The effect of a german language teaching design supported by the integrated thematic instruction model on academic achievement, citizenship, and values

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of a German language teaching design supported by the Integrated Thematic Teaching Model on the academic success of 10th-grade students in German and on their attitudes and values related to democratic citizenship. In the study, the experimental group received a curriculum designed with the Integrated Thematic Teaching Model, while the control group continued with the current German language curriculum of the Ministry of National Education. The research was conducted with students for whom German was their second foreign language and who were studying at a secondary school in a disadvantaged district of Aydın during the 2023-2024 academic year. The study was supported by pretests, posttests, and retention tests, as well as qualitative data collection techniques that revealed students' opinions about the experimental process. The research findings demonstrated that the Integrated Thematic Teaching Model significantly increased students' academic success and supported the retention of learning. Furthermore, the model was determined to positively contribute to students' civic skills such as democratic values, awareness of rights and responsibilities, equality, participation, and global citizenship. Students in the experimental group achieved higher scores in both academic achievement and democratic citizenship values compared to the control group. Student opinions also revealed that the model makes the learning process more engaging, meaningful, and relevant to life. The Integrated Thematic Teaching Model has been demonstrated to not only improve language skills in foreign language teaching but also contribute to students' values education and civic awareness. These results highlight the importance of more holistic, interdisciplinary, and value-based approaches to foreign language teaching and offer important theoretical and practical insights for improving existing curriculum.