Page 103 - Diversity in Action

Language Learning in the Context of Diversity

Beyond theoretical challenges, there is also a practical, emotional dimen-
sion for educators. Teachers often face conflicting expectations about lan-
guage use and cultural diversity in their classrooms. This can create personal
stressastheycontinuallyreflect on andsometimesquestion theirown teach-
ing beliefs and practices (Gouma & Döll, 2023). Recognising and addressing
these challenges is essential for fostering a supportive environment for both
educators and multilingual learners.

German Language Competence As a Criterion for School Readiness
In kindergartens and schools, the diagnosis of the language skills of mul-
tilingual children and adolescents has become particularly questionable in
recent years and has become relevant for many educational decisions that
need to be discussed. This is because it is dominated by an understanding of
language competence that, in the light of current linguistic findings and con-
cepts, can be described as reductionist and therefore needs to be addressed.
The current orientation of most diagnostic procedures is either one-sidedly
oriented towards German language skills or, if multilingualism is taken into
account, towards the addition of individual language skills. The fluid mul-
tilingualism actually experienced in everyday life does not play a sufficient
role either in the construction or in the application of language diagnostic
procedures – even though the measurement of language competence, es-
pecially of multilingual people, is taken for granted. Thus, on many levels, the
false impression is created that language skills can be easily operationalised
and accurately measured (Chondrogianni, n.d.). However, Settinieri and Jeuk
(2019) note that language acquisition depends on the age of acquisition and
numerous other factors and can therefore vary greatly from person to per-
son.Thecomplex interplayofbiological,cognitiveandsocio-affectivefactors
makes it almost impossible to model standard progressions and represents a
fundamental problem for language diagnosis (Settinieri & Jeuk, 2019). Prob-
lems that arise from this can be illustrated using the example of the Austrian
school system, where, since 2018, knowledge of German has been a criterion
for school readiness. With the help of nationwide standardised tests (MIKA-
D – Measuring Instrument for Competence Analysis German according to
SCHUG § 4 para. 2a, see https://www.jusline.at/gesetz/schug), the language
competence in German is assessed at school enrolment for first-year pupils
and pupils who have recently arrived in the country.
The aim of MIKA-D is to determine whether pupils have acquired suffi-
cient knowledge of German as the language of instruction to be able to
follow lessons and to record important indicators of language competence

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