A new approach to teaching German as a foreign language at Tertiary level

Author: Sabine Woods

© Sabine Woods, Queen's University, Belfast

Table of contents

• Introduction
• Course outline
• Some statistics
• Background
• Details about Queens' German Business Communication Pathway
• Learning outcomes

This paper was originally presented at the Setting the Agenda: Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies in Higher Education conference, 24-26 June 2002.

Introduction

German Studies at Queen's University has developed a second degree pathway called 'Business Communication: German for European Industry', which we now teach in addition to the traditional pathway 'German Language and Literature'. This new pathway is a response to the changes in the job market in this country and internationally and includes an industrial placement with leading companies in Germany during the year abroad.

In this paper, I would like to give a basic description of the new pathway and some background information about why we felt it was necessary to develop this alternative. I then want to give more detail about what is special about this modern language course, and what the benefits are for students. Finally, as evidence of the success of this approach to date, I would like to quote some of our students' feedback about the pathway and in particular about their industrial placement.

The general aims of the new pathway are:

• increased proficiency in reading, writing, oral and aural skills in German for professional use;
• insights into commercial, marketing and PR practice in German-speaking countries, which we look at very much from a linguistic angle;
• career awareness and insights into 'the world of work';
• skills-based language learning and insight into Contemporary German/Austrian Studies.

Course outline

All students study the same modules in 'German Language and Textual Studies' during their first year. In the second semester, these modules include 'Introduction to German Literature' and 'Introduction to the Language of Politics and Advertising'. The students are then required to choose one pathway, which they will follow during their second and third year at Queen's University.

In the second year, skills-based oral and written language classes are still shared by all students. During the first six weeks of each term, they study 'German Business Communication' or 'German Literature' for two hours per week, according to their chosen pathway.

The Business Pathway curriculum comprises analysis of advertisements; discourse strategies; job application strategies; concepts, facts and terminology of the German economy; marketing in Germany and intercultural aspects of marketing; and, very importantly, towards the end of the second semester, culture shock. The lecture on culture shock has proved of such interest to students going abroad that it is now part of the preparation for the year abroad for all modern languages students.

During the second half of each term, both pathways study 'Contemporary German Studies' and 'Contemporary Austrian Studies'.

The next year is generally spent in a German-speaking country or, for those studying two languages, it may be spent in a country speaking their other target language. Students can work as Foreign Language Assistants in schools or study at Universities.

Students of the Business Communication Pathway are encouraged to apply for industrial placements in Germany for their year abroad.

Some of the advantages of a work placement are:

• interaction between employers and students at an early stage;
• an early career awareness which can enhance students motivation to study;
• students value careers guidance more when it is part of their academic study
• students can acquire additional marketable skills which are certified by the 'City & Guilds' Licentiateship.

In the third year, for the Business Communication Pathway, 'German Business Communication' is taught for two hours per week over the whole year. While the Level II course concentrated on business communication to be looked at from outside, the Level III course, following the year abroad, can now look into business communication from within, incorporating students' experience and research during their time abroad, and building on them. The curriculum includes 'de-briefing' after the year abroad, and brings in as much of the students' experience and learning as possible, as well as deepening the subject areas studied during Level II.

Some statistics

This new pathway was tested in a pilot scheme in 1997/98 and introduced in the academic year 1998/99. Ten students were involved in the pilot scheme, and four of them applied for work placements in Germany with Siemens, Daimler-Chrysler and Robert Bosch GmbH. All four were successful. Two of these students have been awarded the City and Guilds Licentiateship last year, an uncommon achievement among modern language graduates. One of the students had actually taken up German from scratch at Queen's.

Eleven students took up the new pathway in 1998. Three of these students applied for placements and were working in Germany with Daimler-Chrysler and Robert Bosch GmbH in 1999/2000. They also were awarded City and Guilds Licentiateships.

In the 1999/2000 academic year, seven students chose the Business Communication Pathway, six of whom applied for placements. Again, all applicants were successful and went to work with Siemens, BASF, Electrolux, Bosch and Daimler-Chrysler. Two of these students were able to secure C&G Licentiateships.

In the academic year 2000/01 we had six Business Communication students, all of whom successfully applied for work placements. This year we have ten students in the Business Pathway, four of whom are going to work in Germany.

Employers have commented very positively about our students and have asked us to send applications so they can chose successors from Queen's University German Studies. In particular, they have been impressed with our students' standard of German.

Background

As a result of the recession, changes in the world of work have been taking place in this country, but also on an international scale. The traditional branches of employment can't keep up the number of jobs. At the same time, the overall number of students has been increasing, resulting in increased competition and employers becoming more and more selective. Employers keep records of universities where they can recruit well-qualified graduates, and naturally each university must strive to be at the top of these lists.

Language graduates are in demand particularly in the service sector and in the so-called 'language-intensive industries', those in which communication is central to the service being sold. The internationalisation of business has also led to an increase in the use of languages other than English on the Internet, so that there is an opening for language graduates in the web-related job market.

Although a number of UK companies have improved their available language skills, there is clear evidence to show that the UK is sadly lacking in foreign language competence. DTI figures, for example, suggest that business success for about one in five UK exporters is affected negatively by a language or cultural barrier. The need for cross-cultural communication skills is not limited to export, though. Even in home-based companies, the ability to communicate and empathise with people from different cultures is essential. Unlike several years ago, owing to the increasing number of mergers and take-overs, foreign management teams leading even home-based workforces are not uncommon. There is an increasing demand for graduates with both the 'hard' linguistic skills and the 'soft' cultural skills to help companies compete effectively across borders.

The specific skills employers are now looking for in language graduates have been well researched. Apart from language skills, cross-cultural and communication skills and translation skills, employers want graduates to contribute to the success of their business with the following skills:

• problem solving
• computer literacy
• analysis skills
• team-working
• familiarity with the international language of business
• exploring and creating opportunities
• resource awareness
• personal awareness
• responsibility.

Details about Queens' German Business Communication Pathway

The German Business Communication Pathway combines in a new way the study of a modern language with a project-based approach. In terms of student learning and personal development, the experience of the work placement in Germany is a very important part of this pathway. The course lays the groundwork for this learning experience at Level II, and helps students to analyse their experience, understand their learning and develop it further at Level III. It takes the needs of industry into account and aims to develop many of the skills listed above.

The course is planned and taught in a very 'learner-centred' way, with great emphasis on making learning targets transparent and developing transferable skills, such as the ability to synthesise and analyse information from a wide variety of texts and sources, including the Internet; general and cross-cultural communication skills; personal and interpersonal skills like team working, time management and problem solving; as well as understanding and analysing linguistic problems and finding ways of solving them.

For example, students learn about language as a means of self-presentation and a means of social communication, having the opportunity of practical application of their learning when they market themselves and their degree in their job applications for the year abroad and after graduation.

We try to facilitate independent learning and insights into the personal learning process. These insights are fostered for instance through the use of email feedback after lectures and seminars. Students are asked to comment on what they feel they have learned, and which methods suited them best. There is also a theoretical element of the course in conjunction with the 'intercultural awareness' training which focuses on different theories about human learning.

Because the students know from the very start that they will go on placements in Germany and that they will have to secure their placement themselves, they are highly motivated and keen to learn about these aspects of 'Business Communication'. We do not have guaranteed places for our students, and each application is judged on its own merits by the German company in question. Nevertheless, so far all students wishing to secure a placement have been able to do so. This is evidence both for the success of the teaching and the motivation and effort of the students involved.

It has been stressed in recent research about the year abroad how important it is that any placements are integrated into the curriculum and that there is some form of assessment of students' learning during the placement. We take great care to prepare our students comprehensively, for instance by encouraging them to research, within the framework of a project, the German companies they may wish to work for during their year abroad. We give them in depth information about the phenomenon of culture shock and different strategies to deal with it. Information sessions at the end of Level II, with the help of those students who have returned from their placement, and with a student guide for industrial placements help answer those frequently asked and very important questions about practical aspects of living abroad
.
Supervision takes place in various forms: students have to keep a learning diary and send monthly reports back to their tutors; we visit students about six weeks into their placement in order to asses the situation and make sure any problems can be sorted out at the start; we stay in contact with the students via email, so they can let us know about any difficulties or get answers to urgent questions very quickly.

In the final year, students are given the opportunity to reflect on their experience during a de-briefing at the beginning of the term. It is important not to overlook the problems of re-integration after the year abroad and to discuss the experience with students, giving them the chance to reflect and analyse their experience.

Assessment of the year abroad takes account of students' linguistic skills, but focuses on the content (depth of research, coherence, etc.) in order not to boost the weight of language components in the assessment further. Students are required to give a presentation or write an essay based on their experience abroad.

Students returning from their year abroad have, in our experience, generally enjoyed the experience and come back with very positive attitudes towards Germany, as well as greatly enhanced confidence in their own proficiency in German. Their overall confidence has usually grown and they are noticeably more mature. It is important to enable students to become aware of the skills they have newly acquired or improved during their stay abroad. Their experience should be analysed and used to build upon, to further their understanding of German culture, business, and communication.

Our first set of final year students worked very successfully on a project about marketing Northern Ireland as a tourist destination for a German-speaking target market, in conjunction with the Belfast Visitor and Convention Centre. This gave them a chance to integrate their experience and make full use of their improved language skills. Other topics covered during the final year build on the topics covered at Level II, including the 'intercultural awareness training' which will be so important in an international work environment.

Learning outcomes

The learning outcomes we aim for are:

German Language Skills:

• increased proficiency in reading, writing, oral and aural skills in German for professional use.

Transferable Language Learning Skills:

• awareness of how languages work (discourse analysis);
• awareness of own learning strategies;
• ability to switch language as appropriate;
• attitude towards language learning which does not expect perfection.

Transferable Skills:

• analytical skills, career awareness, communication, cross-cultural awareness, decision making, IT skills, job application strategies, negotiating, online communication skills, precision, problem solving, presentation skills, task management, team-working, time management.

Additional Qualification for Language Graduates:

• City and Guilds of London Institute Senior Award Diploma: Licentiateship in 'Application of German in a Business Environment'.

Students' Perspective

Comments from our students in their reports cover a wide range of aspects of their experience, starting with basic insights like:

• I have gained insight into what it is like to work under a lot of pressure...
• Now I'm not afraid to answer the phone…
• I have learned a lot from working in a team...
• The 'Schwaben' know how to celebrate/have a good time...

A more in depth analysis of the period of adaptation reads as follows:

My first three weeks in Germany were awful, but I think that feeling is normal when one is so far away from all the familiar things, friends and family, in a new country and a new job. After about three weeks I got used to the new surroundings and now everything is fine.

One can learn so much about oneself and about life by spending a long time abroad. It is so interesting to see what life and the people in a foreign country are like, and to adapt. And I also get a chance to experience working full-time.

These and similar comments have encouraged us greatly. We hope many more students will benefit from the opportunities offered by this pathway in the future.