Language support for international students of STEM subjects

A course concept for teaching subject-specific learning and study strategies

Abstract

There is a lack of curricula and teaching materials that cater to the needs of international students studying STEM subjects at German universities, hindering the provision of effective language courses which adequately prepare students for the linguistic and communicative challenges they will encounter in their studies. This article presents a methodological-didactic course concept for teaching subject-specific language skills in STEM fields, which has been developed since 2014 in the field of German as a foreign language at the (DaF/ZFA) of Ruhr-University Bochum. The development of curricula and teaching materials focuses on important methodological-didactic aspects such as teaching strategies, working with authentic sources, and digitizing learning content.