Introducing German Dialects in the German as a Second Language Classroom

This brief paper focuses on how German dialects can be introduced in German as a Second Language (GSL) classes through the use of Project Based Learning (PBL) activities. Standard German is the language variety predominately used in German language classrooms across the world, although there are several dialect branches and hundreds of their variants that exist in the German-speaking realm. GSL students should be exposed to and made aware of some of these dialects as they constitute an important part of the language, culture and history of Germanspeaking countries and language communities throughout the world.