Difficulties in indicating equivalent digital materials for German literature in the German language classroom.

Abstract

Language and literature are strongly connected to each other. Learning a language without literature takes the learner away from appreciating great literary works in the target language. The aim of foreign language teaching is the orientation towards action (Handlungsorientierung). The learners should be able to speak and be competent in the new language in authentic situations. A foreign language should enrich the communicative aspects of their language combined with literature. It is important to use digital as well as printed materials in teaching literature. This paper attempts to reflect on the difficulties in indicating equivalent digital materials to achieve the goals of teaching German literature in the German language classroom. The main objective of this research is to indicate equivalent digital materials for German literature. Data for the study were collected through classroom observations, interviews with students and German language teachers and own experiences in teaching literature. Secondary data were collected through printed and electronic sources. The results of the study reflect that through digital materials including videos, films, songs, animated pictures and paintings, comics and by listening to authentic texts on the internet from the recommended sites can be used as digital materials for effective teaching of German language to enhance the oral and listening competencies of the students in the literature classroom. Through films and short video clips, it is easy to emphasize the important aspects of the literary texts. As recommendations, it is suggested that the German language literature teachers should refer to the digital materials which are available online, before recommending them to the students. Moreover, there should be an equivalent bond between those digital materials and the printed materials to achieve the learning outcomes of the lessons.