German Teachers Research Articles

关注学生能力的外语项目教学设计和实施——以中学德语学科为例

关注学生能力的外语项目教学设计和实施——以中学德语学科为例

Diskursive Aspekte der Sprachvermittlung an der Theater-Fakultät der Janáček-Akademie für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Brno/Tschechien

The article takes a look at some specifics of teaching German at the Theater faculty of the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts (JAMU) in Brno/Czech Republic. Specifically, it addresses the question of how to enable students of theater directing to actively participate in discursive practices in German as a foreign language. In the following, the question of how the discourse skills acquired in Czech subject teaching could be made fruitful in German teaching is explored.

Sacred Socialism

Sacred Socialism

'Diskursive Landeskunde' in Deutsch als Fremd- und Zweitsprache: Bestandsaufnahme, Herausforderungen und offene Fragen

The paper presents the state of the art within the discussion about the 'discoursive approach' of cultural learning in the field of German as a second and foreign language. It is argued, that the 'discoursive' approach is accepted by many as an interesting and promising paradigm shift that has created a new base of thinking about cultural learning and its relevance for learners of German, but that on the other hand some crucial questions and challenges still have to be answered: What do we mean by 'discoursive'? What about teaching simple knowledge of 'facts'? What level of language proficiency do learners need to be ready for 'discoursive' learning? Some of these questions are discussed in the paper and it will be shown, that we urgently need more efforts to implement the new approach in teaching and learning of German as a second or foreign language.

Potenziale von Bildern beim Kulturbezogenen Lernen : eine empirische Studie zu Deutschlehrenden und ägyptischen Lernenden

This article addresses the question of the extent to which ambiguous images with cultural potential play a role in culture-related learning processes. It is assumed that images with multiple interpretations can have a high potential in the culture-related learning field, which leads learners to express their feelings and emotions more strongly. The concepts of interpretation learning by Ingeborg Schüßler, the concept of emotion learning by Rolf Arnold, and the theory of expansive learning by Klaus Holzkamp with his subject position serve as the theoretical basis for concretizing the concept of culture-related learning in this work. This work is also based on the cultural studies approach of discursive cultural studies by Claus Altmayer, in which "culture" is no longer defined objectively, but as a negotiation of meanings. This work attempts to find answers to the following questions based on an empirical investigation of German teachers in Egypt and Egyptian German as a Foreign Language learners: To what extent can images initiate the culture-related learning process? What potentials do images have on the different levels within culture-related learning processes?

Research on the Status Quo and Expansion Strategies of German Teaching in Secondary Schools under the New Curriculum Standard

Research on the Status Quo and Expansion Strategies of German Teaching in Secondary Schools under the New Curriculum Standard

A COMPARATIVE STUDY BETWEEN ENGLISH AND GERMAN FOR NON-NATIVE SPEAKERS THROUGH DIGITAL LANGUAGE

The main purpose of this study is to shed light on the concept of how L2 and L3 can be enhanced. In this regard, digital language in English and German are examined in terms of a comparative study in the context of non-native speakers and the following research questions are focused: 1) What can German teachers consider when using digital language in the class?; 2) What kind of effective Teaching Materials and Tasks can be employed based on the efficient language teaching performance?; and 3) What practical recommendations can be provided to FL teachers concerning effective language pedagogy? It is suggested in this study that comparing the knowledge of German with what learners have learned previously, namely the knowledge of English, can enhance the competence of learners when learning German language. Regarding data analysis, the language functions of the two languages are analyzed qualitatively which will lead to some practical recommendations for FL teachers concerning effective language pedagogy in the context of L2 and L3. Additionally, the results of this study may be applied to develop the competence of students to their fullest potential and to enable them to compete with graduates from other institutions and other countries.

Drifting away from religion? A perspective from German teacher education

Due to the dynamic situations in Germany and other Western European countries, the break with religious traditions has been already completely achieved and a far-reaching spiritual-religious plurality has been formed. Against this backdrop of a multitude, in part contradictory, spiritual signs of the times, even prospective teachers of religion can no longer assume an already established and reflected spiritual-religious identity. The following article indeed will deeply explore and interpret personal and professional experiences through self-reflection and writing and relate these, for example, to religious, cultural, and social implications. In addition, it will reflect more closely the field of tension between pluralistic-secular life-world and (Christian)-religious traditions in which prospective teachers of religion find themselves and present a time-sensitive and addressee-oriented spirituality module supporting them in establishing their own spiritual-religious identity. It is hoped that this sustainable and communicable model serves to enable teachers of religion to communicate about it (with pupils) and to meet others’ religious identities in an open and empathetic way.

A Study on The Satisfaction Perceptions Towards Distance Education of German Teacher Candidates

Bu çalışmada Covid-19 salgın dönemi uzaktan eğitim alan Alman Dili Eğitimi Bölümü öğrencilerinin uzaktan eğitime yönelik memnuniyet algılarını tespit etmek amaçlanmıştır. Bu amaç doğrultusunda bir devlet üniversitesi Eğitim Fakültesi Yabancı Diller Eğitimi Alman Dili Eğitimi Bölümü’nde öğrenim gören 80 üniversite öğrencisine Uzaktan Eğitim ile ilgili memnuniyet anketi uygulanmıştır. Anketten online olarak elde edilen veriler frekans ve yüzde gibi tanımlayıcı istatistikler yoluyla R Studio programında analiz edilmiştir. Araştırma sonucunda öğrencilerin uzaktan eğitim sistemini çok fazla benimsemedikleri görülmüştür. Almanca eğitiminin uzaktan sürdürülmesine ilişkin video kayıtlarının, esnek eğitim olanaklarının ve zamandan tasarrufun olumlu olduğu görülürken, internete ulaşamama, teknik sorunlar ve sosyal olarak izole edilmiş olma gibi konular olumsuz yönler olarak tespit edilmiştir. Araştırmanın bir diğer dikkat çekici sonucu ise öğrencilerin yüz yüze eğitimde olduğu kadar olmasa da öğretim üyeleri ile iletişim kurmakta çok zorlanmadıklarını belirtmeleridir. Anketi oluşturan her bölümde kararsız öğrencilerin fazla olması araştırmanın bir diğer çarpıcı sonucudur. Bu sonuç, uzaktan eğitimde teknik sorunların giderilmesi ve uzaktan eğitimin iyileştirilmesi durumunda kararsız öğrencilerin uzaktan eğitime uyum sağlayabilecekleri ve uzaktan eğitimden memnun olabileceklerini göstermektedir. Bu tür çalışmalar diğer üniversitelerde de yürütülürse ve ortak sorunlar tespit edilirse sorunların üstesinden gelmede ve eğitim siteminin iyileştirilmesinde ortak adımlar atılabilir.

SUBJECT ASPECT IN PROSPECTIVE GERMAN LANGUAGE TEACHERS INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE DEVELOPMENT IN THE PROCESS OF INDEPENDENT WORK

The article deals with the subject aspect of the content of the formation of intercultural communicative competence of future teachers of German. The methodical, linguistic, psychological literature, the scholars’ experience in the field of the formation of foreign language skills and abilities in the context of intercultural communication are analyzed. The cultural component of the content and its relationship with teaching aids are highlighted. A communicative psychological model is substantiated, the observance of which contributes to the discourse development in the process of producing texts. The functions of texts as a starting point for the development of communicative skills and abilities in all types of speech activity are indicated. Within the framework of the subject aspect of the content, the characteristics of the discourse as a text “immersed in life” are presented. The attention is focused on the knowledge of the linguistic component, the use of which ensures the effectiveness of expressing an opinion in German. Examples of speech means in German are given and their national and cultural peculiarity in the process of creation and perception of texts of different genres and types is noted.Possible ways of modeling communicative situations in which future teachers act as potential mediators between native and German-speaking cultures are studied. Conclusions are drawn about the use of authentic texts and photo-illustrative material. It significantly expands the cultural aspect of the content of educational and methodological materials and ensures the effective formation of intercultural communicative competence. In addition, the authenticity of the educational material provides real conditions for conducting discourse, taking into account the national and cultural characteristics of the language being studied.

КОМПАРАТИВНИЙ АНАЛІЗ ФРАЗЕОЛОГІЗМІВ З АНІМАЛІСТИЧНИМ КОМПОНЕНТОМ В УКРАЇНСЬКІЙ ТА НІМЕЦЬКІЙ МОВАХ (ПЕРЕКЛАДАЦЬКИЙ АСПЕКТ)

In the proposed study, phraseological units with an animalistic component (PhAK) based on the Ukrainian and German languages were analyzed. It has been established that the specified language layer is widely represented in the Ukrainian and German languages and represents the linguistic picture of the world of these peoples. The role of animalisms (zoonyms) in the formation of the linguistic picture of the world is determined by the natural environment, features of socio-historical development and culture. On the basis of the conducted comparative analysis, it was established that the most used zoonyms in the group of phraseological units in the Ukrainian and German languages are animals with which a person has the most contact in everyday life – these are domestic and domestic animals, and for both cultures these animals are almost identical, which is explained similar natural conditions (climate, temperature regime, etc.), common features of household management. However, not all animals in the PhAK in the two languages are equally endowed with positive and negative traits, which we explain by the discrepancy in the levels of socio-economic development and the way of perceiving the surrounding world in the Slavic and Old Germanic worldviews. We see the practical significance of the research in the use of data in the process of practical teaching of German as a second foreign language, as well as in translation from one language to another.

English and German teachers’ language awareness in the Hungarian school context

The study aims to investigate the language use of English and German teachers in the school context. The teachers’ questionnaire has been conducted at minority primary schools and normal primary schools between 2019 and 2020. Quantitative data given by 28 teachers were analysed. German teachers working at minority schools used the target language more than teachers working at regular schools. English participants employed their mother tongue more than German respondents. German teachers used more translation than their English peers. Teachers working at minority schools used less translation than teachers working at normal schools. Most of the foreign language teachers made connections between the languages but only a few teachers exploited frequently the opportunity of prior language knowledge.

Can the utility value of educational sciences be induced based on a reflection example or empirical findings—Or just somehow?

Educational sciences are a major component of German teacher education. However, student teachers often do not consider educational sciences in university courses (a profession-specific combination of educational psychology, pedagogy and sociology) as helpful for the practice of teaching. To prepare future teachers for evidence-based practice, this is a disadvantageous motivational starting point, because educational sciences offer a large amount of current and relevant findings that can have a positive impact on educational practice. Thus, it would be beneficial for student teachers to see the utility value of educational sciences. The present study attempts to encourage student teachers to perceive the utility value of educational sciences with a utility value short intervention. Utility value interventions contribute to connecting the learning content with one’s own life to foster the motivation to use scientific knowledge. A 2 × 2 quasi-experiment was conducted. Two of the four groups received a utility value short intervention about educational sciences (Factor 1). In addition, a second factor was analyzed that takes up two patterns of educational reasoning in teacher education (Factor 2): Reasoning was either exemplified with an instruction to reflect on the usefulness of educational sciences (like in reflection-oriented educational reasoning) or with exemplary empirical findings from educational sciences (like in evidence-based educational reasoning). These two kinds of reasoning are objectives of teacher education and therefore could influence the effect of a utility value short intervention. Since epistemic goals influence engagement with educational sciences, they are also taken into account. The results showed that all four variants of the treatment increased the students’ assessment of the utility value of educational sciences; the utility value intervention had no additional effect. This is discussed with recourse to motivational theories and concepts of teacher education.

American, German and Turkish Classroom Teachers’ Opinions about Character Education: A Cross-Cultural Study

The purpose of this survey research is to analyze and compare the views of classroom teachers on character education in Turkey, Germany and the U.S. In this study, in which descriptive survey method was used, data were collected from 419 teachers from three countries with questionnaire forms. The data were subjected to descriptive analysis. It was determined that character education is influenced by many factors such as family education level, media, internet, social and physical context, and that teachers in all three countries have similar views, only American teachers think differently that "social and physical context" is more important. Character education is mostly practiced in the USA, and to a lesser extent in Germany and Turkey. Teachers of three countries believe that Life & Social studies are the most important lessons that contribute character education. However, character education should be integrated with other curricula with an interdisciplinary approach preferably. Various resources such as meetings, in-school posters, books and thematic projects are used in character education and American teachers use these resources more than other teachers. According to participants, techniques such as observation, interviews, and questionnaires may be used to determine whether character education goals have been achieved. It is seen that the majority of teachers in all three countries are not sure about the possibility to achieve the goals of character education. It may be stated that teachers do not have a very high level of belief in the level of realization of character education goals. According to German teachers, values are less important, but values are acquired at a similar rate, and for Turkish teachers values are very highly important, but not realized at the expected level. In conclusion, the views of teachers from different countries on character education have similar and different aspects.

American, German and Turkish Classroom Teachers’ Opinions about Character Education: A Cross-Cultural Study

The purpose of this survey research is to analyze and compare the views of classroom teachers on character education in Turkey, Germany and the U.S. In this study, in which descriptive survey method was used, data were collected from 419 teachers from three countries with questionnaire forms. The data were subjected to descriptive analysis. It was determined that character education is influenced by many factors such as family education level, media, internet, social and physical context, and that teachers in all three countries have similar views, only American teachers think differently that "social and physical context" is more important. Character education is mostly practiced in the USA, and to a lesser extent in Germany and Turkey. Teachers of three countries believe that Life & Social studies are the most important lessons that contribute character education. However, character education should be integrated with other curricula with an interdisciplinary approach preferably. Various resources such as meetings, in-school posters, books and thematic projects are used in character education and American teachers use these resources more than other teachers. According to participants, techniques such as observation, interviews, and questionnaires may be used to determine whether character education goals have been achieved. It is seen that the majority of teachers in all three countries are not sure about the possibility to achieve the goals of character education. It may be stated that teachers do not have a very high level of belief in the level of realization of character education goals. According to German teachers, values are less important, but values are acquired at a similar rate, and for Turkish teachers values are very highly important, but not realized at the expected level. In conclusion, the views of teachers from different countries on character education have similar and different aspects.

Die Integration prosodischen und syntaktischen Wissens bei der Ermittlung der Textkohärenz im schriftlichen Textverstehen

Reading is a highly complex cognitive process. From a neurobiological point of view, it involves at least six linguistic sub-competences including orthographic, semantic, syntactic, phonetic and prosodic competence. Each of these skills is required of the reader to extract different types of information from the text, ranging from the perceptual and the syntactic to the lexical and pragmasemantic one. Based on the main results of cognitive-oriented research on text and reading, this paper illustrates how prosodic competence, combined with formal coherence patterns, can be considered and employed as a reading strategy, enabling the reader to progressively grasp the meanings of a text. In the first part particular attention will be paid to the description of the syntax-prosody interface as well as of its function as a means of encoding of information structure in German. With regard to the teaching of German as a foreign language, the second part of the paper will present a method to train intonational reading. This approach aims to raise foreign language readers’ awareness of prosodic features of written texts and to introduce them to melodic patterns which can be encountered while reading. Such a practical training may prove to be advantageous, as the most typical and apparently “uncorrectable” errors committed by foreign language learners when speaking and reading German texts are almost always related to the domains of phonology and prosody.

Investigating scientific modeling practices in U.S. and German elementary science classrooms: A comparative, cross‐national video study

AbstractScience education reform efforts have emphasized the incorporation of more authentic and meaningful scientific practices into formal learning environments. With this focus on practices, such as scientific modeling, a powerful tool for sense‐making and reasoning, comes a need to observe and understand if and how it is actually occurring, particularly in elementary science learning environments. To address this need, and moving forward an international, collaborative research effort centered around scientific modeling, we undertook a cross‐national observational study in which we used an observation protocol to characterize scientific modeling practices in elementary classrooms in both the United States and Germany. Drawing on existing video‐based datasets from multiple projects, this study's findings provide empirical evidence for model‐based teaching and learning and explore the relative frequencies of relevant modeling subpractices (i.e., construction, use, evaluation, and revision of scientific models) in regular, day‐to‐day elementary science classrooms. This study also illustrates the differences and similarities between German and American science instruction. In general, students in both countries experience model construction more often than other modeling practices. German teachers more consistently foreground anchoring phenomena and students’ questions/preconceptions as part of the modeling process, thus leading to slightly higher overall modeling scores—despite a complete lack of model evaluation and revision in any of the observed German classrooms. Ultimately, however, young learners in both nations seem to experience alarmingly little opportunities to engage in any of the modeling subpractices. Particularly in terms of modeling as a means to make sense of phenomena, constrained by teachers most commonly using finished representations (i.e., models) of phenomena and processes to teach science/deliver content. Our results indicate the need for a greater focus on all scientific modeling subprocesses, particularly the integration of scientific modeling with already established, more general (e.g., inquiry‐based) strategies for effective science teaching and an emphasis on actualizing modeling as an authentic sense‐making endeavor.

(How) Can didactic research find its way into the classroom? Results from a questionnaire survey on the lesson preparation and continuing professional development of German teachers

Abstract The gap between research about education and teaching practice is well-known in most subjects/disciplines. A nationwide online questionnaire survey regarding which sources German-language teachers use for lesson preparation and what in-service training opportunities they perceive may shed light on how research findings can be incorporated into classroom practice. These are some of the results from the 403 responses: In-service training courses are popular, but judged to be of little use. Social media offers are frequently used and assessed as helpful – despite the often poor quality, which teachers do not necessarily recognise. Therefore subject didactics should rethink certain traditions and explore new ways of reaching teachers. Because teachersʼ pracƟces of lesson preparaƟon tend to be idiosyncratic rather than determined by the subject matter, the findings from the survey are equally relevant and useful for all subjects and can contribute to a better alignment of subject science, subject didactics and teaching practice.

Knowledge Transfer in Geography - Reconstructing implicit orientations of Teacher Trainers in exchange processes with researchers using the example of the subject Geography

Abstract The transfer of research findings into teaching practice is often defined as a mutual exchange process between research and teaching practice. In the exchange and handling of new findings, the implicitaction-guiding orientations of teachers in particular are highly important. The present study is dedicated to reconstructing these orientations of teacher trainers of geography, who, as educators of trainee teachers in the second practical phase of the German teacher training system, occupy a unique position between research and teaching practice. Using the documentary method, different orientations of the teacher trainers were reconstructed through multiple group discussions. These were conducted in the context of a one-year training series on new insights into China’s innovation-based economic development. These orientations move along a continuum between instruction and co-construction. From these findings, important insights for future transfer research and practice can be derived.

ЛАБІОДЕНТАЛЬНА ТА АЛЬВЕОЛЯРНА ДЗВІНКІ ЩІЛИННІ: ТЕНДЕНЦІЇ ВИМОВИ В НАЦІОНАЛЬНИХ ВАРІАНТАХ НІМЕЦЬКОЇ МОВИ

The present paper deals with the synchronic variation of the labiodental and alveolar fricative phonemes in the national varieties of German in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Our research task was to describe the full range of modifications of these fricatives in the national varieties under investigation and to determine two conditional factors: 1) which modifications are due to positional and combinatorial conditions of sound realization; 2) which modifications can be taken to be typical of these national varieties of German. The data collected are based on the acoustic analysis of reproductive speech (a reading of short stories by Leonhard Thoma) of 12 German teachers from Northern Germany, from the Vienna area and from the cantons of Aargau and Lucerne. Our results showed that the frequent loss of tone by the lax labiodental fricative [v̥] mostly depends on the positional and combinatorial conditions of its realization and can be observed mainly in the positions of the absolute beginning of the phonetic word and after voiceless consonants in all the national varieties under investigation. The realization of the lax alveolar fricative /z/ in the speech of the German is also dependent on its position and the sound context. Instead, in the speech of the Austrians and the German Swiss the voiceless allophone of the lax alveolar fricative [z̥] prevails regardless of its position in the phonetic word and sound context. Therefore, the occurrence of this allophone can be taken to be typical of these national varieties of German.