"Mama is Learning German"

Language courses for mothers will be held starting in autumn 2006 at 120 Viennese schools under the title "Mama lernt Deutsch" (Mother is learning German). The courses are accompanied by orientation packages containing information about schools and the educational system, tips for dealing with offices and authorities, as well as about health- and upbringing-questions.

2,200 course places

"The school their children are attending is an important interface to the social environment. If we want immigrant women to learn German then it is only logical to approach them through the schools. Learning German is the first step towards independence", says the Vienna City Councillor for Integration, Sonja Wehsely.
Furthermore the mothers can experience what school routine is really like and they have a chance of getting to know the teachers better.

The German courses will be organised under the auspices of the "language.business.improvement" public-private partnership project of the City of Vienna, the Vienna Insurance Group and Erste Bank.

"People who learn German can make better use of the qualifications they have brought with them, can benefit from multi-lingual ability and offer their know-how about migration to business enterprises", says Dr Günter Geyer, the director-general of the Vienna Insurance Group.

"Our aim is to assist mothers with a foreign mother tongue to learn our language in order to make it easier for them to integrate into society", says Elisabeth Bleyleben-Koren, deputy director of Erste Bank.

In 120 school locations a total of 144 courses are being held for about 2,200 participants. The price paid by members of the courses is a modest € 1 per lesson. The language courses are run by the Interface Society, the Integration House and three adult education colleges. They will last from the end of September until the beginning of June.

Language offensive by the City of Vienna

For several years the City of Vienna has been offering a multitude of German-language courses - since 2001 more than 1,200 courses for more than 25,000. Last year the number of course places was doubled to a total of 6,000 p.a. In 2006 there was a renewed extension of the offer, especially for women and young people.

For young people aged 13-19 who come to Austria there is the "StartWien" initiative. Together with the "Interface Youth Training Workshop" and the Vienna Adult Education Association courses are made available which are related to practice and in conjunction with social-welfare workers.

The School Advisory Centre for Migrants runs summertime German courses under the name "StartWien" for children attending compulsory school, with special needs for assistance.
Under the name "sprich:sport" the Zeitraum and ASKÖ offer language-camps with sporting facilities.

Link-Tipp

City of Vienna Municipal Department 17 (Integration) StartWien Interface Integrationshaus School Advice Point for Immigrant Women Zeitraum ASKÖ Vienna Adult Education