Bachelor's degree in teaching

Profile and objectives of the degree programmes

Students should acquire competences in linguistics, literary studies, in the area of German as a second and foreign language as well as subject didactics. In the Bachelor's phase, they should become familiar with the cognitive and working methods of the subject and be able to access their specialised knowledge in the sub-areas and to recognise and further develop fundamental as well as current questions and methods. They should also have expandable knowledge and the ability to reflect with regard to teaching and learning processes, also from the point of view of multilingualism, and, due to the language and literature didactic training, be able to develop concepts for pupil- and task-oriented teaching in the different school levels (primary school, lower secondary school and secondary school), primary school, lower secondary school and intermediate secondary school, grammar school, comprehensive school and vocational college), whereby the acquisition of basic knowledge in subject didactics and in the departments of linguistics, literary studies, German as a second and foreign language is in the foreground in the Bachelor's degree programmes. Depending on the type of school, these competences are trained in a differentiated manner.

Conception of the teaching offer of German Studies for the field of inclusion (mission statement)

The training focus "Dealing with Heterogeneity in Schools and Classes" is firmly anchored in the teacher training programme at the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE) and therefore also in the subject German (linguistics, literature studies and subject didactics). Related to this, a broad understanding of inclusion is at the centre of teacher training, which includes various dimensions of diversity, for example: linguistic competences, disability, gender, social status and cultural background. After the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2009 and the related amendment of the Teacher Training Act (LABG 2016), the joint teaching of pupils with and without special educational needs became the focus of attention. At the UDE, this is a focus that is also considered in the courses. German Studies at the UDE has taken on the challenge of revising or newly developing existing standards, concepts and methods in various ways: Diverse, inclusion-oriented and -specific training offers have been and are being integrated into all study phases (BA and MA) in order to provide prospective teachers with the subject-specific and subject-didactic competences and attitudes necessary for working in inclusive school classes. The following competence areas of the curricula are to be addressed:

  •     Attitudes and attitudes
  •     Teaching and learning in inclusive settings
  •     Basic knowledge of special needs education
  •     (Special education) diagnostics and support
  •     Evaluation and grading
  •     Advice and support
  •     Cooperation/work in multi-professional teams
  •     Documentation and evaluation (reflection)
  •     Inclusion in general
  •     Prevention
  •     Legal framework for inclusive education
  •     Lesson development

 

The event concept of German Studies around "Inclusion" pursues general objectives:

  •     General sensitisation of the students for the topic of inclusion
  •     Strengthening students' positive attitudes and positions towards inclusion
  •     Preparing students to deal constructively with (increasing) heterogeneity of teaching and learning conditions in inclusive school classes
  •     Imparting expertise on selected restrictions as a basis for didactic planning. Consideration is given to: Causes, forms, symptoms and diagnosis of disabilities, focusing on their consequences for language development, communication and language as a learning medium.
  •     Acquisition of inclusion-oriented didactic-methodical action competence
  •     Teaching knowledge on current therapy and support approaches with regard to the school support of pupils with language-relevant impairments.

 

In the linguistic part of the course, areas of disturbance in the voice, speech, language and communication can be addressed, as well as syndromes that have an impact on language.

The students acquire basic theoretical knowledge, research exemplary individual disorder patterns, learn to identify reputable sources of information and to make independent descriptions. The knowledge acquired here represents one of the foundations of practical school subjects such as: Lesson planning, counselling and cooperation.

In the language and literature didactic part of the course, competences of didactic action are developed. This includes not only theoretical but also practical insights into the work with heterogeneous learning groups in inclusive schools, using exemplary learning groups.

Central goals include supporting students in developing competences in differentiating diagnostics and individual support in inclusive learning groups and teaching them skills for adaptive planning, design and reflection of lessons in inclusive classes.

Furthermore, in the didactic part of the course, possibilities of literary learning in the sense of an inclusive didactics of literature are explored. Here, receptive as well as action and production-oriented methods in the classroom and heterogeneous forms of learning are discussed. Students are also taught about technical possibilities, such as audio description and subtitles for hearing and visual impairments as well as assistive technologies for students with motor impairments. Audiovisual media open up many spaces for action, experience and communication, especially for students with additional support needs. For this reason, teaching-learning concepts that include media forms are addressed in the courses.

Organisational implementation: The organisational implementation of the range of courses takes place in the correspondingly marked courses of the BA and MA phases. Outlook: by implementing the linguistic aspects, individual courses in semesters of the core linguistic courses could also be used.