Entry-Level Instruction: High-Frequency Vocabulary and Classroom Interaction in German Textbooks

In elementary second language teaching, it can be difficult to decide which language materials to cover. Drawing from the insights of High-Frequency Vocabulary, Classroom Interaction, and teaching methodologies such as Communicative Language Teaching and CREED, I wish to suggest moving toward criteria for elementary language teaching that takes into account the current research as it relates to high-frequency vocabulary, the development of communicative skills in face-to-face interaction, and the more common customs of interaction as informed by the field of pragmatics. My main argument is that we should move toward writing textbooks which emphasize high-frequency terms which are relevant to the classroom and circumlocution skills in lower-division language instruction. To that end, I first review current literature on the topics of high-frequency vocabulary, then I move onto classroom interaction, then I make connections to task-based instruction, and their effectiveness in the first two years of undergrad German language courses; finally I perform an analysis of three introductory chapters in common entry-level textbooks of German: Treffpunkt, Deutsch, Na Klar! and Sag Mal.