Inci Dirim

Inci Dirim is a Professor at the Department of German Studies within the Faculty of Philology and Cultural Studies at the University of Vienna. Her work focuses on German as a Second Language (DaZ), multilingualism, migration pedagogy, and educational equity. She has developed diagnostic tools for language assessment, contributed to curriculum design, and critically analyzed discrimination mechanisms in language education.

• Education: Magistra Artium (MA) in Linguistics and German Studies from the University of Bremen (1991); PhD in Educational Science from the University of Hamburg (1997)

Her research emphasizes language diagnostics, cultural identity, and reflexive pedagogy, particularly in contexts of linguistic and social heterogeneity. She has led projects like TESSLA (language support for multilingual children) and Unterrichtsbegleitende Sprachstandsbeobachtung DaZ (classroom language assessment). Recent publications explore inter- and transdisciplinary approaches to DaZ, normative foundations in language teaching, and separation practices in language promotion.

She serves as a key figure in the Austrian Association for German as a Foreign/Second Language (ÖDaF) and the German Society for Educational Science (DGfE), advocating for critical perspectives on language, migration, and education. Her teaching includes courses on Basics of German as a Foreign and Second Language, Modern German Literature, and Language Diagnostics.