German election workshop series
The elections in Germany will take place again this fall! In preparation for this, the Goethe-Institut is organized a training series in August and September 2021.
The political system in Germany is fundamentally different from the one in the United States. In this multi-part training series, German teachers from the USA were introduced to the German system and will be able to implement the acquired knowledge in their lessons. Speakers from Germany presented information on various topics and provided appropriate materials for teaching German.
Recordings and materials
Topics:
• Framework data in comparison
• Historical Context
• Constitutional Principles
• Parliamentary vs. presidential system
• Constitutional system (horizontal vs. vertical separation of powers)
• Head of government
• Parties (two-party vs. multiparty system)
Speakers:
Ralf Keil, Political Scientist
Master's degree in International Studies/ Peace and Conflict Research at the Goethe University Frankfurt am Main
Student Assistant in Research and Teaching Professorship of Political Science with focus on Methods of Qualitative Empirical Social Research; Goethe University Frankfurt am Main
Mareike Islar, Political Scientist
Current job since 02/2020: Research Assistant/ Head of Office Hubertus Heil MdB, German Bundestag
Master studies until 03/2020: Global Politics at the George-August-University Göttingen
Teaching materials on the political System in German (in German)
Topics:
• Historical context (today vs. Weimar Republic)
• Electoral principles
• The electoral law in Germany (majority vs. proportional representation)
• Deepening: Surplus and compensatory mandates
• Overview of past elections vs. today's Sunday polls
• And who is sitting in the Bundestag now - a sociodemographic overview
• Discussion: is the German Electoral Law fair and representative?
Speakers:
Ralf Keil, Political Scientist
Master's degree in International Studies/ Peace and Conflict Research at the Goethe University Frankfurt am Main
Student Assistant in Research and Teaching Professorship of Political Science with focus on Methods of Qualitative Empirical Social Research; Goethe University Frankfurt am Main
Mareike Islar, Political Scientist
Current job since 02/2020: Research Assistant/ Head of Office Hubertus Heil MdB, German Bundestag
Master studies until 03/2020: Global Politics at the George-August-University Göttingen
Teaching material on the election system in Germany (in German)
Topics:
What are the main issues in Germany's federal election? Is climate policy a winning topic as polls suggest? We will have a close look at the issues addressed by the main German parties and the current public discussion.
Speaker:
Dr. Sandra Busch-Janser
Head of Political Communication at the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung
Dr. Sandra Busch-Janser studied political science in Munich and Duisburg. She started her careers as a research assistant at the Eastern European Institute in Munich. Since 2004 she is working in the field of political communication and campaigning as an entrepreneur, advisor and author.
Topics:
• authentic media as information
• competitions on the topic of the elections
• Worksheets and methods for different German levels and ages
Speaker:
Theresa Fuchs
Language Consultant, Goethe-Institut Chicago
Themen:
The Greens versus the Conservatives - and who else, actually? Which parties are standing for election, what role do they play in Germany and with what program are they running? A cross-media overview: People, posters and programs of the German party landscape.
Speaker:
Julius Werner
Political communication expert, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung
Julius Werner worked in communications and advertising and since 03/2021 as an expert in political communication for the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung. He holds a master's degree in general rhetoric from the University of Tübingen.
Topics:
Young people in Germany are politically active at a wide variety of levels and contribute their opinions to society. They are involved:
- in political/social movements such as Fridays for future and against right-wing extremism, racism and antisemitism
- in children's and youth parliaments
- the student council
- in other participation projects, such as in the design of public spaces
The most important youth studies (16th Children and Youth Report 2020, Shell Study 2019) confirm the diverse and active political commitment of young people.
In this webinar, we will look at the political participation of young people in Germany and their concerns.
Speakers:
Anne Dwertmann
Director of the LidiceHaus
Focus: Educational management, Democracy education, Co-determination and participation of young people to promote self-responsible and democratic behavior.
Annika Koehler-Siefken
Education Consultant of the LidiceHaus
Focus: Co-determination and participation of young people to promote self-responsible and democratic behavior.
Topics:
German teachers share methods, materials, and ideas they have tried and tested on the topic of the election in a structured way.
(Attention! This is not a webinar)
Speaker:
Theresa Fuchs
Language Consultant, Goethe-Institut Chicago
German teachers share methods, materials, and ideas they have tried and tested on the topic of the election in a structured way.
(Attention! This is not a webinar)
Speaker:
Theresa Fuchs
Language Consultant, Goethe-Institut Chicago