“Nicos Weg” is the latest in a series of free language learning tools developed by DW Learn German.

Many people want to come to Germany to work or study, but don’t know where to start learning the language. DW’s language courses make learning German fun and entertaining with creative resources that help learners reach their goals.

It tells the story of a young man who comes to Germany for the first time and is finding his way while learning the language and culture. And by combining the storytelling power of a TV series with a comprehensive language course, learners can get a perspective on life in Germany that puts the language in context. While learning grammar and vocabulary, users also experience how the language is used

Included with the videos are 250 lessons and 14,000 interactive exercises. Nicos weg is also designed to be used on mobile devices, so users can learn with Nico anytime and anywhere. And there are also versions using English and Arabic to help total beginners catch on.

Similar formats produced by DW’s Learn German that have already been very successful include the interactive soap opera “JoJo sucht das Glück” and the culture and language learning website for refugees “Mach dein Herz auf.” With Nicos Weg, DW is continuing to build a solid foundation of resources for helping people all over the world succeed at learning German.

Asia

DW has a new broadcasting partner in Indonesia. PT Riau Media Televisi is now broadcasting Inovator, DW’s science program for Indonesia, every week to a potential 250, 000 households in the Sumatran city of Pekanbaru.

DW’s online German language courses are now available to users in China via the German information center from the Beijing embassy. The courses are linked on the Chinese “Twitter” Weibo and the Chinese instant message service Wechat.

Live streams from DW are now available to viewers on the state-owned Pakistani live stream service PI Television.

Mobile

DW content is now available on more mobile devices in Ghana thanks to a new partnership with Accra-based mobile aggregator and app developer Rancard Solutions. Rancard will be providing DW content on everything from text messages to news and audio apps. Starting in October, DW content in Ghana will be available with the telecommunications providers MTN, Vodafone and Tigo. An expansion to Nigeria is planned for November.

 

DW is a valued destination for millions of German-language learners worldwide and a new agreement with the Goethe Institut is set to further combine the learning resources of the two partners.

The agreement will open the door for cooperative program development, expanded media partnerships and sharing of resources. Concrete plans include embedded links to English, German and Spanish-language TV streams from DW on Goethe Institut country portals. Language-oriented links to these portals could also be integrated into DW websites. On-demand video from DW in multiple languages will also be available for use by the Goethe Institut.

Both partners will be helping promote the other’s language learning platforms. This will place links to DW’s free language learning courses on the Goethe Institut website, which will provide valuable exposure of DW content to fans of German language and culture.

The Goethe Institut is a long-time DW partner and the largest international German-language institute with 160 locations all over the world. Their latest cooperation with DW was the 2013 online project “Ticket nach Berlin”.

DW’s German courses are known for their innovative approaches to learning and with the online format, Bandtagebuch (Band Diary), you can learn German with rap music. The format recently received an award at the 2014 Comenius EduMedia Awards organized by the Society for Pedagogy and Information in Berlin. The award recognizes excellence in developing didactic multimedia products. The international jury chose the winners out of over 150 entries coming from 25 countries. The format was also praised by a jury memeber as “wildly successful”  in a short speech at the ceremony.

The Band Diary takes learners of German on a year-long tour with the Munich-based rap group Einshoch6. Their music combines hip-hop and classical motifs with lyrics that are specially written to help listeners learn German. The format also showcases the exciting life of a band on tour and illustrates the German culture and challegnes in learning the langauge.