A one-day CPD event for teachers of German, led by The Queen’s College Translation Exchange and the German Screen Studies Network
On Monday 9 March 2026, the GSSN and Queen’s College Translation Exchange hosted a free professional development event in Oxford for secondary school teachers to explore how film can be used as a dynamic tool for teaching German, deepening cultural understanding, and sparking critical thinking in learners in KS3 and above.
Focusing on the 1931 adaptation of Emil und die Detektive by Gerhard Lamprecht, participants explored how historical and cultural context can enrich students’ understanding of a film. Through an artefact-based enquiry into 1920s Berlin, teachers worked collaboratively to analyse primary materials, discuss their relevance to the narrative, and design engaging classroom activities. We also considered a range of low-prep, high-impact activities to provide teachers with practical strategies for teaching film that could easily be implemented in the classroom. In the afternoon, participants worked in groups to design their own mini lesson plans, focusing on clear learning objectives, appropriate scaffolding, and methods for assessing progress. These were shared with the wider group, fostering further discussion and refinement of ideas. The day concluded with a session dedicated to creative translation run by Romy Fursland.
Feedback from participants was overwhelmingly positive, with many expressing a strong appetite for further events. Others noted the immediate relevance to their own teaching, with one participant sharing that they were “already thinking about how to incorporate some of these activities into our Year 9 film module.”
This event was made possible through the generous support of the DAAD (German Academic ExchangeService) as part of a three-year Promoting German Studies networking grant awarded to the German Screen Studies Network, co-directed by Dr Paul Flaig and Dr Dora Osborne. The GSSN would also like to thank Dr. Charlotte Ryland and Dr. Elly Walters of the Queen’s College Translation Exchange for their support with this event.