Soap opera project soap opera: a communicative and intercultural approach in the teaching of German as a foreign language

Abstract

This article aims to reflect on communicative and intercultural practices in the teaching of German as a foreign language (GFL). To work with language and culture in an integrated way, focusing especially on the communicative needs of learners, the “soap opera” project was developed during the German Language II course attended by Language undergraduate students of the University of Sao Paulo. This project has proposed a modern reinterpretation of Brazilian soap opera (or telenovela), where students were encouraged to produce episodes, sequential narratives, applying their on growing knowledge in the German language and making use of authentic materials, such as comics, music, WhatsApp messages, videos, among others. By covering all three aspects defined by Weissenberg (2012) focusing on the development of competencies and learning needs, the project has made it possible for the students to feel (co)responsible for their knowledge acquisition process, with positive impact on their motivation and sense of responsibility. Finally, the results suggest that tasks that encourage the use of communicative skills and strategies, besides its potential as a tool for integrative learning, can promote relevant intercultural discussions.

Keywords:
German as a foreign language; communicative skills; intercultural approach; learning needs