, when good-bye comes to my first real school.
Gašper Pesek
- Poljane school is great (the best in Ljubljana).
Mik Dimnik
- Poljane school is simply the best!
Žan Palčič
- I hope that the school will stay the same great school it was when I was starting in it.
Interview with Mrs. Erica Johnson Debeljak- the translator and writer
Tina: Why did you come to Slovenia?
Mrs. Debeljak: I met a man and fell in love with him.
Tina: How many books have you translated?
Mrs. Debeljak: I've written some books of proverbs, a collection of short stories...
Tina: Do you do any sports?
Mrs. Debeljak: Tennis. I'm fanatic.
Tina: You are critical about our school system. Can you tell us why?
Mrs. Debeljak: The school system is very hard. The teachers are very strict and the students don't study because they want to know something, but for a good mark. There is too much testing and answering and the students aren't taught to analyze data.
Tina: You spent last year in America. Can you compare American life stile to Slovenian (opportunities for young people)?
Mrs. Debeljak: Americans have more opportunities to travel, because America is bigger. Slovenes have opportunity to travel around Europe, but they don't take it.Slovenians don’t fulfill their ambitions and are a little lazy. Americans work hard and are ambitious to fulfill their dreams.My advice is: ˝Be energetic! Keep struggling! ˝
Tina: How do you spend your free-time?
Mrs. Debeljak: I drive my son to football training, I like reading books ... I have difficulties with logistic.
Tina: You have been living in Slovenia for a long time. Do you feel Slovenian?
Mrs. Debeljak: Well, I'm not 100% American anymore, but I don't feel 100% Slovenian either.
Tina: Do you remember any funny event from the time of your schooling?
Mrs. Debeljak: There was this one time when a very interesting teacher had a debate, and a student in the first row fell asleep. He told all of us to get up and we all left the reading room quietly.
Thank you for the interview
