This is the twelfth time that the University of Wuppertal has awarded the World Lion. "This year, we are honouring a commitment in an international context that is of particular regional significance: In recently published surveys by the city of Wuppertal, we see, among other things, that every third child in Wuppertal daycare centres speaks a non-German language and that almost 60 percent of pupils at general education schools have an immigrant background," explained Prof Dr Peter Gust, Vice-Rector for Third Mission and International Affairs.

Increasingly internationalised learning environments

In this respect, the city of Wuppertal occupies a leading position in NRW. These figures make it clear: Future teachers will be confronted with increasingly heterogeneous and internationalised learning environments. "The further internationalisation of teacher training is therefore an intrinsic goal and cross-sectional task that the university wants to fulfil its social responsibility by implementing on a sustainable basis," explains Gust.

The "L-GrIn" project and the follow-up project "L-GrIn+" enable Bachelor's students aiming to become primary school teachers and teachers of special needs education to gain practical experience at a primary school in the partner school network or to gain study experience at partner universities in other European countries. The competences acquired in dealing with linguistic and cultural diversity and dealing with a foreign education system contribute significantly to a reflective understanding of the profession.

Study-related intercultural competences

Jule Lorleberg's commitment to the development and implementation of customised, pre-structured, low-threshold and subsidised offers for the group of student teachers who tend to be less mobile is exemplary. Since 2021, 414 students have already received support and acquired study-related intercultural skills. As a further measure, a comprehensive concept for an internationalisation strategy for teacher training at the University of Wuppertal is currently being developed by the School of Education's Joint Study Committee on the initiative of Jule Lorleberg.

"Jule Lorleberg shows us the importance of committed action for the benefit of the university as a whole, with an impact in the region, combined with an increase in the national and international visibility of the University of Wuppertal. We would like to thank her for this," says Peter Gust, honouring the award winner.