Clichés

As everywhere in life, we also encounter clichés when it comes to studying. These can be harmless, but often have a negative impact on our motivation and decisions. The way to study is to deal with clichés. They not only affect German studies as such, but also the individual courses or the degree course in general.

Here you will find content on the clichés about the subject German, the Bachelor's and teaching degrees, as well as those relating to studying as a whole.

If you decide to study to become a teacher of German, you will attend the same courses as German Studies Bachelor's/German Studies Master's students.

The course is divided into a subject-specific and a didactic part. The subject-specific courses are the same as for German studies. Yes, of course you don't have to take as many courses here as you would on a pure German studies course. But you also study two subjects plus the so-called core studies, i.e. three subjects. The core course only teaches pedagogical and social science content, e.g. educational psychology or school development. The rumor that student teachers have easier exams in the subject-specific courses is not true! You write the same exams or assignments as German studies students. In addition to the subject-specific courses, you will also attend German didactics seminars. Here you will learn how to convey the content of German lessons to pupils.

"German ONLY as a teacher" is therefore just as easy or just as difficult as a Bachelor's degree course.

Of course, you will also have to read books during your studies, and yes, the readings will also be discussed in the seminars. However, you can have a say in how many books you read, as you have a choice in many seminars. In the foundation modules, you don't have as many choices yet, as you have to read a few academic texts in particular. Language history or grammar, for example, are compulsory! There are many good lecturers in the department, so these lectures and seminars can also be exciting and interesting. Don't be fooled by grammar; if you were good at grammar at school, that doesn't mean you'll be able to cope with the seminar easily. What you learn here goes far beyond school grammar. In the specialization modules, you can then choose whether to attend literary studies seminars and choose seminars in which you study one or more readings in depth. Alternatively, you can also opt for the linguistics specialization. Here, of course, you also have to read, but not classical literature.

You're right in the morning, free in the afternoon and lots of vacations. Perhaps this cliché seems tempting for some prospective students. And if you're not so good at math and science, you could study German. Hardly any teachers have afternoons off. Lesson preparation, conferences, further training, meetings with parents, correcting work, etc. fill the afternoons and even some weekends. In fact, teachers are one of the professional groups in which many people suffer from burnout or depression. But of course there are many more teachers who enjoy teaching and preparing lessons and who love their job. In addition, the stressful phases are compensated for by the fact that you have more vacation days than in most other professions. During the practical semester, which must also be completed in the third or fourth semester, most students will certainly realize whether the chosen course really suits them.

Who doesn't remember this from their own school days? Teachers were usually rather unpleasant pests who only ever wanted to hear what they had memorized. Hardly any pupil can imagine their teachers doing anything other than correcting or coming up with new nasty things in their free time. When the spook is finally over after twelve years, surely no one would voluntarily think of becoming a teacher? The world is finally open to you and you can do whatever you want. Australia, New Zealand, a voluntary social year, hang out with your parents or go to university. Well, let's assume that your grades were unexpectedly poor. Then it's clear that studying to become a teacher is the least of the evils (compared to an apprenticeship, etc.). You often hear people say things like: "Don't waste your good average by studying to be a teacher". Well, after a year of hanging out and backpacking, the choice will probably fall on teaching. But where? Universities are a dime a dozen these days. One that stands out in particular for its teaching degree program is the University of Kassel. It doesn't offer law or medicine, but it does offer teaching. And there are four of them. From L1 to L4, everything is included. If you're now wondering what the hell this L1 is supposed to be, let me tell you that it's best not to remember it at all. L1 are the so-called "Grundschulmuttis" (the name says it all). A degree course that is estimated to consist of 90% tinkering students who (exaggeratedly) make their time more bearable by playing clapping games or making mandalas. With a degree, they can then see themselves as better educators and eke out an existence as primary school teachers. Less prestige and, above all, less money than the other teacher training courses are the reward for the six semesters of playing and laughing. Well, then L1 is probably out of the question. How about L2? Students studying for a teaching degree in L2 can't have all their eggs in one basket. After all, they are the ones who will have to stand in front of a rowdy secondary school class in the future and count every day until they retire. Studying as an L2 student is a slimmed-down version of the L3 course and involves less academic work. This means that as an L2 student, you won't even be admired by the other teacher training courses. What about the L3s? If you study to become a L3 teacher, you will spend the rest of your life at a grammar school. It's actually the same with L3 students as with the rest of the teacher training courses: They are simply lazy, hardly have to learn anything and only have vacations during their studies. While medical students just study through their entire degree course, student teachers sit in the sun with a coffee and a good book. Last but not least, there are the L4 students, who really don't need much attention. After all, they are stranded people who didn't get anywhere in their previous job and now think they can make a go of it with a teaching degree.

You will be able to find out what the (mostly) admission-restricted degree course "Teaching" is really like on this website and at the latest during your studies. Don't pay too much attention to comments and opinions from people who didn't make it onto a teacher training course. In this short article, you will deliberately not find answers to questions such as: Are these prejudices true? Ultimately, it's your degree and only you can find out to what extent the clichés listed actually correspond to reality.

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