AI Summary & Key Takeaways
AI InsightOverall, the textbook contributes to the development of intercultural competence but requires additional didactic support from instructors.
📌 3 Key Takeaways
Abstract
Global migration, increasing mobility, and digitally transformed communication have intensified encounters between people from different cultural backgrounds. Consequently, intercultural competence is regarded as a key qualification of the twenty-first century and an important educational objective. This study outlines the theoretical foundations of intercultural competence and analyzes the textbook Schritte international neu A2.1 with regard to its applicability in the Turkish context. The learning objectives of ESE (Ethnology in Schools and Adult Education), developed by Bertels and Bussmann (2013), serve as the analytical framework from which specific evaluation criteria were derived. The aim is to examine the extent to which the textbook prepares learners for life in a German-speaking environment and to identify potential shortcomings relevant for future material development. The analysis indicates that the textbook introduces elements of foreign cultures through visual materials, texts, and tasks and encourages comparisons with learners’ own lifeworlds. Regional studies and prompts for cultural comparison are particularly valuable. However, activities aimed at raising awareness of intercultural misunderstandings, methodological diversity, and the explicit discussion of stereotypes and taboos remain limited. Overall, the textbook contributes to the development of intercultural competence but requires additional didactic support from instructors.