Project description EthBiDAS
- project title: Ethnographic Educational Research at German Schools Abroad (EthBiDAS)
- research subject: reconstructions of children's perspectives on (multilingual) everyday life in (kindergartens of) German Schools Abroad
- projekt team: Dr. Timo Neubert & Prof. Dr. Julie A. Panagiotopoulou (project leads), selected pre-service teachers conducting their practical semesters abroad (https://zfl.uni-koeln.de/praxisphasen/praxissemester/praxissemester-im-ausland)
- method: participant observation, informal talks, semi-structured ethnographic interviews
Project description:
Although German schools abroad represent a long-established, globally networked educational field (Neubert & Panagiotopoulou 2026), little systematic research has been conducted on these institutions to date. In particular, there is a need for ethnographic approaches that make teaching and learning practices comprehensible across locations (Panagiotopoulou et al. 2020; Friebertshäuser & Panagiotopoulou 2010).
The starting point for this is an ethnographic field study at a German school abroad in the USA. As part of this study, the transition from kindergarten to elementary school was analyzed, with a particular focus on the importance of multilingualism for learning processes and experiences of (non-)belonging.
Building on these results, the project is being further developed in the spirit of “multi-sited global ethnography” (Kenway et al. 2018, p. 424): Teacher training students are given the opportunity to complete their practical semester at (German) schools abroad and are introduced to the basics of ethnographic field research through a preparatory seminar.
The targeted promotion of an unfamiliarizing perspective (Amann & Hirschauer 1997) serves to develop a reflective attitude toward school routines and notions of normality (Martin-Jones et al. 2017). By conducting ethnographic field research at their respective schools, students not only lay the foundation for “thick comparison” (Huf 2021, p. 146) between different (foreign) school contexts, but also learn reflective skills for their professionalization as future teachers (Tervooren 2019).
The project thus pursues a dual goal: to generate empirical knowledge about everyday school practice in German schools abroad and, at the same time, to strengthen the reflexivity and pedagogical professionalization of prospective teachers. By combining ethnographic research and research-based learning in a transnational context, it contributes to the further development and inter- and transnationalization of teacher education.
References:
Amann, K., & Hirschauer, S. (1997). Die Befremdung der eigenen Kultur. Ein Programm. In K. Amann, & S. Hirschauer (Hrsg.), Die Befremdung der eigenen Kultur. Zur ethnographischen Herausforderung soziologischer Empirie (S. 7–52). Suhrkamp.
Friebertshäuser, B. & Panagiotopoulou, A. (2010). Ethnographische Feldforschung. In B. Friebertshäuser, A. Langer & A. Prengel (Hrsg.), Handbuch Qualitative Forschungsmethoden in der Erziehungswissenschaft (3. Aufl.) (S. 301–322). Juventa.
Huf, C. (2021). Kontextualität, dichtes Vergleichen und Beweglichkeit: Ethnografische Annäherungen an das Phänomen der Kindorientierung. Tertium Comparationis. Journal für International und Interkulturell Vergleichende Erziehungswissenschaft, 27(2), 141–163.
Kenway, J., Fahey, J., Epstein, D., Koh, A., McCarthy, C., & Rizvi, F. (2018). Multi-sited Global Ethnography and Elite Schools. In D. Beach, C. Bagley, & S.M. Silva (Hrsg.), The Wiley Handbook of Ethnography of Education. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118933732.ch18
Martin-Jones, M. Andrews, J., & Martin, D. (2017). Reflexive ethnographic research practice in multilingual contexts. In M. Martin-Jones, & D. Martin (Hrsg.), Researching multilingualism: Critical and ethnographic perspectives (S. 198–202). Routledge.
Neubert, T. & Panagiotopoulou, J. A. (2026). Einleitung: Deutsche Auslandsschulen als transnationales Bildungs- und Forschungsfeld. In T. Neubert & J. A. Panagiotopoulou (Hrsg.), Deutsche Auslandsschulen als transnationales Bildungs- und Forschungsfeld: Kritische Perspektiven und aktuelle Herausforderungen (S. 1–9). Springer VS. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-50301-7_1
Panagiotopoulou, J. A., Rosen, L., Strzykala, J., Fißmer, J. & Neubert, T. (2020). German Schools Abroad: Teachers’ views on translanguaging and emerging research perspectives on children’s language biographies and educational professionalization. In J. A. Panagiotopoulou, L. Rosen & J. Strzykala (Hrsg.), Inclusion, Education, and Translanguaging: How to Promote Social Justice in (Teacher) Education? (S. 185–202) Springer VS. https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-3-658-28128-1_11.pdf
Tervooren, A. (2019). Verstehen in schulischen Kontexten. In S. Gottuck, I. Grünheid, P. Mecheril, & J. Wolter (Hrsg.), Sehen lernen und verlernen: Perspektiven pädagogischer Professionalisierung (S. 199–220). Springer VS.
Project-related conference contributions:
Panagiotopoulou, J. A. & Neubert, T.: Ein „befremdeter“ Blick auf den Umgang mit migrationsgesellschaftlicher Mehrsprachigkeit. Vergleichende Feldforschung an Deutschen Auslandsschulen als Beitrag zur Internationalisierung der Lehrer*innenbildung. Presentation on December 4, 2020, at the conference “Internationalization of Teacher Education and International Teacher Migration” at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg.
Neubert, T & Panagiotopoulou, J. A.: The Role of Institutional Language Policies in Shaping Children’s Experiences of Multilingual Learning, Belonging and Well-Being: Connecting Research and Teacher Education through Multi-Sited Ethnography at German Schools Abroad. Presentation on February 25, 2026, at the conference „Bridging Well-being and (Teacher) Education – A Globalized Perspective to Science Diplomacy” at United Nations Headquarters and Columbia University’s Teachers College in New York City.
Neubert, T.: Forschendes Lernen im transnationalen Kontext: Multi-Sited Ethnography an Deutschen Auslandsschulen. Poster presentation on March 25, 2026, at the 30th GERA congress at LMU Munich: https://dgfe2026.fak11.lmu.de/postergalerie/mi-12/