Harnessing Märchen: Enhancing German Reading Literacy and Pronunciation Skills Through Fairy Tales

Abstract

Reading literacy in a foreign language is often reduced to grammar drills and vocabulary lists, this is how very little space remains for deep reading, pronunciation practice, and cultural understanding. Such a community engagement project was initiated to fill this gap at one of the senior high schools in Surabaya, Indonesia. For students interested in the German language and culture, there are limited chances to learn authentic literary texts. This project was carried out with the aim to improve the level of German reading literacy and pronunciation (Aussprache) through guided reading of German fairy tales (Märchen), and to support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 4 on quality education. An approach based on participation, education, and communication was used by five lecturers and two student assistants in five stages: initiation and socialization, material delivery, reading and pronunciation practice, discussion and reflection, and evaluation. The tales were adjusted to the level of learners, who practiced reading aloud under direct correction by the facilitators. Evaluations were made based on observations of participation, questions and answers, and reading comprehension activities. It should be noted that most of the participants exhibited high motivation, improved reading skills, learned new vocabulary, and understood the stories better than before the assistance. The program produced an educational video, online news coverage, an intellectual property certificate, and a signed cooperation agreement with the partner school, while teaching materials and modules were developed for handover to the school. The novelty lies in combining fairy tale reading, pronunciation training, and intercultural reflection within one school-based partnership. The findings suggest that fairy tales are a low-cost and culturally rich entry point for foreign language literacy, although longer programs with measured pre-test and post-test outcomes are needed to confirm the effects.