Re: Tell Me More - German Language Instruction Software Download
Elis Riebow
Don't worry, the software does all of this for your own good. By tracking your progress, the software will be able to pinpoint your weaknesses, and once you know what your weaknesses are, you can spend more time polishing them up. This can be the fastest way to start speaking and understanding the German language.
Even if you do not need to prove your German language skills for your job, learning German in advance is a sign of your commitment. Since people often speak differently in the workplace than they do in everyday life, being aware of linguistic and cultural differences and knowing specific terminology will help you deal with these situations more effectively. Vocational language courses are a good way to prepare for the world of work.
How many people speak German? What is the meaning of "Standard German"? How many words do we use in the German language? And what do "false friends" have to do with learning German? We will provide you with the answers to these and more questions.
German is spoken by more than 120 million people in Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Switzerland and in parts of Belgium, Northern Italy and Eastern France. It is a key language in the European Union and the new economies of Central and Eastern Europe. Even abroad, the German language seems to be in great demand. According to ZAF (Center for Education and Training), in 2015 about 15.4 million people attended German courses at schools, universities or language institutes; half a million more students than 5 years ago.
Mastering the language of the destination country is key to immigrant and refugee children's educational success. Refugee children typically face the challenge of starting or continuing their educational carrier in a completely new context and in a completely new language. In this study, we examine the role of preschool attendance and formal language instruction in supporting young refugee children to acquire destination language competencies. We pursue three research objectives: First, we aim at identifying relevant conditions associated with German language acquisition in general. Second, we examine the (relative) importance of institutional learning support in preschool and language instruction. Third, we investigate whether the benefits of attending preschool are more pronounced for refugee children who have only limited exposure to the destination language outside of the institutional context, as compared to children who have more exposure to the language outside of preschool. Using data from the ReGES study, we analyze the early processes of destination language acquisition among a large population of refugee children of preschool age in Germany. Our findings indicate that conditions associated with motivation, exposure and efficiency of learning that were found in prior research to determine destination language competencies of children from other immigrant groups apply to refugee children in a similar manner. Additional conditions associated with the specific circumstances that refugees often experience, including possible consequences of insecure residence status, risk of post-traumatic stress disorders, and living in collective accommodation, do not significantly contribute to this outcome in our analysis. Furthermore, we find that there is a positive relationship between children's German language competency levels and both preschool attendance and formal language instruction. The findings indicate that the benefits of attending preschool are largely related to additional language instruction that refugee children receive within this context. Moreover, these benefits are particularly pronounced among refugee children who have only limited exposure to German at home and in their everyday lives. Overall, our findings emphasize the importance of preschool attendance and formal language instruction for refugee children's destination language acquisition.
The School of Language Studies (SLS) provides language and culture training to U.S. government employees with job-related needs. It addresses all aspects of language training, from classroom instruction and distance learning, to learning consultation services and testing.
Germany has the largest economy in Europe, and the fourth largest in the world, which translates to many career opportunities where speaking German would be an advantage. Not only that, but six countries in Europe have German as their official language, and 10 more recognize it as a minority language. Join the hundreds of millions of people who speak German worldwide, and experience the wide range of literature, film and art of the German-speaking world.
German language books, audio-visual materials, or a study group, presented by a tutor are a few possibilities. Online study is a more contemporary way in which a study of the German language may begin. More about that later on.
Enrolling with a language school is a great way to learn if you wish to dedicate the time to a committed course program. See our page on The Recommended Language Schools in Germany for more information.
Non-German natives living in Germany (even for a short while) will need the language skills to do basic tasks, like talking to a bank teller, taxi driver, doctor, or receptionist. Being able to speak German makes daily life much easier in the country, despite the high level of English most people have in the cities.
In the 19th century, the German press increased in importance and the number of dailies exploded. In 1909 a report stated "every American city or town with a large German population possesses one or more German newspapers. In New York City there are twelve or more... the best... being... the New Yorker Staats-Zeitung. The Illinois Staats-Zeitung has nearly as large a circulation, and the Milwaukee Germania claims the largest circulation of all. The Milwaukee Herold comes not far behind. Philadelphia has its Demokrat, Baltimore its Correspondent, Cincinnati its Volksblatt, St. Louis... its... Die Westliche Post, where Joseph Pulitzer started his career, and Der Anzeiger des Westens." It also reported that compared to 17,194 English papers in the U.S. in 1900, there were 613 German ones. The next largest language group, the Scandinavian, had only 115.[10]
Throughout much of the 19th century, there were fierce debates in many large American metropolitan areas with German immigrant communities, such as Chicago and St. Louis to determine whether public schools should offer German-language education. The issue was of considerable local interest, as German-speaking families overwhelmingly sent their children to parochial schools at which instruction was conducted in German. In some German immigrant neighborhoods in Chicago, public school attendance was so low that the press reported the institutions as being practically empty.[11] The decision of the Chicago Public Schools to make English the sole language of instruction in the city's schools sparked outrage from the city's German community. Hermann Raster, the Republican editor-in-chief of the Illinois Staats-Zeitung, and the Socialist politician Adolph Douai strongly opposed the new rule, and both became known as vocal critics of enforcing English-only education in the United States.[12]
Language use had also been the primary focus of legislation at state and local levels. Some of these regulations included the publication of charters banning speaking German within city limits. A total ban on the teaching of German in both public and private education could be found in at minimum 14 states, including some states that would extend this to ban the teaching of all languages except for English, although the majority would ban non-English languages typically only banned German. A total ban on teaching German in both public and private schools was imposed for a time in at least 14 states, including California, Indiana,[13] Wisconsin,[14] Ohio, Iowa and Nebraska. California's ban lasted into the mid-1920s. The Supreme Court case in Meyer v. Nebraska ruled in 1923 that these laws were unconstitutional.[15] In October 1918, a bill intended to restrict federal funds towards states that enforced English-only education was created. On April 9, 1919, Nebraska enacted a statute called "An act relating to the teaching of foreign languages in the state of Nebraska," commonly known as the Siman Act. It provided that "No person, individually or as a teacher, shall, in any private, denominational, parochial or public school, teach any subject to any person in any language other than the English language." It forbade foreign instruction to children who had not completed the eighth grade. In Montana, speaking German was banned in public for two years during World War I.[16] Pennsylvania's legislature passed a German-language ban, but it was vetoed by the governor. Churches during this period such as the Lutheran Church became internally divided over services and religious instruction in German and English.[17]
Usually, Pennsylvania Dutch (often just "Dutch" or Deitsch) is spoken at home, but English is used when interacting with the general population.[citation needed] The Amish and Old Order Mennonites of northern Indiana often differentiate between themselves and the general population by referring to them, respectively, as the "Amish" and the "English." Pennsylvania "Dutch" is sometimes used in worship services, though this is more common among the Amish than the Mennonites. More mainstream (city) Mennonites may have a working knowledge of the language, but it is not frequently used in conversation or in worship services.
In Pennsylvania, which had a large German-American population, German was long permitted as a language of instruction in public schools.[29] State documents were available in German until 1950.[citation needed] As a result of widespread anti-German sentiment during World War I, German fluency decreased from one generation of Pennsylvanians to the next, and today only a small fraction of its residents of German descent are fluent in the German language.[citation needed]
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