Performing poetry in the foreign language classroom: Pedagogical and language program considerations

Abstract

This chapter addresses the theory and practice of poetry performance in the German language classroom, as well as the collaborative development of projects of this sort by the language program director and graduate student instructors. Drawn from scholarly work on the roles of poetry in language learning, the focus is a curriculum component called the Wortkonzert (“Word-Concert”) project, in which the students select and learn to perform a German poem during the academic term. Activities include individual exploration of the sounds and rhythms of the poetic work, one-on-one mentoring with the instructor, consultation with an advanced German speaker in person or through digital media, collaborative work among the students, investigation of the poet’s biography, the epoch and the particular lyric genre, and, of course, performance of the poetry in the classroom. Involving as it does extended, playful use of language in a performance mode, and privileging aesthetic over literary-analytic aspects, the project serves as a foil to the often primarily quotidian uses of language typical of the language classroom. Data from a set of surveys of student experiences are presented, which identify the pedagogical paradox that poetry is considered “off-putting” by many students, though it also serves as a gateway to cultural knowledge and other insights not as easily accessible through other genres. The chapter then details key language program concerns, such as articulating the project with the curriculum overall, and justifications and considerations for graduate-student instructor involvement in all phases of the project.