Twelve universities have already signed agreements and 14 more higher education institutions are about to follow suit: over the past three years, a network has been growing across Europe to improve education programmes for teachers of German as a Foreign Language (GFL). The Goethe-Institut supports the initiative and is providing resources from its Deutsch Lehren Lernen (DLL, Learning to Teach German) training and professional development programme. The aim of these partnerships is to strengthen the German language by ensuring an adequate supply of well-qualified teachers. From 19 to 21 October 2026, the partners met for a symposium at the University of Valencia in Spain.
Janna Degener-Storr spoke about the partnerships with six experts: Prof. Dr Andreja Retelj (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia), Prof. Dr Lies Sercu (KU Leuven, Belgium), Dr Diana Šileikaitė-Kaishauri (Vilnius University, Lithuania), Dr Gintarė Gelūnaitė-Malinauskienė (Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas, Lithuania), Tony Heinig (Head of the Language Department at the Goethe-Institut Madrid) and Rafael D. Deschka (Head of the Language Department for the Europe II Region and Deputy Director of the Goethe-Institut Netherlands).
Why does the German language need to be strengthened in Northern and Southwestern Europe?
Rafael D. Deschka: In most countries across the region, the number of German learners is declining. The main causes are a shortage of German teachers and a preference for other foreign languages. The wave of teacher retirements expected in the coming years is likely to intensify this trend in many places. In Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, however, we’re seeing very dynamic growth, with many schools introducing German as a new subject, often in place of Russian.
Lies Sercu: In Flanders, there is a shortage of teachers because the profession doesn’t have a good reputation. Classroom management is considered challenging, and early-career teachers must be prepared to change schools frequently. As a result, schools looking for teachers actively recruit students at our university to take on teaching assignments alongside their studies.
Andreja Retelj: The shortage of qualified German teachers in Slovenia has been a concern for us at the university for a number of years. We’ve noticed that fewer and fewer young people are deciding to pursue teacher training or study German as a subject. Possible reasons include the low social standing of the teaching profession and working conditions that many consider unattractive.
Diana Šileikaitė-Kaishauri and Gintarė Gelūnaitė-Malinauskienė: After Lithuania declared independence in 1990, German as a Foreign Language was widely taught in general education schools. In 2003/2004, around 20% of students were learning German. Numbers then fell sharply as students increasingly chose English or Russian, and many German teachers left the profession. Since then, the trend has begun to reverse. This is undoubtedly due in part to the efforts of the Goethe-Institut Lithuania, the Lithuanian Association of German Teachers, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), two universities and other institutions and cultural and educational organisations, which have promoted German through a range of initiatives and projects in recent years. Russian has also lost the strong position it historically held as a result of political developments.
Why should universities and the Goethe-Institut work together to train teachers of German as a Foreign Language ?
Andreja Retelj: What I think is particularly important about the Goethe-Institut’s Deutsch Lehren Lernen (DLL) training and professional development programme is that it combines theory with practical teaching experience, and it encourages teachers to reflect regularly on their own practice. These principles still guide my teaching today. When I took over the courses on teaching German as a Foreign Language after completing my doctorate, it was only natural for me to include these elements in our students’ training. Cooperating with the Goethe-Institut was therefore a logical step for our department. I hope our students learn to plan and deliver lessons during their studies, but also to reflect critically on their teaching and to develop their methods on a sound academic basis.
Diana Šileikaitė-Kaishauri and Gintarė Gelūnaitė-Malinauskienė: DLL can be easily integrated into various degree programmes, for example, as part of placements. Students can then put theory into practice directly in the classroom and try their hand at teaching. Sometimes, students decide to pursue a career as a GFL teacher while still studying, while others go into a different profession, such as IT, and teach German to the colleagues in their specialist team. DLL is learner-centred and focuses on interaction, so we are better able to address a wide range of needs.
Tony Heinig: To secure the future of German language teaching, we need to be present where tomorrow’s teachers are trained. Universities are key partners in this effort: they shape curricula, influence how students understand the teaching profession and contribute academic expertise. The Goethe-Institut complements this with its worldwide experience in the professional development of teachers of German as a Foreign Language, its international networks and close connection to classroom practice.
Rafael D. Deschka: The European network offers universities a framework for multilateral cooperation in teaching, research and, above all, the development of early-career talent. Using DLL gives this cooperation a shared foundation, while the bilateral partnerships between universities and the Goethe-Institut, formalised in agreements, can have a lasting, systemic impact. Further joint projects, research initiatives and exchanges can generate synergies and strengthen academic discourse in teacher training, German studies and German as a Foreign Language.
How could universities benefit from working together?
Diana Šileikaitė-Kaishauri and Gintarė Gelūnaitė-Malinauskienė: As universities, we each have our own areas of focus. In Kaunas, we place particular emphasis on communication, literature and professional and intercultural skills. In Vilnius, the focus is on developing traditional German studies skills alongside broader competencies such as critical and creative thinking, teamwork and digital literacy. Nevertheless, we collaborate under the shared hashtag Deutsch verbindet (“German connects us”), and the Goethe-Institut helps us share ideas with one another.
Lies Sercu: We also work closely with another big university, UCLouvain. This collaboration is part of our internationalisation strategy and we also offer courses jointly. The University of Antwerp has also become a partner, and I’m interested to see how this collaboration will develop. At the International Conference for Teachers of German (IDT) in Lübeck, I met representatives of universities in Spain, Italy and Greece, who also train teachers of German, for the first time. I felt that we understood one another and were doing the same work under different circumstances.
Tony Heinig: Many countries face similar challenges, so closer international exchange can be very valuable. The network has the potential to drive innovation and improve quality. Universities can share experiences, develop ideas together and strengthen the professional profile of German language teachers across national borders.
What impact has the DLL university network had so far?
Diana Šileikaitė-Kaishauri and Gintarė Gelūnaitė-Malinauskienė: In Lithuania, student numbers have already risen slightly since we began working more closely with the Goethe-Institut, although political developments have undoubtedly also played a role. In 2016/2017, 7.3% of school children in Lithuania were learning German; that figure has now increased to 11.7 per cent.
Andreja Retelj: Many of our students now reflect on and analyse teaching more consciously and are able to better justify their teaching decisions. The concept behind the DLL units shows students that theory also plays an important role, because sometimes they complain that their programmes are too theoretical. Our lecturers, too, are increasingly adopting new approaches to language teaching methodology and are adapting them to our students’ needs.
Tony Heinig: The most important impact is that the universities and the Goethe-Institut systematically combine their different strengths: academic expertise, on the one hand, and practical relevance and international experience, on the other. This creates clear added value for teacher training. Students gain a clearer understanding of the teaching profession and discover that good teaching involves much more than communicating language skills. It’s about learning processes, motivation, interaction and professional confidence in the classroom. Lecturers, in turn, gain access to international networks and the chance to connect with colleagues from other countries, which leads to professional discussions, new perspectives and joint projects.
Rafael D. Deschka: In view of developments in digitalisation, multilingualism and artificial intelligence (AI), this professional exchange is particularly important. The shared process of reflection is especially valuable. Lecturers become part of a community that works together to improve the quality of teacher training in German as a Foreign Language.
