Best Practices ‘Seminar’: Example German as a Foreign/Second Language

In this course, students in teacher training go through six uniform cycles applying subject-related tools that are relevant to school practice, supplemented by an introductory and concluding part. For each cycle, they try out and critically reflect on a diagnostic tool in the field of German as a second language on the basis of authentic learner data. For students, a single trial cycle starts with acquiring theoretical background information on the tool and testing it on the basis of authentic learner data. The results of the exercise are compared and discussed in a Moodle Forum, and the tool is critically reflected with regard to advantages and disadvantages, suitability for school practice and (didactic and scientific) consequences. Afterwards, the results of this discussion are entered into a wiki table (in Moodle) in the form of a compact summary of one line per tool (prepared by the lecturer) and serves as a comparative overview of all six tested tools in the course of the seminar.

The introductory part of the seminar consists of a lecture on the basics of the subject and allows for the participants to get to know each other and the moderator teams to be assigned (see below). In the concluding live session, participants jointly evaluate the wiki table that has been created and apply it by means of comparative exercises—also as preparation for examinations. Depending on the previous knowledge and size of the group, a live session with an interim summary can be held at around ‘half-time’.

Didactic-methodical implementation

The seminar consists mainly of asynchronous units (lecture and six trials) and is based on a Moodle course structured by topics (with the topics getting to know each other, introduction, continuous securing of results, trials I to VI as well as conclusion and evaluation). To compensate for this flexible but highly self-directed way of working, students are given a clear time and role plan. This means that each trial is accompanied by a team of moderators (two people) who structure the current Moodle Forum, encourage further discussion points and take on the task of transferring the most important results to the wiki table. They are also given expert status by being provided with further material on the tested tool by the lecturer at the beginning of their moderation week. Each test takes one week; the transfer of the results into the wiki table (prepared by the lecturer) for the moderators takes another 2–3 working days; the lecturer finally checks the wiki table from a scientific point of view in another 2–3 days, so that an application cycle takes a total of two weeks. For this reason, the seminar plan contains the exact distribution of tasks for the whole seminar group, the moderator team and the lecturer—marked in different colours—with deadlines and boxes to be ticked when tasks are completed.

The moderator teams are formed via the Moodle voting tool during the first 14 days of the seminar, while the theoretical basics are worked out via asynchronous lecture (screen presentation with audio recording). For this purpose, all students record approx. 3-minute audio presentations, in which they can talk about other subjects they study, practical school experiences on the topic as well as private things they would like to share. The lecturer also introduces herself in the form of a short video. By providing links to the audio presentations in Moodle in the respective trial week, the people behind the abstract moderator teams become a little more visible.