Dear student,
You are already familiar with German as a subject from elementary school and it will accompany you throughout your school life as one of the main subjects. Why is that? This subject plays an important key role at school, as mastery of the German language, the acquisition of basic reading and writing skills and the appropriate, appropriate and targeted use of spoken and written language are prerequisites for learning success in almost all other subjects.
Tasks and objectives of German lessons
German lessons therefore aim to prepare you to use the correct German language in various situations in your life. You should be able to use the language correctly to be successful at school and later in your career.
Of course, you will continue to read and write texts in German in the future, but you will also discover many new areas in the process. You will examine the structure of texts and learn, for example, how to tell fairy tales in an exciting way, write factual reports, describe animals or objects accurately or how to express your opinion convincingly and fairly.
You often express yourself differently in writing and speaking, depending on who you are writing to or talking to. You will learn how to use language appropriately in different situations, both orally and in writing. This naturally includes exercises in spelling, punctuation and grammar. The picture examples on this page illustrate that this is not always easy, but important.
Skills and content of German lessons
It is necessary and the task of German lessons to promote, expand and deepen the linguistic knowledge and skills (competencies) acquired by children and young people during their first years of life.
In the subject German, students acquire skills in the areas of "speaking and listening", "writing", "reading - dealing with texts and media" and "reflecting on language".
The so-called Duisburg language proficiency test is carried out at the beginning of year 5. This language proficiency test has a history of several years of development. Since 2005, the test has been used at numerous schools of different types in North Rhine-Westphalia in coordination with the school supervisory authorities.
The Duisburg language proficiency test is intended to make it possible to assess the language skills of newly admitted pupils in German.
The results of the test initially provide a basis for assessing the need for additional language support, they also enable an assessment of the initial situation and can also be used to develop language support concepts.
At the end of Year 5, it is used as a re-test to check progress over the course of Year 5.
The test assesses the skills of newly admitted students in the following areas:
Listening comprehension, reading comprehension, grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary, spelling.