aiMOOC

E8 E - Written mediation challenge

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E8 E - Written mediation challenge

Mini-Beschreibung: Verfasse eine kurze schriftliche Sprachmittlung aus einem überschaubaren Ausgangstext und achte auf purpose, addressee und relevant information.

Einleitung

This aiMOOC is for English as a first foreign language, Class 8, E level, Baden-Württemberg. Your goal is not to translate every sentence. You select, reshape and explain the information your reader actually needs.

Rule of the challenge: Meaning first. Audience second. Language third. No full translation.

All people and profiles in this course are fictional. Do not share private social-media data. Recordings are optional and should stay private unless your teacher gives a safe school-based route. No external AI tool is required. If AI is allowed in your class, check every suggestion and keep your own text your own.

I-can goals

I can identify the purpose and addressee of a mediation task.
I can separate relevant from irrelevant information.
I can write a short, natural English message instead of translating line by line.
I can use an appropriate register and check my text independently.
I can notice useful passive and reported-speech structures and use them when they improve my message.

Your help ladder

Use help in this order: English first → context → try → ask → hint → German help if needed.

Context: Read the situation before the source text.
Try: Mark what you think matters.
Ask: Compare one decision with a partner or teacher.
Hint: Use the short strategy boxes below.
German help: Use single support words or a short explanation only if needed.
No full translation: Your final product should sound like a real English message.

Media starter

Look at the icon. In one sentence, explain: What changes when information moves from one person to another?

Now watch the first part of this BBC Learning English video about email choices. Focus on who the message is for and how formal the language sounds.

Viewing task: Write down two phrases that could fit an email. Then decide whether they would also fit a message to a teenage exchange partner. Do not copy workplace language automatically.

Prior knowledge

Before you start, answer in English:

What is the difference between translation and mediation?
What makes information relevant?
How can the same fact be phrased differently for a friend and for a teacher?

If you are unsure, continue. The challenge itself will teach you the strategy.

Reading challenge

Context: Your fictional exchange partner Maya is visiting. She likes making videos but does not want her work posted publicly. She asks you whether the following event would suit her.

Source text in German:

Jugendhaus Nordlicht – Media Saturday

Am Samstag, 19. Oktober, findet von 14 bis 18 Uhr ein Medienworkshop für Jugendliche von 13 bis 16 Jahren statt. In kleinen Teams entstehen kurze Videos zum Thema „Our school, our future“. Wer möchte, kann ein eigenes geladenes Smartphone mitbringen; Geräte können aber auch vor Ort ausgeliehen werden. Die Teilnahme ist kostenlos. Eine Anmeldung bis Donnerstag ist nötig. Getränke sind frei, Snacks kosten 2 Euro. Um 16:30 Uhr gibt es eine kurze Präsentation der Ergebnisse. Die Videos werden nicht öffentlich hochgeladen. Nach dem Workshop werden die Projektdateien gelöscht, außer Teilnehmende speichern ihre eigene Datei. Treffpunkt ist der Haupteingang des Jugendhauses. Eltern müssen nicht teilnehmen.

Maya asks: “Is it free? Do I need my own phone? Do I have to sign up? And will the video be posted online?”

Reading move: filter first

Do not translate yet. Mark only the facts that answer Maya’s questions.

Relevant: cost, phone/device, registration, privacy.

Probably not needed for this purpose: snack price, exact meeting point, parents, presentation time.

E-level move: You may still include one extra fact if it helps Maya decide, but you should be able to explain why it matters.

Context vocabulary

English	Use it for
to sign up	sich anmelden
to borrow a device	ein Gerät ausleihen
free of charge	kostenlos
to post something online	etwas online veröffentlichen
to save a file	eine Datei speichern
relevant	für den Zweck wichtig
addressee	Person, für die Du schreibst
purpose	Ziel Deiner Nachricht

Use words flexibly. Do not force every item into your text.

Pronunciation

Say these chunks naturally:

relevant information – sign up – borrow a device – posted online – free of charge

Focus on clear word stress and understandable rhythm. Being easy to understand matters more than sounding like a particular accent.

Optional: record one private attempt on your device, listen once, improve one chunk, then delete it if you do not need it.

Speaking before writing

Give a spontaneous 30-second answer to a partner:

“I would tell Maya that … because …”

Then switch perspective:

“If the addressee were a teacher, I would change …”

Your partner gives one piece of feedback: relevance, register or clarity.

Writing: the mediation challenge

Write 70–90 words in English to Maya.

Purpose: Help her decide whether the workshop fits her needs.

Addressee: A teenage exchange partner you know.

Must include: the four facts Maya asked about.

May include: one extra useful fact.

Do not: translate every sentence, invent details or copy the German structure.

Plan in three boxes

Box	Your decision
Purpose	What does Maya need to decide?
Addressee	How informal and direct can you be?
Relevant information	Which facts answer her questions?

Hint 1

Start naturally:

Hi Maya, I checked the workshop info for you.

Then group related facts instead of following the German sentence order.

Hint 2

Useful linking:

You don’t need … because …

You do need to …

The good thing is that …

Also, …

German help if needed

Nur wenn Du nach dem eigenen Versuch festhängst:

Du musst nicht alles übertragen. Beantworte Mayas vier Fragen. Formuliere sinngemäß. Ordne die Informationen so, dass die Nachricht im Englischen natürlich klingt.

Keine Vollübersetzung.

Direct feedback

Check your draft with this fast grid.

Check	Yes / not yet
I answered Maya’s four questions.
I left out details that do not help the purpose.
My message sounds natural for a teenage addressee.
I used my own sentence structure.
I checked verbs, spelling and punctuation.

Error analysis

If you notice this	Fix it like this
Too much source text	Delete details that do not serve the purpose.
Word-for-word German structure	Rebuild the sentence in natural English.
Wrong register	Change opening, wording or closing for the addressee.
Invented information	Remove anything not supported by the source.
One grammar error	Repair it, but keep the message clear and concise.

Sample after your own try

One possible answer:

Hi Maya, I checked the Media Saturday workshop for you. It’s free, and you don’t need to bring your own phone because you can borrow a device there. You do have to sign up by Thursday. The videos won’t be posted online, and the project files are deleted after the workshop unless you save your own copy. It sounds like it could fit what you’re looking for. Let me know if you want the other details too!

This is one solution, not the only correct one.

Listening and viewing for language choices

Watch selectively. Pause when you hear a useful structure. Do not try to understand every word.

Viewing focus: passive voice. Notice how the passive can keep attention on the action or result: Devices are provided. The files are deleted.

Viewing focus: reported speech. Notice how a speaker can report information instead of copying exact words.

Functional grammar

Passive voice: productive at M/E

Use the passive when the action or result matters more than the person doing it.

Active: The youth centre deletes the files.

Passive: The files are deleted after the workshop.

For this task, a short passive can make the message compact.

Reported speech: backshift, questions and commands

Direct: The organiser said, “You must register by Thursday.”

Reported: The organiser said that participants had to register by Thursday.

Direct question: “Can I borrow a phone?”

Reported question: Maya asked whether she could borrow a device.

Command: “Bring a charged phone.”

Reported command: The organiser told participants to bring a charged phone if they wanted to use their own device.

Use reported speech only when it helps the message.

Past perfect progressive: E receptive only

You may meet a sentence such as:

They had been testing the equipment before the workshop started.

Understand the timeline: the testing was already in progress before another past event. You do not need to force this form into your mediation text.

Media literacy

When you learn from a video, ask:

Who produced it?
Who is the intended audience?
Is the example situation similar to your own?
Which phrases can be transferred, and which belong to a different context?

The BBC email video uses workplace situations. Your mediation message is for a teenager. Adapt, do not copy.

Transfer challenge

Change one factor and rewrite only the opening plus two sentences.

New addressee: A teacher wants a short factual note about the workshop.

Keep the facts, but change the register and what you foreground.

Then explain in one sentence why your two versions are different.

Can-do check

I can …	secure	almost	need practice
identify purpose and addressee
select relevant information
mediate instead of translate
adjust register
revise my text independently

If you marked need practice twice or more, repeat the challenge with a new short source text before moving on.

Folgekurs

Continue with E8 E - Spoken mediation sprint to practise spontaneous oral mediation with a short listening input.

Interaktive Aufgaben

Quiz: Teste Dein Wissen

What is the first thing you should check in a mediation task? (Purpose and addressee) (!Every unknown word) (!The longest sentence) (!The number of paragraphs)

What does relevant information mean? (Information the addressee needs for the purpose) (!Every detail in the source) (!Only difficult vocabulary) (!Only numbers and dates)

What should you avoid in written mediation? (A word-for-word translation of the full source) (!Selecting useful facts) (!Changing the order of information) (!Using natural English)

Which fact is most relevant to Maya’s privacy question? (The videos will not be posted online) (!Snacks cost two euros) (!Parents do not need to attend) (!The presentation starts later)

Which sentence uses the passive voice? (The files are deleted after the workshop) (!The youth centre deletes the files) (!Maya wants more information) (!Students make short videos)

Which version best reports a command? (The organiser told participants to sign up by Thursday) (!The organiser said sign up Thursday now) (!The organiser asks Thursday) (!The organiser is signing everyone)

Why can you leave out some source details? (Because they do not help the communication purpose) (!Because mediation must always be shorter than fifty words) (!Because dates are never useful) (!Because English texts should contain fewer facts)

What is a good E-level strategy when a word is missing? (Paraphrase the idea with words you know) (!Invent a new fact) (!Stop writing immediately) (!Copy the German word unchanged every time)

What matters most in pronunciation practice here? (Being understandable) (!Copying one specific accent perfectly) (!Speaking as fast as possible) (!Using rare words)

What should you do before using AI feedback for your text? (Check whether your class allows it and protect personal data) (!Upload private chats automatically) (!Let AI replace your whole text) (!Assume every correction is right)

Memory

Purpose	Why you are writing
Addressee	Person you are writing to
Relevant information	Facts needed for the task
Register	Level of formality
Mediation	Meaning-based transfer
Backshift	Tense change in reported speech

Drag and Drop

Ordne die richtigen Begriffe zu.	Thema
Check the task	Purpose and addressee
Scan the source	Relevant facts
Plan the message	Logical order
Write naturally	Mediate instead of translate
Review the draft	Content and language

...

Kreuzworträtsel

Purpose	What tells you why you are writing?
Audience	Who receives your message?
Register	What word describes the level of formality?
Mediator	What do you call a person who transfers meaning between languages?
Passive	Which voice focuses on an action or result rather than the doer?
Backshift	What is the tense change in reported speech called?

LearningApps

Lückentext

Offene Aufgaben

Leicht

Purpose spotting: Read three short task prompts and underline the purpose in each.
Addressee switch: Write two different openings for the same information, one for a friend and one for a teacher.
Relevance filter: Create a two-column note with “needed” and “not needed” for the source text.
Chunk practice: Record five useful mediation chunks privately and improve clarity after listening once.

Standard

Mediation rewrite: Rewrite the workshop message for a fictional student who only asks about cost and privacy.
Register comparison: Compare two short messages and explain which language choices make one more formal.
Media check: Watch one embedded video and identify one tip you can transfer and one tip that does not fit this teenage context.
Peer feedback: Exchange drafts with a partner and give one comment on relevance and one on clarity.

Schwer

Perspective shift: Mediate the same source for a parent, a friend and a teacher using three different openings and priorities.
Source design: Write your own 100–130 word German source text for a fictional school event and create a mediation task for a classmate.
Error detective: Produce a deliberately weak mediation with four different error types, then annotate and repair them.
Transfer project: Create a 90-second private role-play in which one person asks follow-up questions and the other mediates spontaneously without translating line by line.

Lernkontrolle

Information hierarchy: Explain why two details from the source are essential for Maya while two others are optional.
Register transfer: Rewrite the same factual content for a friend and a teacher, then justify three language changes.
Grammar in context: Turn two active source statements into passive sentences and explain whether the passive improves the mediation.
Reported information: Convert one direct statement, one question and one command into reported speech without changing the meaning.
Independent revision: Improve a short flawed mediation by removing irrelevant details, correcting one invented fact and reorganising the message.
Media transfer: Evaluate one phrase from an embedded video and decide whether it fits the fictional teenage context, with a reason.

Lernnachweis

For a successful learning record, show that you can:

identify purpose and addressee before writing
distinguish relevant from irrelevant information
transfer meaning without full translation
write a concise and coherent English message
adapt register to the communication situation
use passive or reported speech when useful
understand past perfect progressive receptively
revise content and language independently
explain at least one revision decision
handle media and optional AI support critically and safely

OERs zum Thema

Related overview from German Wikipedia:

For curriculum alignment, see the Baden-Württemberg Bildungsplan for Englisch als erste Fremdsprache, Sekundarstufe I, Sprachmittlung.

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