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Chair of English Language Education

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English Language Education

Welcome to the Chair of English Language Education!

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Team (from left to right): Michelle Zirkel, Rebecca Flämig, Katrin Bauer, Martina Ebenberger, Andreas Müller, Claudia Schnellbögl, Anna Helmerich, Lisa Theisen, Michelle Zeitler, Theresa Summer

In the following you will find the subpages of our homepage:

TEFL Video

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Studies

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Team

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Research

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Transfer

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Events

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Understanding, designing, and exploring English lessons – and putting them directly into practice

At the Chair of English Language Education or TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), we engage with central theoretical, practical, and research-based developments in the field of English language education. An established theory forms our basic framework – because only on this basis can teaching situations be analyzed in a research-led manner, planned in a well-founded way, and developed effectively. At the same time, we attach great importance to closely interlinking theory and practice: we combine concepts and models with concrete examples, materials, and application-oriented tasks.

By engaging in (inter)national research and adopting an interdisciplinary perspective, we aim to develop key skills and competencies in future English language educators. We offer an interactive introductory seminar for all of our students as well as thematic and practice-oriented courses. These address key issues in the teaching and learning of English, such as:

  • AI- and VR-supported English language education
  • Global Citizenship Education and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
  • lesson planning and Core Practices
  • songs, poetry and picturebooks for younger and older learners
  • fostering critical literacy
  • approaches in primary school English language education
  • grammatical competence
  • and many more

In internships and preparatory courses, we support pre-service teachers during their first encounters with English language education across different types of schools. The following principle is essential to us: You are not born to be a good (English) teacher!

In our research, we address a variety of issues. Three of our current research projects include:

  • AI- and VR-Supported Interaction (school trial in cooperation with Stiftung Bildungspakt Bayern)
  • BaKuLe – our sub-project ‘Teaching Communities’ (in cooperation with the ZLB) aims to promote a participatory teaching and learning culture
  • ELT Survey – an international study in which we investigate learners’ perspectives on English lessons (in cooperation with Norway and Poland)

TEFL at the University of Bamberg

The Chair of English Language Education or TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) engages with central theoretical, practical, and research-based developments in the field of English language education. By engaging in (inter)national research and adopting an interdisciplinary perspective, we aim to develop key skills and competencies in future English language educators. We offer an interactive introductory seminar for all of our students as well as thematic and practice-oriented courses. These address key issues in the teaching and learning of English, such as:

  • learning English through virtual reality / AI
  • global learning, ESD
  • lesson planning
  • songs and poetry
  • critical literacy
  • teaching English at primary schools
  • grammatical competence
  • and many more

In internships and preparatory courses, we support pre-service teachers during their first encounters with English language education across different types of schools.

In our research, we address a variety of issues. Two of our current research projects include:

  • DiSo-SGW  in which we are part of a project consortium that aims to develop, test, and implement research-based training programs for teachers focusing on the development of digital competence.
  • ELT Survey in which we investigate learners’ perspectives on English lessons 

What is Fachdidaktik Englisch / English Language Education?

Translating Fachdidaktik Englisch is not an easy undertaking. Common terms used in English include English Language Education (ELE), English Language Teaching (ELT) or Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL). Some scholars have also started to use the term English Didactics. It is an academic discipline concerned with the rationale, goals, content, evidence-based strategies and methodological approaches as well as the evaluation of English learning in schools.

What will you learn in your studies?

Studying English language education will enable you to develop key competencies that are important for high quality teaching. By learning about central conceptual models, pedagogical approaches, and evidence-based strategies, you will develop an understanding of the ‘What’s’, ‘Why’s’, and ‘How’s’ of English language education. For example, you will learn about important principles and core practices of English language education that relate to the teaching and learning of English(es), English-speaking cultures, literatures, and pop cultural artefacts. In our teaching, we put a key emphasis on illustrating the practical application of certain strategies by analysing and trying out tasks and lesson sequences. Our TEFL Reading List(703.9 KB, 25 pages) provides an overview of some central books and journals in the field.

Find out more about your studies here.  

How can I keep up to date with the latest news?

Please join our NEAS-VC for regular updates related to your studies.

You can also follow us on Instagram (TEFL_unibamberg & eas_unibamberg) for regular updates.

... any more questions?

If you click on the subpages, you will find information about your studies, the lecturers, our research projects, scientific transfer, and events.

Andreas Müller will support you as our subject-specific advisor if you have further questions related to your studies.

Where to find us

Our department is located in U9
(click here for directions and street view)

Englischunterricht verstehen, gestalten, erforschen – und direkt in die Praxis bringen

Am Lehrstuhl für Fachdidaktik Englisch beschäftigen wir uns mit zentralen theoretischen, praktischen und forschungsbasierten Entwicklungen im Bereich des Lernens und Lehrens des Englischen. Eine fundierte Theorie bildet dabei unser Grundgerüst – denn erst auf dieser Basis lassen sich Unterrichtssituationen forschungsgeleitet analysieren, begründet planen und wirksam weiterentwickeln. Gleichzeitig legen wir großen Wert auf eine enge Theorie-Praxis-Verzahnung: Konzepte und Modelle werden bei uns mit konkreten Beispielen, Materialien und anwendungsorientierten Aufgaben verknüpft.

Durch (inter)nationale Forschung und eine interdisziplinäre Perspektive zielen wir darauf ab, Schlüsselqualifikationen und -kompetenzen bei zukünftigen Englischlehrkräften zu entwickeln. Für unsere Studierenden bieten wir ein interaktives Einführungsseminar sowie thematische und praxisorientierte Kurse an. Diese befassen sich mit zentralen Aspekten des Lehrens und Lernens, wie z.B.:

  • KI- und VR-gestützter Englischunterricht
  • Unterrichtsplanung und Core Practices
  • Global Citizenship Education und Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung (BNE)
  • Songs, Gedichte und Picturebooks für jüngere und ältere Lernende
  • Förderung von critical literacy
  • Ansätze im Grundschulenglischunterricht
  • grammatikalische Kompetenz
  • und vieles mehr

In Praktika und praxisorientierten Kursen begleiten wir angehende Lehrkräfte bei ihren ersten Begegnungen im Englischunterricht in verschiedenen Schulformen. Wichtig dabei ist für uns der Grundsatz: You are not born to be a good (English) teacher!

In unseren Forschungsprojekten beschäftigen wir uns mit einer Vielzahl von Themen. Drei unserer aktuellen Projekte sind:

  • AI- and VR-Supported Interaction (Schulversuch in Kooperation mit der Stiftung Bildungspakt Bayern)
  • BaKuLe– unser Teilprojekt “Lehrgemeinschaften” verfolgt (in Kooperation mit dem ZLB) das Ziel, eine partizipative Lehr- und Lernkultur voranzustoßen
  • ELT Survey – eine internationale Studie, in der wir die Perspektiven der Lernenden auf den Englischunterricht untersuchen (in Kooperation mit Norwegen und Polen)