Wusing Prior Knowledge of English to Facilitate Learning German as a Second Foreign Language

• Akhmedova B.M.

  Associate Professor of Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages

This article investigates how prior knowledge of English can be pedagogically exploited to facilitate learning German as a second foreign language in the field of language teaching methodology. The objective is to conceptualize cross-linguistic transfer as an instructional resource and to translate it into task sequences that enhance accuracy, fluency, and metalinguistic awareness. A mixed-method approach was adopted: learner performance on contrastive grammar, cognate processing, and pronunciation tasks was analyzed and triangulated with survey data on strategy use. The novelty of the study is an integrated transfer-oriented framework that differentiates helpful transfer (cognates, convergent morphosyntax) from risk zones (false friends, orthographic interference) and aligns both with staged instruction. The results show that explicitly guided transfer reduces error frequency and accelerates lexical uptake relative to unguided exposure. Practical implications include syllabus design for multilingual cohorts and teacher training in contrastive, evidence-based techniques.

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