Nancy Yanagita (Tokio, Japan) p.175-197
2023 Issue 2
Sondernummer zum Thema: DaF-Anfängerunterricht als Teil von Germanistik-Studiengängen – Ansätze, Motivation, Lernerfolge.
Abstract
Modern language education should foster 21st century skills like critical thinking, learning how to learn, and interpersonal skills. Such skills can be developed with portfolio work due to its focus on the learner, the teacher as a facilitator, and learner autonomy. At the same time, one must not forget that educational contexts are restricted by multiple factors such as time, curricula, tests, available resources, expertise and beliefs of the staff, etc. If those are not considered properly, the implementation of a portfolio is prone to failure.
A university in Tokyo has implemented a writing portfolio in its German language communication classes with consideration of these various restrictions. The result was a writing portfolio with a limited range and potential for fostering autonomous learning, but functioning well within its context. As such, it was widely accepted by the students for a variety of reasons (alignment to personal interests, time flexibility, individual feedback, deepening understanding of strengths and weaknesses, regular practice, exchange with peers), having thus catered to their individual learning needs.