Fokus Deutsch is a German-language

German language

German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

 course developed by Robert "Bob" Di Donato, Professor of German at the Miami University

Miami University

Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...

 in Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

. It was produced by WGBH Boston

WGBH-TV

WGBH-TV, channel 2, is a non-commercial educational public television station located in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. WGBH-TV is a member station of the Public Broadcasting Service , and produces more than two-thirds of PBS's national prime time television programming...

, Inter Nationes, and the Goethe-Institut

Goethe-Institut

The Goethe-Institut is a non-profit German cultural institution operational worldwide, promoting the study of the German language abroad and encouraging international cultural exchange and relations. The Goethe-Institut also fosters knowledge about Germany by providing information on German...

 in 1999. It was funded by Annenberg/CPB, and has been aired frequently on PBS since then. The course includes workbooks, textbooks, and a 36-episode television series with audio CDs comprising 24 audio programs. It focuses on the story of Marion Koslowski and her family, intermixed with interviews of native speakers of German from Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

, and Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

, including Erika, a survivor from the World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 years; Guy, a student from Cameroon studying in Germany at RWTH Aachen

RWTH Aachen

RWTH Aachen University is a research university located in Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany with roughly 33,000 students enrolled in 101 study programs....

; Grace, a Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...

an-German; and Gürkan, a Turkish

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

-German. There are also documentaries on German history and society, past and present.

The episodes

Each episode is around a half-hour long. The episodes are divided as follows:

• Folge 1. "Arbeitslos" (Unemployed)
• Folge 2. "Kein Geld" (No Money)
• Folge 3. "Wie geht es Papa" (How's Papa Doing?)
• Wiederholung 1. (Review 1)
• Folge 4. "Umzug nach Köln" (The Move to Cologne)
• Folge 5. "Das Karnevalsfest" (The Mardi Gras Celebration)
• Folge 6. "Der Unfall" (The Accident)
• Wiederholung 2. (Review 2)
• Folge 7. "Der Urlaub" (The Vacation)
• Folge 8. "Der Insel Rügen" (On the Island of Rügen)
• Folge 9. "Abenteuer und Liebe" (Adventure and Love)
• Wiederholung 3. (Review 3)
• Folge 10. "Die Wespe" (The Wasp)
• Folge 11. "Ein Liebesdrama" (A Love Story)
• Folge 12. "Silke" (Silke)
• Wiederholung 4. (Review 4)
• Folge 13. "Der Auszubildende" (The Apprentice)
• Folge 14. "Der Trick" (The Trick)
• Folge 15. "Zu viel Salz" (Too Much Salt)
• Wiederholung 5. (Review 5)
• Folge 16. "Am Wochenende" (On the Weekend)
• Folge 17. "Nach Thüringen?" (To Thuringia?)
• Folge 18. "Die Lösung" (The Solution)
• Wiederholung 6. (Review 6)
• Folge 19. "Der Spaghetti-Professor" (The Spaghetti Professor)
• Folge 20. "Der Umweltsünder" (The Polluter)
• Folge 21. "Die falschen Klamotten" (The Wrong Clothes)
• Wiederholung 7. (Review 7)
• Folge 22. "Ein neues Gemälde" (A New Painting)
• Folge 23. "Der Hausmann" (The House Husband)
• Folge 24. "Das Au Pair" (The Au Pair)
• Wiederholung 8. (Review 8)
• Folge 25. "Eine Familiengeschichte" (A Family History), "Lebensstile" (Life Styles)
• Folge 26. "Jugend in Bewegung" (Young People on the Move), "Drei Jugendporträts" (Three Youths)
• Folge 27. "Geschichte eines Gymnasiums" (History of a Gymnasium), "Der Schulalltag" (A Typical School Day)
• Wiederholung 9. (Review 9)
• Folge 28. "Geschichte einer Universität" (History of a University), "Ein Student aus Kamerun" (A Student From Cameroon)
• Folge 29. "Wirtschaft im Wandel" (A Changing Economy), "Hilfe für Arbeitslose" (Help for the Unemployed)
• Folge 30. "Die Frauenbewegung" (The Women's Movement), "Im Auftrag der Frauen" (Representing Women)
• Wiederholung 10. (Review 10)
• Folge 31. "Ein grünes Hobby" (A Green Hobby), "Weiterbilden in der Freizeit" (Leisure Learning)
• Folge 32. "Urlaub: Gestern und heute" (Vacation: Yesterday and Today), "Abenteuerurlaub" (Adventure Vacation)
• Folge 33. "Ein Kurort" (A Spa), "Ein Arztbesuch" (A Visit to the Doctor)
• Wiederholung 11. (Review 11)
• Folge 34. "Typisch Deutsch?" (Typically German?), "Vom Sauerkraut zur Pizza" (From Sauerkraut to Pizza)
• Folge 35. "Auf Kosten der Umwelt" (At What Cost to the Environment?), "Umweltschutz zu Hause" (Environmental Protection at Home)
• Folge 36. "Theater für Jugendliche" (Theater for Young People), "100 Jahre deutscher Film" (100 Years of German Cinema)
• Wiederholung 12. (Review 12)

Main characters

• Professor — Professor Robert di Donato
• Marion — Susanne Dyrchs
• Papa —
• Mama —
• Lars —
• Rüdiger —

External links

• All episodes as free streaming video USA and Canada Only