Teaching Shakespeare

Shakespeare remains the most frequently performed playwright – and not only in the English-speaking world. However, he is not only a cultural phenomenon on a social level, but has also always been an integral part of English language teaching. The works of William Shakespeare should continue to play an important role in school teaching practice, firmly anchored in the curriculum. The study of William Shakespeare should be made a compulsory part of the current teaching and education plans for English lessons in upper secondary schools throughout the country, not least because Shakespeare lessons can impart skills that go beyond the acquisition of purely literary or cultural competences. The reasons for a pointed focus on the works and influence of William Shakespeare are certainly complex, but there are many essential aspects that explain why Shakespeare should still be taught today (see Eisenmann 2019, 12-14).

Against this backdrop, this research project examines the didactic implementation of Shakespeare's work. The focus is on the recent radical changes in media, literary and cultural studies, taking into account the latest didactic findings. Involving not only upper secondary school students, but also younger middle school students, the existing didactic material is presented, evaluated and reviewed with regard to the diversity of media, linguistic, literary, cultural and (art) historical links required in the various curricula, which are not limited to the subject of English. Against the backdrop of these findings, innovative possibilities are presented for the many ways in which Shakespeare's work can be profitably integrated into today's school context.

On the one hand, this involves presenting the topicality of the themes in Shakespeare's work, whose appeal can spark learners' interest in Shakespeare as an important representative of English culture. and, on the other hand, to provide a broader, interdisciplinary perspective on Shakespeare, highlighting the benefits of teaching English in an interdisciplinary and cross-curricular manner, e.g. by linking it to subjects such as German, art and music. In the spirit of ‘classroom as a stage – acting out Shakespeare's plays’, James Stredder's dramatic approach will be presented to show that a creative, performance-oriented, theatrical approach to Shakespeare's plays should not only be seen as a supplement to the cognitive, traditional intellectual approach to the texts, but can also open up surprisingly new and deeper insights into text passages, plot developments or character constellations. Taking into account the issues of learner motivation, intertextual and intercultural learning, the research project also deals with the use and handling of the countless Shakespeare adaptations, creations and transformations (texts, film adaptations, Web 2.0 references, etc.). In particular, the special features of digital network technologies will be presented and critically examined with regard to information about Shakespeare on the Internet.