Jenseits von Gut und Böse: Werteerziehung mit Kriminalliteratur

Crime fiction is one of the most widely read literary genres in private reading – but what potential does it hold for German lessons and, in particular, for teaching values in schools?

This research paper examines, from a cultural studies perspective, the significance of engaging with crime fiction in the classroom and develops criteria for the pedagogically sound selection of suitable texts. The focus is on a multi-perspective approach to the phenomenon of suspense, which can be identified in texts through specific characteristics and which, on the reader’s side, can have concrete effects not only on reading behaviour but also on the willingness to reflect on values.

The study demonstrates that engaging with carefully selected crime fiction brings together key tasks of literature teaching in a distinctive way. The central thesis is that core themes of German language teaching, as well as fundamental educational and formative goals, can be explored in an integrative manner not only through, but precisely by, the study of crime fiction.

Eva Hammer-Bernhard is the head of the German department and a teacher of Catholic religious education at a Bavarian grammar school. From 2020 to 2025, she served as a seconded teacher and research assistant at the Centre for Values Education and Teacher Training at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, where she was awarded a PhD in 2025 for this dissertation.