Recent data indicates a decline in the number of students learning German in the United States. At the same time the teacher shortage nationwide is intensifying. SPARK addresses both of these challenges through a structured program that connects colleges and universities with K-12 schools. College and high school students with German proficiency receive training to teach introductory German lessons in school and community after school programs. They offer these programs to get students and their families excited about learning German.
Are you interested in becoming a SPARK Lab or partnering with one? Here is how SPARK works:
Colleges, universities, and high schools work with the AATG and the Goethe-Institut to provide training for German majors and future German teachers to become SPARK instructors. After successfully completing their initial training, SPARK instructors will teach German to young learners in after school programs. Where possible, SPARK instructors could be granted appropriate credits by their home institutions.
Ready-to-use, flexible, and adaptable teaching units and materials designed for use with elementary, middle, and high school students
Professional development opportunities for advanced high school students and undergraduate and graduate students interested in pursuing a German teaching career
Access to the Goethe-Institut’s Deutsch Lehren Lernen online courses where aspiring teachers use their advanced German language skills to learn strategies for engaging young learners in German language lessons
Certificates of completion for successful instructors and participants
Comprehensive program support from professional coordinators
Young learners in SPARK after school programs get to know Germany and cultures of the German-speaking world
Families gain access to quality after school programming that introduces students to a new language and fosters intercultural competence
High school and college students studying German strengthen their own German language proficiency and gain valuable work experience while sharing what they have learned
Students interested in exploring a teaching career improve their instructional skills and learn how to facilitate interactive lessons in the target language
Participating college and university faculty have access to high quality materials and professional development opportunities and join the national SPARK network of German instructors, curriculum developers, and trainers
Local programs benefit from quality instruction and more highly qualified teachers in the future. German instruction in after school programs connects communities to global cultures
Identify participating college students
Train, supervise, and mentor participating college students
Identify potential schools and collaborating organizations
Serve as a point of contact for students, schools, regional coordinators, and the Goethe-Institut and AATG
Sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Goethe-Institut agreeing to participate in the program
Identify a faculty member to implement SPARK on campus and serve as the contact person
Integrate SPARK into the curricular structure of the German program or department and/or teacher education program
Identify college students to train as instructors for German lessons in after school programs
Identify local elementary schools, middle schools, and other organizations that could introduce German into their existing after school offerings
Partner with existing SPARK Labs to support the development and implementation of German in after school programs
Become a SPARK Lab by offering an after school program at your feeder schools
Identify future German teachers
Advocate for new German programs in order to ensure that German is offered in feeder schools and across one’s school district
Sign a memorandum of understanding with the Goethe-Institut agreeing to participate in the program
Identify a German teacher to implement SPARK and serve as the contact person
Integrate SPARK into the German program and its outreach activities
Identify students to deliver SPARK lessons in feeder schools
Identify local elementary schools, middle schools, and other organizations that could introduce German into their existing after school offerings
The Goethe-Institut and the AATG are grateful that the SPARK program has been met with enthusiastic interest from educational institutions at all levels. It is thanks to the generous support of Germany’s Federal Foreign Office that we are able use this program to spark interest in German in communities across the United States.
Are you ready to join SPARK? Fill out the application form! SPARK accepts applications on a rolling basis.
