Foreign-language assistant
The term Assistant Teacher or Foreign Language Assistant(FLA) refers to a native speaker, assisting a teacher of modern foreign languages (of another country) in his/her lessons. The assistant teacher programme is meant to be a benefit for assistants and pupils. It should help to improve the language skills of the foreign pupils on the one hand and is, on the other hand, an excellent opportunity for the assistants to deepen their language skills and their cultural knowledge, as well as a chance to get an insight into a different educational system.
The responsible institution behind the Assistant Teacher Programme is the Educational Exchange Service (Pädagogischer Austauschdienst- PAD)(a governmental institution in the Secretariat of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder in Germany) which organises and arranges international exchange programmes on behalf of the federal states in the school sector.
Duties
A FLA either assists teachers in their German lessons or teaches small groups on his/her own. FLAs have to work maximum 12 hours per week, mainly in secondary schools. Tasks vary, that is the reason why doing conversation exercises like roleplays, providing sources and interesting information for cultural studies lessons and rehearsing exam situations are just some fields of activity of an assistant. The duration of stay is usually 8-9 months. In order to apply for the post as an assistant teacher interested students need to have completed at least 4 semesters at any German University.
The aims of such programs are to contribute to international understanding, to support language learning initiatives and to promote German as a foreign language abroad.