Welcome, dear fellow learner, in our classroom!
I am delighted that you want to learn more about the German
language and culture. By the way, do you know why it’s so beneficial to learn a
foreign language? Studying another language exposes you to a new culture, increases
your tolerance for different opinions and behaviors, diversifies your political
and social views, and helps your entry into the globalized workforce (even potentially
increasing your salary; see the graph of career-time economic gains by an employee proficient in a foreign language).
Speaking a foreign language is a practical skill and should be approached as such. How do you best
learn to ice-skate, paint, or play the piano? By listening your instructor give
you daily lessons and then practicing for half an hour? Or by practicing, practicing,
practicing, and practicing some more, with a trainer or teacher watching and
giving you concrete tips to improve your growing skill? Of course, it’s the
latter approach that will yield the best outcome.
In most classrooms, you have the following ratio of
instructor-to-student input:
The professor lectures and you listen or take notes. This is
called passive learning. If you’re
lucky, you get some hands-on experience using the newly learned content, but
usually you will apply it at home (or not… we all know students who don’t do
their homework, right?). At the end of a learning unit, you get tested on the
material that you have memorized by staying up the night before. For the final
exam, you need to re-memorize all of the semester content to demonstrate your knowledge. Aber weisst du was [but you know what]? Knowledge of a foreign
language equates only to theoretically understanding its grammar and remembering
its vocabulary, not being skilled in actually using the language. That
only comes with practice.
That is why we will approach learning German differently in
this course. Our time will be split like this:
All that practice in class will be done in groups, and you
will carry out tasks that relate to real-life situations. That’s called active learning. Your group members (and
your instructor) will be there to help you complete a task successfully. That’s
called cooperative and collaborative
learning. Your homework will be to absorb the digitally delivered information
and fill out worksheets with the details that are needed to complete the
in-class tasks. These tasks will help construct knowledge, interweaving the
information into useful applications which, in turn, provide you with the
skills necessary to use German. The process of culling useful information from
the digital content is called self-directed
learning and will enable you to become a life-long learner, that is, someone who has the intellectual
resources and the will to analyze questions voluntarily, to find answers
independently, to evaluate sources of information, and to apply the gained knowledge
toward solutions and skills.
Since this course concentrates on practicing a skill, not
passively accumulating knowledge, your learning will be assessed through group
projects. You will practice (in class and outside of it) and then play-act
real-life tasks such as going grocery shopping, booking a hotel room, going to
the doctor, or viewing an apartment. Tests are take-home worksheets that ask
analytical questions about the German culture, sport a short grammar section,
and outline the expectation for your group performance.
In summary: In this
course, you will transition from passive to active learning; from acquiring
knowledge by rote memorization to practicing a skill by applying the knowledge;
from solitary to cooperative and collaborative learning; from chasing a passing grade in GERM 2003 to constructing deeper meanings
derived from dissecting parts of the German culture.
A warning: some students won’t like it. They’re the ones who
prefer to coast through college and life with as little effort as possible, who
have relied on memorization skills to make it through the lower levels of the
German language, who don’t want to leave their comfort zone, who expect a
dog-and-pony show from their instructors, who resist the growth that comes from
facing challenges. They’re the ones who blame others (parents, roommates, instructors,
etc.) for their failure to develop into functional adulthood, as shown in this
particular evaluation:
This class has made me lose all interest in German. I really don’t
care about the culture and am only learning the language because I have to for
my major. The first semesters were easy. But now that I am forced to think
about stuff and not just do the homework and be done with it, I don’t like
studying the language anymore. Frau Jensen is not helpful at all. When I needed
her to help me with grammar, she forced me to figure it out in front of her in
her office. I could have done that at home by myself! Also, there were too many
discussions in class about how terrible America is in comparison with Germany. If
Germany is so much better, then why do people come here to work? I often felt
really uncomfortable and just said nothing rather than saying what I really
think. I guess I also didn’t care enough. The same goes with our group
projects. I couldn’t work well with my teammates because they wanted to make a longer
skit when a short one would have been just fine. They didn’t care about my schedule
and often met when I couldn’t make it or even met without telling me. So, I
learned almost nothing new in this class. It was boring and too much work.
Total waste of my time.
Contrast that sample student’s frustration (1%) with this representative
feedback (99%) from another learner who was able to appreciate that our efforts bring results:
What you said is absolutely right. The importance of learning German has increasing tremendously nowadays, since the need of going abroad for studies or job is high so learning German language Classes in Chennai plays a vital role.
ReplyDeleteRegards:
German Training Institute in Chennai
German Training
This is an excellent tip especially to those new to the blogosphere. Short however exact data… Thank you for sharing this one. An unquestionable requirement read post! news updates
ReplyDeleteThis is a really authentic and informative blog. Share more posts like this.
ReplyDeleteLearning German Language
How To Learn The German Language
Great Post with valuable information. I am glad that I have visited this site. Share more updates.
ReplyDeleteStudy in Canada
IELTS Band