Sue without Fault

Sue without Fault: Report and Commentary on the Double Panel “Cessation of Exchange” on the Germanists’ Day (Braunschweig 2025) and on the Conference “Neue Wege der Literaturvermittlung” (Osnabrück 2025)

Abstract

Crisis diagnoses have accompanied the institutionalisation of the didactics of German language and literature since its inception. In 2025, two formats—both of which are equally significant for German language teaching—explored the reasons behind current conflicts, challenges and approaches to transformation in literary didactics. Under the title Cessation of Exchange? The Dialogue between Literary Didactics, Academic Discipline and the School Subject of German, the scholars of literature pedagogy Christian Dawidowski (University of Osnabrück) and Cornelius Herz (University of Hanover), together with Osnabrück grammar school teacher and subject coordinator Angelika Stolle, organised a double panel at the 28th Germanists’ Conference at the Technical University of Braunschweig. The second format was likewise organized by Christian Dawidowski together with Jens Peters, Head of the Literature Office of West Lower Saxony: The Future of Literature. New Approaches to Teaching Literature. Both sessions demonstrated how futile the assignment of blame is in the context of disciplinary and institutional crises and challenges, and how important it is to find common ground in order to shape transformations.

Both sessions are discussed below.