Inger Petersen

Inger Petersen is a Professor and Managing Director at the German Studies Seminar of Kiel University, Faculty of Philosophy. She holds the W2 Professorship for German as a Second Language and Subject-Integrated Language Education. She is actively involved in research, teaching, and academic leadership, including serving as the academic director of the International Conference of German Teachers 2025, Family Representative of the Faculty of Philosophy, and member of key institutional committees.

Academic Background:

• Doctorate in Philosophy, Saarland University (2013)
• Master of Arts in German Studies and History, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen (2004)
• Maîtrise, Université Aix-Marseille I, France (2004)
• Academic Expert in German as a Foreign Language, Karl-Franzens-University Graz (2005)

Her research focuses on the didactics of German as a second language, language education in subject teaching, second language writing, and multilingualism. She investigates how students develop writing and argumentation skills in multilingual contexts and how teachers can be trained to support linguistic diversity in classrooms. Her work emphasizes practical applications in teacher education and curriculum development.

Recent publications show a strong trend in interdisciplinary language education, writing assessment across subjects, and teacher training for linguistic responsiveness. Her work spans educational linguistics, teacher education, and inclusive pedagogy, with a focus on empirical and practical frameworks for improving language support in schools.

Scientific and Institutional Roles:

• Member, Integration Advisory Board of Schleswig-Holstein (since 2023)
• Family Representative, Faculty of Philosophy, Kiel University (since 2021)
• Member, Evaluation Committee for Integration Courses (since 2020)
• Academic Director, International Conference of German Teachers 2025

She has led and contributed to multiple research projects on language integration in teacher education and subject teaching. Grants and collaborative initiatives include the LeaP project and network projects on diversity in teacher training. She has advised on language policy and integration at regional and federal levels.

Laboratories and Research Teams:

Inger Petersen leads and collaborates with interdisciplinary research teams focused on language-sensitive education. She is involved in the SCENE project on language-sensitive nursing education and has co-led the LeaP project on networking in teacher education. Her work involves close collaboration with researchers in linguistics, education, and subject didactics, particularly in history and social sciences.