Friday, October 18, 2024 | 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.Charbonnel Lounge, St. Michael’s College RSVP HERE We are exited to invite you to the upcoming Global Languages Initiative Workshop, hosted by the German Department, with guest speaker Marje Zschiesche-Stock. Join us for an engaging discussion on The Use of AI in the Second Language Classroom. The use of AI in educational contexts is currently a hot topic. The integration of AI into teaching will inevitably become a reality. How can contemporary language education respond to this? How can AI be productively integrated into teaching with added value? Our initial attempts show that it can also be an enrichment and act in a way as a friend and helper. But does it hinder the development of critical and independent thinking in our learners? In this workshop, we want to explore these questions and think together about how AI can simulate authentic language interactions and improve the communicative skills of learners at all levels. About Marje Zschiesche-Stock Marje Zschiesche-Stock has many years of international experience as a lecturer and trainer at a variety of institutions and educational establishments, where she has taught German language and culture at all levels and for all age ... Read More »
Author Archives: Fan Jia
How to apply to the graduate program 2025-2026
The Department of Germanic Languages & Literatures offers Ph.D. students a generous funding package that is guaranteed for five years. Sixth-year students are eligible for a doctoral completion grant. We are also able to fund many students in our one-year MA program with a combination of teaching opportunities and internal fellowships. Applications to the Graduate Program in German Literature, Culture and Theory must be submitted through the School of Graduate Studies online application website. The complete application includes: the online form submission of transcripts (please submit electronic transcripts, originals are only required after admission) letters of recommendation (MA:2, PhD:3) a brief resume a sample of written work a statement of up to 700 words outlining your research interests and reasons for embarking on graduate study Please consult the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) Calendar and the departmental Graduate Handbook for details on eligibility criteria. Additional information may be obtained from the SGS Admissions page, the SGS Degree Progams Quick Facts (MA) and Degree Programs Quick Facts (PhD), and the SGS application FAQ. The deadline for online application and payment of the application fee is 15 January 2025. We look forward to receiving your application and wish you much success in ... Read More »
Miriam Borden’s new peer-reviewed publication in Canadian Jewish Studies
Miriam Borden, PhD student in the Yiddish Stream of the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures, is excited to announce her first peer-reviewed publication in the 38th volume of Canadian Jewish Studies, titled “Joshua, King David, and the Flying Nun: Doodles and Reader Annotations in Post-Holocaust Yiddish Primers for Children”. Miriam’s article is a part of a special volume dedicated to Jewish Education in Canada. The article explores the humourous and insightful children’s doodles and reader annotations in Yiddish textbooks used by students at Yiddish schools in Toronto in the 1950s -70s. These annotations offer a window into children’s experiences in developing their relationship between Yiddish and Jewishness. Read the full article HERE. Read More »
Prof. Willi Goetschel elected to the Royal Society of Canada
Prof. Willi Goetschel has been elected to the fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Membership in the Royal Society of Canada is one of the most prestigious honours that a Canadian academic can receive. This distinction recognizes Prof. Goetschel’s many scholarly contributions, particularly his impactful work in the fields of Jewish thought, and German Enlightenment and idealism. As an internationally acclaimed philosopher, literary historian, and leader in the field of German Jewish thought, Prof. Goetschel has advanced research on the deep nexus between thought and literary imagination. Situated at the interface between philosophy and literature, in particular in modern Jewish thought, his work has helped to recover marginalized approaches to critical thinking thereby articulating emancipatory strategies that reimagine the terms of difference, alterity, and identity anew. Discover more about Prof. Goetschel’s research and achievements. Read More »
Sophie Jordan Wins 2024 Innovative German Award
Sophie Jordan, a PhD student in Germanic Languages and Literatures, has been awarded the 2024 Innovative German Award by German Studies Canada (GSC) and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for her project ‘Reading Blackness and Race in Germanic Arthurian Romance’. The award focuses on new courses, curriculum and program development, and the implementation of new teaching and learning approaches in German Studies. Based on original research, Sophie’s project ‘Reading Blackness and Race in Germanic Arthurian Romance’ aims to make teaching about blackness in medieval German and Dutch literature accessible to a wide range of post-secondary educators. To this end, Sophie has created a series of free and fully adaptable interactive materials as well as detailed lesson plans hosted on Pressbooks. The goal of these materials is to highlight the diversity of Germanic experiences and peoples reflected in the literature of the High Middle Ages. Instructors teaching courses on diversity in German culture, on medieval German studies, or on other related topics, can now access, use and adapt these materials without the need for further research and with very minimal preparation. The knowledge that 13th and 14th-century writers portrayed complex, multi-faceted yet successful black Arthurian knights will support students’ grasp ... Read More »
Global Languages Initiative Workshop with Marje Stock
Friday, October 18, 2024 | 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.Charbonnel Lounge, St. Michael’s College RSVP HERE We are exited to invite you to the upcoming Global Languages Initiative Workshop, hosted by the German Department, with guest speaker Marje Zschiesche-Stock. Join us on for an engaging discussion on The Use of AI in the Second Language Classroom. The use of AI in educational contexts is currently a hot topic. The integration of AI into teaching will inevitably become a reality. How can contemporary language education respond to this? How can AI be productively integrated into teaching with added value? Our initial attempts show that it can also be an enrichment and act in a way as a friend and helper. But does it hinder the development of critical and independent thinking in our learners? In this workshop, we want to explore these questions and think together about how AI can simulate authentic language interactions and improve the communicative skills of learners at all levels. About Marje Zschiesche-Stock Marje Zschiesche-Stock has many years of international experience as a lecturer and trainer at a variety of institutions and educational establishments, where she has taught German language and culture at all levels and for all ... Read More »
Miriam Borden’s new peer-reviewed publication in Canadian Jewish Studies
Miriam Borden, PhD student in the Yiddish Stream of the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures, is excited to announce her first peer-reviewed publication in the 38th volume of Canadian Jewish Studies, titled “Joshua, King David, and the Flying Nun: Doodles and Reader Annotations in Post-Holocaust Yiddish Primers for Children”. Miriam’s article is a part of a special volume dedicated to Jewish Education in Canada. The article explores the humourous and insightful children’s doodles and reader annotations in Yiddish textbooks used by students at Yiddish schools in Toronto in the 1950s -70s. These annotations offer a window into children’s experiences in developing their relationship between Yiddish and Jewishness. Read the full article HERE. Read More »
Sophie Jordan Wins 2024 Innovative German Award
Sophie Jordan, a PhD student in Germanic Languages and Literatures, has been awarded the 2024 Innovative German Award by German Studies Canada (GSC) and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for her project ‘Reading Blackness and Race in Germanic Arthurian Romance’. The award focuses on new courses, curriculum and program development, and the implementation of new teaching and learning approaches in German Studies. Based on original research, Sophie’s project ‘Reading Blackness and Race in Germanic Arthurian Romance’ aims to make teaching about blackness in medieval German and Dutch literature accessible to a wide range of post-secondary educators. To this end, Sophie has created a series of free and fully adaptable interactive materials as well as detailed lesson plans hosted on Pressbooks. The goal of these materials is to highlight the diversity of Germanic experiences and peoples reflected in the literature of the High Middle Ages. Instructors teaching courses on diversity in German culture, on medieval German studies, or on other related topics, can now access, use and adapt these materials without the need for further research and with very minimal preparation. The knowledge that 13th and 14th-century writers portrayed complex, multi-faceted yet successful black Arthurian knights will support students’ grasp ... Read More »
Prof. Willi Goetschel elected to the Royal Society of Canada
Prof. Willi Goetschel has been elected to the fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Membership in the Royal Society of Canada is one of the most prestigious honours that a Canadian academic can receive. This distinction recognizes Prof. Goetschel’s many scholarly contributions, particularly his impactful work in the fields of Jewish thought, and German Enlightenment and idealism. As an internationally acclaimed philosopher, literary historian, and leader in the field of German Jewish thought, Prof. Goetschel has advanced research on the deep nexus between thought and literary imagination. Situated at the interface between philosophy and literature, in particular in modern Jewish thought, his work has helped to recover marginalized approaches to critical thinking thereby articulating emancipatory strategies that reimagine the terms of difference, alterity, and identity anew. Discover more about Prof. Goetschel’s research and achievements. Read More »
2025 International Parliamentary Scholarship (IPS) Applications Open
The German Federal Parliament (“Bundestag”) has announced a call for applications for the International Parliamentary Scholarship (IPS) program in Berlin in 2025. The application deadline is August 31, 2024. In collaboration with Berlin’s three major universities, the German Bundestag offers the prestigious IPS program to politically engaged college graduates from around 50 countries, including Canada, who wish to play an important role in shaping the future of democratic cooperation – in their respective countries, and internationally. Under the patronage of the President of the German Bundestag, the IPS program allows participants to gain first-hand knowledge of Germany’s parliamentary system and political decision-making process during a 3-month work placement with a Member of the German Parliament. Participants also take part in a rich educational program with the German political foundations and have the chance to enroll in university classes, spending a total of five months in the German capital (March 1 through July 31, 2025). IPS is open to college graduates (bachelor’s degree or higher) who are Canadian citizens (or citizens of other participating countries), under 30 years old on March 1, 2025, and have a very good knowledge (B2+) of the German language. Candidates should also be familiar with ... Read More »