News archive 2024
November 2024
Competence-oriented, action-oriented, integrated - What belongs together in learning should not be separated artificially when testing and assessing
Workshop on integrated testing and examining, November 8, 2024, TU Berlin - more...
October 2024
“Future Competence: German”: 50th Annual Conference on German as a Foreign and Second Language
From October 9 to 12, 2024, the 50th Annual Conference on German as a Foreign and Second Language (DaF/DaZ), organized by the Association for German as a Foreign and Second Language (FaDaF), took place under the theme “Future Competence: German”. Michél Müller and Dr. Christian Jennerich attended the FaDaF anniversary conference on behalf of Zessko and the Successful Start for International Students Department. more...
Winter Semester 2024/25
Student Project: The Armed Truth - Ukrainian Media Images
The student project aims to inform the university and general public in Potsdam about the current situation in Ukraine, using the work of journalists and the media as an example in a photo exhibition. more...
September 2024
Impressions of Writing Night
Finally, the Writing Night could take place on 26 September after it had to be postponed in March 2024 due to the precarious train situation! more...
September 2024
XVIII CercleS Conference 2024: “Multilingualism and the Anglosphere”
Scenic Durham University (UK) provided the backdrop for over 160 presentations in several languages, four keynote speeches, and over 300 delegates from 28 countries. The conference title framed the presentations and workshops on virtual exchanges, intercultural competence, the use of new digital technologies in higher education, and more...
September 2024
“Practical Activities for Legal English Teaching”: Workshop for Legal English Teachers in Brussels
On September 21, EULETA (English Legal Teachers' Association) held its annual workshop for legal English teachers at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) in Brussels. more...
September 26--The European Day of Languages:
Multilingualism and Social Justice at European Universities
David Prickett, Head of the Center for Languages and Key Competences (Zessko), highlights its significance for the European Digital UniverCity (EDUC) alliance, emphasizing how promoting multilingualism strengthens shared university values such as cooperation, inclusion, and diversity. more...
Summer Semester 2024
Languages in European University Alliances
Challenges and issues
Read Dr. Prickett's conference publication "Per linguas ad mundum: How the University of Potsdam’s Center for Languages and Key Competences (Zessko) fosters multilingualism and cosmopolitanism in the European Digital UniverCity (EDUC)" here (PDF download, p. 31).
Summer Semester 2024
COIL: Immigration and Emigration in a German-German Comparison. Facts--Contexts--Controversies
With the aims of offering a "change of perspective" in history to view and critically examine the politically controversial topic of migration and engaging intensively and critically with historical facts from a counter-colonial and transcultural perspective, the seminar "Immigration and Emigration in German-German Comparison: Facts--Contexts--Controversies" took place in the 2024 Summer Semester. more...
August 2024
Zessko Contributes to NILIC’s DIASS Project: A Collaborative Effort in Academic Integrity
The "DIASS" project--Developing Intercultural Academic Study Skills--of the Nottingham Institute of Languages and Intercultural Communication (NILIC) was a focal point of the work visit at Zessko in July. Stella Bunnag (NILIC, Nottingham Trent University) and David Prickett (Zessko) invited Anna Nguyen and Mohammad Mobasheri, student assistants at Zessko, to contribute to the project by recording four short scenes focused on academic integrity and the writing process. more...
July 2024
Intercultural Communication: A Fruitful Visit for NILIC at the University of Potsdam
From July 16 to July 18, 2024, representatives from the Nottingham Institute of Languages and Intercultural Communication (NILIC)visited the University of Potsdam for a series of insightful meetings and workshops aimed at strengthening collaboration on projects about intercultural communication. more...
June 2024
DAAD Study Visit – ESPOL – University of Potsdam
From June 10 to 12, 2024, a group of 12 students from the Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) in Ecuador visited the University of Potsdam and the Center for Languages and Key Competencies (Zessko). more...
June 2024
Language Learning for Social Justice: Zessko at the Scuola Democratica Conference
From June 3 to 6, 2024, the Scuola Democratica 2024 conference took place at the University of Cagliari, featuring the panel “Language Learning for Social Justice: How University Language Programmes Can Contribute to Reducing Inequalities and Empower Minoritized Communities." The panel was convened by Frank Austermuehl from Nottingham Trent University (UK) and David Prickett (University of Potsdam / Zessko). more...
June 2024
„Language Teaching and Artificial Intelligence“ Workshop in Nancy
In collaboration with the French association RANACLES, CercleS organized a workshop on the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in higher education language teaching. From June 11 to 14, 2024, over 30 language teachers from many European countries met at the University of Lorraine to explore whether and how AI should support university-level foreign language learning. more...
June 2024
3rd International Colloquium "Researching, Practising and Living Multilingualism"
For the third time since 2019, the Language Center of the University of Masaryk in Brno welcomed researchers and teachers to the international conference on multilingualism on 6 and 7 June 2024. more...
May 2024
Quiz Fun and Language Diversity at the Zessko booths at the Campus Festival
The Campus Festival took place against the historic backdrop of the Neues Palais with the motto "From the university - for the university". The Zessko was represented at two booths and provided information about the writing assistance, the presentation coaching, the Zessko language courses, the weekly language cafés in the media center and the language tandems. At the language team’s booth, visitors showed great interest in the quizzes about different languages and cultures. more...
May 2024
Erasmus+ Teaching Stay at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Professor Venetia Apostolidou from the the School of Primary Education at the University of Aristotelou had been kind enough to invite me to discuss our shared interest in digital storytelling. more...
Summer Semester 2024
Student Video Project in Russian: Cooperation between Zessko and the University of Gdańsk
Read an interview with Dr. Kharitonova on the cooperation between Zessko and the University of Gdańsk. more...
February 12 to February 23, 2024
Report on a Student Internship at Zessko
Read a report by our intern on his student internship in February 2024. more...
26 January 2024
Excursion to the German Bundestag as part of the Brandenburg Study Preparation program
On January, 26, 2024, we had the opportunity to visit the German Bundestag as part of the SVB module course "Humanities and Social Sciences". The excursion was organized by our teacher Dr. Christian Jennerich to give us an insight into political processes and the workings of the German parliament. more...
