A German class in a Philippine public high school begins with a simple greeting.
“Guten Morgen,” the teacher says, and students slowly form the unfamiliar sounds before practicing short dialogues about directions, food, family and, later, culture.
Hearing German in a public-school classroom still feels notable in the Philippines, where the language is often linked to international schools or private language centers. Yet German has taken foothold in selected secondary schools through a Department of Education initiative launched about 15 years ago with support from the local Goethe-Institut, the cultural organization that works closely with the German government to promote language and cultural exchange.
After a 2009 pilot project on foreign languages, the Department updated its curriculum and—beginning in 2011—started summer teacher-training programs for German, run with the Goethe-Institut.
A challenging language, even for teachers
The partnership has reshaped careers. Marites Lacson, an English teacher at Paranaque High School in Metro Manila, recalls when the Department offered several foreign-language courses and she chose German despite finding it intimidating.
“I told my department head to offer it first to our experienced teachers,” Lacson said. About 600 teachers nationwide applied for the 2011 program; she was among those selected to receive intensive training at the Goethe-Institut.
Lacson calls German “one of the most difficult languages to be learned,” noting its logical but technical rules for spelling, grammar and syntax. She also sees those rules as advantages: they train students to think systematically. The Department’s revised curriculum emphasized globalization, Lacson adds, and learning languages is one route to producing globally competitive graduates.
How the Goethe-Institut works with schools
From its base in Makati City, the Goethe-Institut Philippinen supports language teaching, education projects and cultural exchange and has been a key partner in training German teachers for public schools. Jens Rösler, head of the institute’s language department, says the institute cooperates with 21 high schools under a framework agreement with the Department of Education, including Paranaque High School.
Training formats vary: some courses meet three to five times a week, while others convene once a week or on weekends to fit teachers’ schedules. Julian Christopher Fuchs, the institute’s director in the Philippines, explains that the Department chooses which schools and teachers are nominated. The institute aims to boost teachers’ German language levels, classroom methodology and current knowledge about Germany.
Beyond high schools
The Goethe-Institut’s reach extends to top Philippine universities—University of the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University and increasingly the University of Santo Tomas—and to pre-integration language programs for Filipinos preparing to live and work in Germany, coordinated with the Department of Migrant Workers.
Rösler says roughly 2,200 students enroll in the institute’s classes each year, and the Goethe-Institut administers about 6,000 exams annually, with roughly half taken online. The Department of Education encourages students in the public-school German program (SPFL-German) to take the Goethe-Zertifikat Fit in Deutsch 1, an internationally recognized A1-level exam that provides a portable credential.
Students generally need solid English skills
At Paranaque High School, German is offered to students who demonstrate strong academic performance; proficiency in English is a prerequisite. Lacson says teachers prepare learners by explaining the reasons for offering German, acknowledging its difficulty and promising patient instruction.
Students respond positively. Cheska Anne Macasinag said learning German is like any other subject if one applies passion and listens to the teacher. The school recently hosted an event where German-language students showcased aspects of German culture to their peers.
Languages as windows into other worlds
Globally, German remains a major foreign language: a 2020 survey estimated about 15.5 million learners worldwide and around 106,000 schools offering German, up from 95,000 in 2015.
Rösler stresses that studying a language reveals the people behind it: while it’s possible to discuss many topics in English, knowing another language gives deeper understanding. Foreign languages also help learners analyze problems from different angles.
For Lacson, the benefits are personal: one former student who studied German is now in a college culinary program and found the language useful for understanding different cuisines and cultures. Fuchs calls languages “windows into new universes” that enrich life by providing new perspectives—an asset in today’s complex world.
Editor’s note: Deutsche Welle offers free online German courses for English-speaking students and teachers.