Language Policies and the Education of German Language Teacher’s in Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

This article focuses on the training of German teachers, understanding it as a minority language, due to its minority status, not because of quantitative aspects, as Lagares (2011) points out, but considering the peripheral space occupied by its speakers, with regard, for example, to current language policies. In this sense, the article will present a theoretical review of public policies related to language teaching and learning, bringing to this study laws and resolutions that regulate not only teaching, but also teacher training. In the context of public policies, language and German teacher training, this study will also present the perspective of extension projects as an important space for integrating theory and practice in training; an integration that has been highlighted in official documents since the early 2000s. Two university extension projects developed at two public higher education institutions in Rio de Janeiro will be described. The discussion will also include the perceptions of the undergraduate extension students taking part in the projects, who answered an online form questioning their motivations for taking part in extension projects focused on training German teachers.