English Language Teaching

Welcome...

... to the English Language Teaching (ELT) section! In our research and teaching, the main concern is on how to support students in learning the English language. We ask how they can feel comfortable enough so that they can communicate with different people, understand and produce texts conveyed through different media, and thus participate in diverse cultural discourses. Foreign language education therefore includes not only language learning but also cultural and literary learning. Within language education, our courses lay the foundations for the acquisition of linguistic means (vocabulary and grammar) as well as the promotion of listening and visual comprehension, reading comprehension, writing and speaking competences, and mediation. Literature education is dedicated to the competence-oriented use of literary texts in foreign language teaching and focuses not only on short stories, novels, dramas and poetry, but also on films and television series, radio plays, comics, and digital literature. A third essential focus is on cultural education, which deals with questions of training (inter-)cultural and global competences. This includes, for example, the willingness to communicate with speakers of other languages and to explore other cultures as well as the ability to negotiate meaning and change perspective.
As future English teachers, students in Göttingen deal with these issues on a theoretical and a practical level. Tangible teaching methods are tested out and reflected on together in our courses. In addition, we carry out various practical projects in cooperation with schools in Göttingen. The YLAB, a language learning laboratory for students, offers further room for practice – even beyond obligatory school internships. Throughout our projects, we place importance on innovative approaches such as drama pedagogy, global simulations, and virtual exchange via digital technologies.