Holidays over: After the summer holidays in Saxony, 536,000 pupils at state and independent schools are heading back to the classroom. “I wish our pupils a good start and I am sure that they will be able to achieve their goals and good intentions in the new grade,” said Saxony’s Minister of Education Christian Piwarz (CDU). The start of school is particularly exciting for the approximately 40,500 new schoolchildren.
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According to the ministry, provisional figures show that 18,289 more students are attending school in the new school year than in the previous school year. The largest increase was in public schools, with around 452,750 students (previous year: 436,180). The number of students at private schools also rose slightly – from 81,531 to around 83,290.
Teacher shortage remains a challenge
The minister pointed out that the Saxon education system offers many different paths to learning success, whether through secondary school, high school or community school. However, despite the recruitment of more than 1,000 new teachers at the start of the new school year, there is still a shortage of teachers, especially at secondary schools and special schools. Ensuring that classes are available remains a challenge, said Piwarz.
According to his information, 1,033 people have been hired so far, mainly at high schools and elementary schools. 773 of them are qualified teachers, 120 are teaching assistants at special schools, but they do not replace special school teachers. In addition, 140 people who have joined the profession from other fields will begin teaching after the holidays after they have qualified.
Refugee children waiting for school places
According to the Saxon Child Protection Association, more than 1,600 refugee children and young people are currently waiting for a school place. This situation contradicts the fundamental principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Basic Law and the current school law. “All children have a right to education and participation. However, refugee children sometimes have to wait up to a year for a school place,” criticized board chairwoman Silke Brewig-Lange. This massively limits their educational opportunities and thus their opportunities to participate.
Holidays over: After the summer holidays in Saxony, 536,000 pupils at state and independent schools are heading back to the classroom. “I wish our pupils a good start and I am sure that they will be able to achieve their goals and good intentions in the new grade,” said Saxony’s Minister of Education Christian Piwarz (CDU). The start of school is particularly exciting for the approximately 40,500 new schoolchildren.
According to the ministry, provisional figures show that 18,289 more students are attending school in the new school year than in the previous school year. The largest increase was in public schools, with around 452,750 students (previous year: 436,180). The number of students at private schools also rose slightly – from 81,531 to around 83,290.
