Raising awareness of multilingualism as a resource in subject-specific language learning

How a Didactic Principle Can Be Experienced in the Oppor- tunity to Learn “Animal Initial Letters (Animalische Anfangsbuchstaben)”

Abstract

In the task “Animal Initial Letters”, the thematic focus is on the relevance of students’ multilingual resources for subject-specific language learning in primary and also secondary schools. The aim is to activate and discuss the pre-service teacher’s prior knowledge and experiences on the topic of multilingualism by working with a video of a game show. The focus is on topics that can mainly be located in the dimensions of “multilingualism” and “didactics” of the DaZKom structural model (Ohm, 2018). Step by step, by transferring the scene into the school context, drafts for action are to be developed, which will be discussed in relation to the theory. The students will have the opportunity to incorporate their own experiences on the topic of the inclusion of multilingual resources, to expand this understanding by working with theoretical approaches to second language acquisition and didactic principles for the inclusion of the entire language repertoire in learning, and to adopt and test out an attitude that may be new to them.