From a language teaching perspective, neighbouring languages can have a significant influence on peoples’ future desire to learn other languages. To develop language skills, role models who motivate language acquisition through positive emotions are needed: languages should be perceived as valuable and useful. In this context, a border region plays a key role because it represents geographical, social, historical, economic and political proximity to the neighbouring language and country. This proximity provides unique opportunities in language teaching (that are often neglected in everyday teaching practice).

Among other things, it provides an opportunity to achieve intercultural competences in the neighbour country in a unique way, because in border regions you can be ‘both cognitively and emotionally’ at home in more than one cultural area. However, this requires fundamental changes in the attitudes that people on both sides of the border have towards each other. It also requires changes in the way people identify with the border region. A neighbouring languages approach can help to promote these desirable changes, but it also requires language policy measures that promote the learning of the neighbouring languages (cf. Polzin-Haumann, Putsche and Reissner 2019; Raasch 1999/2002/2005).

For didactic purposes, border regions offer unique opportunities and unique learning spaces. By crossing borders, people can experience the neighbouring language and intercultural situations in an everyday context and this can happen from a very early age. The neighbours’ language and culture can be discovered concretely and in direct interaction with native speakers. In this way students can experience that the neighbouring language is useful in everyday life while building bridges to each other across borders.

The model was further developed in the context of action research, especially in the French-German border region Alsace/Baden Wurttemberg (cf. Faucompré 2014, 2017, 2018; Faucompré and Putsche 2015, 2017; Putsche 2013, 2016; Putsche and Faucompré 2016, 2017). 

It is important for border region didactics is to start from the specific living environment of learners. A first step is to ask oneself questions like: What are my learners interested in at the moment (in their free time, at school,…)? What is important to them? Have they already had experience of the border region? Have they taken part in an exchange or internship?, etc. You can also discuss these questions with your students and discover experiences, challenges and needs together. According to your reflection and/or discussion, you can choose authentic linguistic material from the border region for your language classes, e.g. a flyer from a museum, food advertisement, a company website, etc. Depending on the professional sector, you can also combine language learning with vocational content. In this way, teachers can facilitate and support the students' motivation, awareness and reflection processes. 

But how can we talk about neighbouring languages?

References in Danish, French and German

Daryai-Hansen P. (2010), “Repræsentationernes magt – sproglige hierarkiseringer i Danmark”, in Jørgensen J. N. and Holmen A. (eds), Københavnerstudier i Tosprogethed No. 58, pp. 87-105.

Faucompré C. (2014), Vers la mise en place d’une didactique transfrontalière dans un Gymnasium en région frontalière. Mémoire de Master en sciences du langage (mention didactique des langues), Université de Strasbourg.

Faucompré C. (2017), “Cross-border cooperation between a researcher and teachers to optimise the teaching of the neighbour’s language”, in Mentz O. and McKay T. (eds), Unity in diversity. European perspectives on borders and memories (Europa lernen No. 7), Münster, pp. 102-121.

Faucompré C. (2018), “L’enseignement de la langue du voisin en région frontalière : quelles compétences inter- et intra-culturelles définir ?”, in Komur-Thilloy G. and Djordjevic S. (eds), L’École, ses enfants et ses langues, Paris, pp. 181-196.

Faucompré C. and Putsche J. (2015), “Un exemple d’activité pédagogique dans le cadre d’une didactique des langues en région frontalière : Le cas d’un cours de français en 5. Klasse dans la ville de Kehl, Bade-Wurtemberg”, in Nouveaux Cahiers d’Allemand No. 2/2015, pp. 161-176.

Faucompré C. and Putsche J. (2017), “Déconstruire les représentations des futurs enseignants de langues face à l’enseignement en région frontalière”, in Elmiger D., Racine I. and Zay F. (eds), Processus de différenciation : des pratiques langagières à leur interprétation sociale, Neuchâtel, pp. 227-238.

Hansen C. F. et al. (2022), Dansk-tysk nabosprogsdidaktik, Interreg 5A-projektet KursKultur 2.0., available at www.kulturakademi.de/dk/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/07/Nabosprogsdidaktik.pdf, accessed 12 October 2023.

Polzin-Haumann C., Putsche J. and Reissner C. (2019), “Wege zu einer grenzüberschreitenden deutsch-französischen Fremdsprachendidaktik. État des lieux, enjeux, perspectives”, in Polzin-Haumann C., Putsche J. and Reissner C. (eds), Wege zu einer grenzüberschreitenden deutsch-französischen Fremdsprachendidaktik. État des lieux, enjeux, perspectives, St. Ingbert, pp. 7-36,

Putsche J. (2011), Spracheinstellungen von Grundschülerinnen und Grundschülern in einer Grenzregion. Qualitative Untersuchung in zwei paritätisch unterrichteten ersten Klassen mit Zielsprache Französisch, Bern.

Putsche J. (2013), “‘Meine Vorstellung war, dass es viel stärker wäre‘. Berufliches Selbstverständnis von zukünftigen Fremdsprachenlehrer/innen in einer Grenzregion”, Babylonia No. 1/2013, pp. 65-70.

Putsche J. (2016), “Qu’est-ce qu’une didactique des langues transfrontalière et comment conscientiser les enseignants de langues pour celle-ci ?”, Synergies Pays Germanophones No. 9, pp. 47-61.

Putsche J. and Faucompré C. (2016), “Formation des professeurs de langues en région frontalière : Croyances et représentations des futurs professeurs d’allemand en Alsace face à l’enseignement de la langue du voisin”, Education et Sociétés plurilingues No. 40, pp. 47-60.

Putsche J. and Faucompré C. (2017), “Lehrkontext Grenzregion: Affekt und Kognition von FremdsprachenlehrerInnen der Nachbarsprache”, in Zeitschrift für Interkulturellen Fremdsprachenunterricht No. 22(2), pp. 143-154.

Raasch A. (ed.) (1999), Fremdsprachendidaktik für Grenzregionen. Konzepte, Erfahrungen, Anregungen, Saarbrücken.

Raasch A. (2002), L’Europe, les frontières et les langues. Guide pour l’élaboration des politiques linguistiques éducatives en Europe – De la diversité linguistique à l’éducation plurilingue, Conseil de l’Europe, Strasbourg, available at https://rm.coe.int/l-europe-les-frontieres-et-les-langues/1680886eb7.pdf, accessed 23 August 2018.

Raasch A. (2005), “Grenzkompetenz – Ein Weg nach Europa. Wissenschaften im Gespräch”, in Denk R. (ed.), Nach Europa unterwegs. Grenzüberschreitende Modelle der Lehrerbildung im Zeichen von europäischer Identität und Mehrsprachigkeit, Herbolzheim, pp. 119-129.

Raasch A. (2008), “Von Baden-Württemberg nach Europa und zurück. Sprachenlernen und Sprachenlehren als sprachenpolitisches Handeln”, Synergies Pays germanophones No. 1, Berlin, pp. 21-40.

Risager K. (2005), Sproglige eksklusionshierarkier – de hundrede sprogs betydning, Minoritetsstudiers værksted No. 2, Minoritetsstudier, Københavns Universitet.

Spaniel-Wiese D. (2018), Europäische Mehrsprachigkeit, bilinguales Lernen und Deutsch als Fremdsprache, Berlin.