Fachddidaktik

• English became a school subject (only for higher educational purposes —> Gymnasium)

  1859
• English language as a required school subject in western Germany

  1964
• English language as a required school subject in eastern Germany

  1989
• Before: English was a „fakultatives Angebot", Russian was obligatory and the main focus of teaching
• English in primary schools (as of 3rd grade)

  1998
• Lingua Franca


  Used as a neutral language for people speaking different languages
• Controversies of lingua Franca

  • Ideology: dominance of one language (linguistic neo-colonialism/imperialism) vs. linguistic diversity/pluralism
  • Norm: orientation on British or American standard of language vs. acceptance of non-native speakers variety
  • Content: angloamerican culture vs. cultural-independent language usage
• European language policy demands a pluri-lingual European citizen
• Every European should be able to speak two (or more) European languages beside their mother tongue —> one = English
• Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEF)

  • Base for the development of teaching curriculums, language courses, exams, qualifications
  • Description of learning and teaching of languages + assessment of language skills according to common criteria
• KMK


  Kultusminister - Konferenz —> decide what level each student needs to achieve at the end of their school education or during it (varies according to school form)
• Goals of KMK


  • Securing and improving the quality of lessons
  • Comparability of school education and degrees in federal states
  • Review of goals with Exams of comparison (Vergleichsarbeiten)
• Federal states enabled to decide individually over educational programs, forms of school, distribution of resources (staff, finances), examination regulations, size of class, Language sequence at schools, approval of textbooks
• Core of influence in federal states = teaching curriculum
• Current goal conceptions


  • Competence
  • Reading
  • Listening
  • Writing
  • Talking
  • Mediation
• Curriculum: only define capability (but don't offer any input) —> input e.g.: concrete books that need to be read; output e.g.: reading as a requirement
• Learning target domains


  • Cognitive learning targets: knowledge
  • Psychomotoric learning targets: ability
  • Affective learning targets: attitudes (Haltungen)
• Reference sciences of English didactics

  • Linguistics
  • Literacy studies
  • Cultural studies
  • Educational sciences
  • Psychology
  • Communication Sciences

  
• Linguistics


  • Paraphrasing
  • Phonetics/phonology
• Literacy studies


  • Enlarge students vocabulary
  • Knowledge of literary theory and analysis (genres, literary periods, history of language, rhetorical figures, gender identity)
• Cultural studies


  • Learn about different cultures and cultural productions
  • Learn about different occupations of formal language and manners
• Educational sciences


  • Understanding different work processes and being able to use them
• Psychology


  • Understand the psychology behind learning processes and different personalities
  • Learn about motivation: how to motivate someone
• Communication Sciences


  • Modern manners of text production (e.g. ChatGPT)
  • Find balance between completely relying on such tools or using them as a support
  • Learning how to use them as tools, without being dependent of them
  • Awareness that AI can contribute to stereotypes being held alive, might use unreliable sources or makes them up, false language usage/produce bad texts

  
• Characteristics of an outstanding teacher

  • Enjoys teaching
  • Teacher as a model and input-giver
  • Passion for teaching
• Dimensions of teacher language

  • Choice of language (Monolingualism, provide linguistic input, convey everyday contexts in the target language, determine the approach to the language bath, use German for certain reasons)
  • Competence level (language level of the teacher should be exemplary, high level of competence, level should be at least C1+, linguistic competence, sociolinguistic competence, pragmatic competence, action competence)
  • Adaptation (natural, authentic English, adapted to the level of the pupils)
  • Quantity (teacher talking time should be reduced, student talking time increased)
  • Waiting time (increase of STT through increase of waittime)

  
• Classroom management


  • Reactive (teacher activities after problems occur to remind disruptive students of lesson goals and to minimize distraction)
  • Proactive (prevention)
  • Be-withitness (teacher's omnipresence or presence, student's impression: teacher always knows exactly what is going on everywhere)
  • Overlapping (teacher devotes him/herself to several tasks at the same time without losing track)
  • Momentum (there are no delays in the flow of the lesson)
  • Smoothness (smooth and undisturbed process, teacher does not allow distractions)
  • Group focus (the whole group is kept in view and everyone's attention can be maintained over a longer period of time)
• Stages of classroom management

  • Organizing (important, students are aware of what's coming next, chances of interruptions shrink)
  • Clear instructions (important, students are aware of their task, chances of interruptions shrink)
  • Quick dealing with problems (deescalate the situation, don't take things personally, use threats/punishment related to the topic)
  • Loud command (can be done once in a while, but should not be overused), give in (does not mean surrender, but to accept certain characteristics of students), offer (postponement, arbitration, compromise)
• Phases of teacher training

  • Studying (imparting specialist knowledge, stronger practical orientation is desirable, stay abroad)
  • Teacher traineeship (concrete practical orientation)
  • Being a teacher
• Theories of language acquisition

  • Behaviorismus (language acquisition = based on imitation and the formation of habits)
  • Nativismus (Innatismus) (considers linguistic talent to be an innate gift all people have)
  • Kognitivismus (language acquisition = continuous build-up of knowledge)
  • Konstruktivismus (emphasizes the individual creative performance of the learner)

  
• Language acquisition device (LAD)

  Chomsky's term for the innate ability of children to learn any language
• Universal grammar (UG)


  Chomsky's term for the innate grammar that allows children to learn any language

  
• Through the LAD, every child can theoretically learn any language
• Child language acquisition


  1. Child comes into contact with language

  2. Compares its characteristics with its innate universal grammar

  3. Develops competence in the language around it
• Cognitivism


  Language acquisition = continuous build-up of knowledge: learners take in linguistic input, apply conscious and unconscious strategies to process it, eventually able to use the relevant structures

  
• Constructivism


  Further development of cognitivism, emphasizes the individual creative performance of the learner: learners engage with the language input, analyze it based on their individual knowledge and skills, construct their knowledge and skills independently, knowledge is a subjective construct
• Interactionism


  Combines the child's innate abilities with the influences of their linguistic environment: children learn language through interaction, through linguistically accompanied actions, linguistic input tailored to the child's development (motherese, caretaker talk)
• Acquisition of second language happens under different circumstances
• Language learning (Sprachlernen)


  Differentiated from language acquisition (Spracherwerb)

  
• Gender


  • Girls are better "achievers" due to expectations, girls develop faster and are more responsible, gender stereotypes about "boys subjects" and "girls subjects"