Hauptseminar Getting in touch real life and online encounters with native and non native speakers of English in FL education

Getting in touch: real-life and online encounters with native and non-native speakers of English in FL education -The best way of learning a language, of course, is to live among the people who speak it, […].” (William T. Stead, 1897) This is why in cooperation with foreign language teachers William T. Stead, a famous journalist and peace activist in 19th century London, began as a pioneer to systematically organize intercultural encounters between British, French and German school boys and girls – by having them write letters to each other. Visits and exchanges were soon to follow. Since then the idea has remained the same but the ways and tools of organizing cross-cultural encounters have multiplied. In the seminar we will look at the historical development of these encounters and will then investigate various approaches and concepts from traditional real-life school exchanges to online projects. We will look at theoretical assumptions about intercultural learning in the course of these encounters as well as the practicalities of organizing and planning them. The ‘culture contact hypothesis’ according to which cross-cultural encounters more or less automatically lead to intercultural understanding has been challenged. Thus, as teachers we need to ask which conditions before, during and after such encounters will increase the chances of pedagogical success. LMU München SoSe 2015 Department III Anglistik und Amerikanistik