Paper short abstract:

The talk is on findings from a research project on Japanese language teaching in German secondary schools. After explaining the background conditions of JLT, e.g., core curriculum, we will focus on the results of the teacher interview data and discuss the findings as well as the problems and issues.

Paper long abstract:

Research on Japanese language teaching in European secondary schools has been the subject of numerous literature surveys and practice reports (e.g., Galan 2017, Knapp-Hartmann 2017, Matsuo 2018, Matsuo & Dudzus 2017, Ruddock 2018, Saito-Theuerzeit 2013, Trumpa et al. 2017, Trumpa & Unkel 2019, Unkel 2015), but it is safe to say that there is little multifaceted empirical research on teaching materials in German secondary schools. At the moment Japanese language teaching at German secondary schools is limited to one special type of school (i.e., the Gymnasium).

The aim of the research was to contribute to the development of the subject of 'Japanese as a foreign language' in secondary education and to gain a multi-perspective view and understanding of what kind of teaching materials are used and on what background, how the consistency with the state core curriculum is assessed, and what kind of teaching materials are required and desired.