Promoting multilingualism

What is meant by heritage language learning?  

Many children in Germany grow up multilingually. In addition toGerman, they often speak one or even several other languages that their parents or grandparents learnt as their mother tongues before coming to Germany. Known as heritage languages, they tend to be spoken and kept alive within the family. Nonetheless, children do not always speak them perfectly, or may be able to speak but not write them. Lessons in these heritage languages help them improve their proficiency level. 

Where are such language lessons on offer and how many pupils take advantage of them?  

These days, most of Germany’s federal states offer heritage language lessons for school years 1 to 10, that is to say for children and young people aged roughly 6 to 16. Attendance is voluntary. Some states offer as many as 30 languages. These include languages such as Turkish or Arabic that are fairly widely spoken within families in Germany. However, less common ones such as the Kurdish language Sorani, or Twi, which is spoken in Ghana, are also offered. Roughly 140,000 pupils take advantage of these heritage language lessons. 

Why are these lessons provided?  

Multilingualism is a positive thing. Each language that a young person speaks represents a useful additional qualification for them. Furthermore, learning a different language gives insights into the traditions, norms and values of the cultural group in question. That is a great advantage in a globally interconnected world in which intercultural communication is becoming increasingly important. For pupils whose families come to Germany for only a limited period of time, such as the refugees from Ukraine, heritage language lessons also ensure that they can continue their education easily when they return home. 

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