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The article addresses the potential of classroom interaction concerning the development of students' subject-specific conceptual knowledge. Although theoretical considerations of CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) teaching have referred to the central importance of interactive processes for a successful integration of subject matter learning and language learning, empirical studies indicate that CLIL teachers - not unlike other teachers - tend to dominate the classroom discourse. This article demonstrates why collaborative dialogue among learners - whether in group work or in plenary sessions - provides major stimuli for the development of subject-specific conceptual understandings. Using tangible examples of classroom interaction in a CLIL program in the field of German as a foreign language in Japan, the article demonstrates how CLIL could become potentially more effective if it adopts the mode of dialogical learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]