From Our Rooftop to the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger: A Beatles Tribute to Remember

Today, on Paul McCartney’s 84th birthday, we are delighted to share a special highlight from our school community.

Our recent Beatles rooftop tribute has attracted attention far beyond our school and was recently featured in the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger.

Recreating a Historic Musical Moment

Inspired by the announcement that Savile Row 3 — the site of The Beatles’ legendary final rooftop performance — will be transformed into a fully immersive museum in 2027, three Cologne International School students set out to recreate this iconic moment on the roof of our school building. Under the guidance of Music Teacher Rob Keane, the students carefully recreated the atmosphere, look, and sound of the original performance.

Attention to Detail

The project paid tribute not only to one of the most famous live performances in music history but also to the creativity, dedication, and musicianship of our students. The performers paid close attention to the visual and musical details of the original rooftop concert. Their outfits reflected the colour scheme of the historic performance, helping to recreate its instantly recognisable appearance.

Musically, the tribute remained faithful to the original setup, with a Höfner violin bass and Gibson ES-335 contributing to a sound that closely echoed the iconic rooftop performance. While the absence of keyboards, one of the original guitar arrangements, and a Ludwig drum kit meant that some elements differed slightly from the original, the overall atmosphere and energy of the concert were recreated with remarkable authenticity.

From the School Rooftop to the Local Press

The performance captured the spirit of Peter Jackson’s acclaimed documentary Get Back, bringing a historic musical moment to life for a new generation. The original setlist was largely preserved, with one special adaptation: “God Save the Queen” was replaced by “Happy Birthday” as a tribute to Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr on their birthdays and in anticipation of Global Beatles Day on 25 June.

We are especially pleased that this project was featured in the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger, highlighting the creativity and engagement of our students beyond the school community.

Read the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger article: Kölner Schüler spielen legendäres Beatles-Konzert nach

Watch the full rooftop concert on YouTube: Beatles Tribute: Rooftop Concert

Congratulations to our student performers and to Music Teacher Rob Keane for bringing this memorable project to life.

And in the spirit of it all — time to Get Back to where it once belonged, and will forevermore.

Musical background and performance notes provided by Music Teacher Rob Keane.

Tatjana Zaric
Marketing & Communications
Cologne International School

How we really assess and promote learning!

Unlike most schools in Germany, COLOGNE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL – Internationale Friedensschule Köln does not award grades from 1 to 6 or from 1 to 15 points. There is a good reason for this: a grade for a child’s performance in a subject over the course of a school year says little about what the child can do exceptionally well for their age and what they still need to work on. If you ask elementary school parents whether they would prefer grades with smileys and differentiated texts or traditional grades for their offspring, the choice is almost always in favor of traditional grades. Why is that? Do grades motivate children? How do grades affect children’s self-confidence?

In my opinion, differentiated approaches to performance assessment are lost in the discussion about grades. The COLOGNE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL – Internationale Friedensschule Köln is an IB school and therefore follows a well thought-out system that focuses on the individual learning progress of our students. I would like to present this system in more detail in this article.

Primary Years Programme, Grades 1 to 5 (IB PYP)

In Grades 1 to 5, we use a 4-level grading scale that not only reflects achievement but also takes into account specific learning objectives. It is important to understand that grades do not reflect the whole picture. They only reflect a moment in the learning process.

In the middle and upper school, we also rely on an assessment continuum that reflects individual learning progress without directly comparing students with one another. In this way, each grade contributes to the reflection and further development of the students – regardless of name, gender or origin.

Middle Years Programme, Grades 6 to 10 (IB MYP)

At IB schools like CIS, grading is understood as “evidence of learning”. This means that we set clear criteria for assessment that are standardized worldwide and allow for transparent comparison. Our aim is to highlight the strengths and areas of development of each individual student. This gives parents a clear overview of what their child can already do and where they still need support.

One example: In math, we assess up to 12 learning objectives, from clock time to word problems. This enables precise feedback on learning progress and targeted further development.

Diploma Programme, Grades 11 to 12 (IB DP)

In the Upper School we use a similar assessment continuum as in the Middle School, but the 4 criteria are added together (A+B+C+D) to give a grade from 1 to 7, with 7 being the best possible grade.

Grades are important, but only one part of the whole. We need to ensure that they are seen as a tool for improvement and not as the sole indicator. Let’s work together to create a system that values and promotes the diversity of learners.

For more information about our programmes and admissions, please visit our Primary School and Secondary School pages.

Ingo Stolle, Member Board of Directors at Cologne International School

“Every morning after getting up, the first thing I do is, brush my teeth, take a shower, and check my phone. Yes, I consume a lot of resources and I know they are not endless, am I responsible for this? Yes. Should I shower faster, brush my teeth more quickly and buy a “fairphone” instead, which is not made by children? These are questions that we need to ask ourselves. Also, this year’s MUN conference tackled this issue. We, 10 students from our DP1, two students from our 8th grade as well as our teachers Ms. Wedy and Mr. Weda attended the so-called ​​BERMUN 2 2023 in Berlin from February 23 to February 25 which was all about the topic: “Responsible Resource Consumption”. 

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Why did we go and what did we do at BERMUN? 

We participated in the Berlin Model United Nations (BERMUN) in order to improve our knowledge about world issues, to understand more about how the UN works, and last but not least to meet new and interesting people. In cooperation with the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung that hosted the MUN, the John F. Kennedy School of Berlin which organised this event has already organized more than ten MUN conferences in the past 5 years. 

So each one of us was assigned a specific country that we had to represent in a UN organisation. So for example Mikel from the 11th grade was part of the International Court of Justice that was dealing with the case between Nauru and Australia. The conflict is merely about a dispute concerning the rehabilitation of certain phosphate lands mined under the Australian administration before Nauruan independence. Sadie and Macy from 8th grade joined the Jr. MUN with other delegates representing Germany and South Sudan.

They for example debated about how to reduce pollution in industrial zones and inner cities. Every committee had its very own topic they debated about. It was our task to come up with valuable arguments on a topic from a perspective of a certain country.

Have you ever heard of MUN? Or are you interested in joining one? 

The Model United Nations (MUN) gives students an idea of how the United Nations (UN) works, and it is a great chance to be a part of a political conference if you are interested in this. It’s a very effective way for students who are interested in finding global solutions for challenges we face such as peace and stability or climate change.

Hundreds to thousands of students around the world, at any age, participate every year in MUNs worldwide. There is no limited educational level that you need to have absorbed before. 

Have you ever wondered how the delegates and country representatives in the United Nations come to one solution, without breaking out into a fight? 

Cooperation and debating play an important role in the UN and there is no better way to learn debating at MUN than cooperating with other delegates to find solutions. At the start of every MUN, whatever Committee you are in, you go into lobbying. Lobbying is when delegates of any country get into groups that consist of similar aims and views about the topic and create a resolution together, and in the end, the best argument, specifically the best-articulated argument, wins. 

Are you scared of interacting with people you first meet and speaking in front of them? 

This was our first-ever MUN conference and it was a very nice experience for us.

We had the chance to talk to different people from different schools around the world by discussing our debate topic with them or just chatting about our experience in joining the BERMUN. Surprisingly, we even found someone joining the MUN more than 10 times and that he really enjoys and likes joining this event. We have noticed that people who have joined MUN several times have great skills: They really have good debate skills and are fast in constructing sentences. So we have learnt not to be afraid of speaking in front of others who have much more experience in MUN than us. 

Last but not least…. 

Most importantly, we had a really nice time in Berlin, not only because of the BERMUN but also because we girls shared a room together, we were chatting, had fun at night, did some sightseeing in the city, and took a couple of memorable pictures. Last but not least, spending more than 4 hours on the train was really entertaining with our classmates and made the train journey feel short and enjoyable! 

What is left to say?

We have arranged a short interview with Eralp who in Berlin took the role of an assistant president, that is a part of the Special Conference Committee (Spc), and we asked him a couple of questions that could maybe interest you. 

Interview at BERMUN 2 (Berlin Model United Nations) 

by Bilge (DP1) and Ling (DP1) w/ Eralp Toker (Assistant President of the special conference committee) 

Ling: Hello Eralp, nice to meet you. I and Bilge have seen your excellent work as an assistant president in the debate, and we wanted to ask you a couple of questions. Could you just please introduce yourself quickly?

Eralp: Hey guys and thank you so much. My name is Eralp Toker and I am this year’s assistant president of the special conference committee (Spc) in the BERMUN. I’m currently 17 years years old and I’m studying at the Berlin Cosmopolitan School. This is my first time as an assistant president and it is always my pleasure to be a part of the BERMUN.

Bilge: Why do you attend MUN conferences and what is your motivation?

Eralp: In my opinion, MUN is very demanding because it allows you to improve yourself, both as a person and as a chair or delegate. 

Ling:  How do you prepare yourself for the conferences and are there any difficulties that you have faced?

Eralp: Obviously, I know that there is a lot of responsibility that I and the other chairs need to take. Nevertheless, we feel comfortable and make our experiences as fun as possible. Before the conference I had to research a lot on this year’s Special Conference topic which is “Energy Overconsumption”, finding the right information and trustworthy sources took a long time, but it is always a pleasure for me and the other chairs to make the debate not only enriching and credible but also fun at the same time.     

Bilge: For how long have you already been attending MUN conferences?

Eralp: For me, it has been two years in Germany, but I have already attended MUN back in Turkey for two years. 

Ling:  Thank you so much for your time, and it was our pleasure to interview you. 

This blog article was written by DP1 including Bilge Kaan Arslan, Charlie Beckand, Rong Ling Fu, Rika Imai, and Ms. Wedy.  

Learn more about our Bilingual Secondary School in Cologne.

Image source: BERMUN 2 poster