Markelsheim. “The most pressing problem in the field of education is still the lack of personnel,” emphasized the education policy spokesman for the CDU parliamentary group MdL Andreas Sturm at the education policy dialogue, where educators, teachers, parents, administrative staff, local politicians and interested parties met in the wine gardeners’ cooperative in Markelsheim. Problems and policy options were discussed across the spectrum of education policy, from early childhood education and language support to vocational training.
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“Dramatic development”
“We are observing a dramatic development in the performance measurements in the third grade: 25 percent of all children do not achieve the minimum level in the areas of reading, writing and arithmetic,” the member of the state parliament began with an analysis of the situation. This picture emerges for all children, whether their native language is German or with a migration background. “While 20 years ago the reading time in the parents’ home was an average of 20 minutes, today it is only two minutes a day,” continued high school teacher Sturm.
The vocabulary of many children is also becoming increasingly limited in the family environment. This would make it harder for them to train their language skills.
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“That’s why we adopted the previously extremely successful Hamburg model, in which a mandatory language test is carried out for children aged four. If necessary, special language support is provided in kindergarten until school entry,” Sturm continued. There are also language support classes for children in primary school who still need to catch up. In addition, the “Learning with Tailwind” program will be continued. “The cost of these efforts is 200 million euros per year and is fully borne by the state budget. “It’s a big investment, but it’s extremely important: because if our children can’t speak German properly by the age of eight or nine, we as a society have a problem,” emphasized Sturm.
There is a need for individual support through the three-tier school system and more homogeneity in the individual schools. There are currently only 226 secondary schools across the country, while the level of Abitur is continually falling. Therefore, reintroducing the primary school recommendation is important. In the future, a child will only be able to go to high school if three requirements are met: the parents’ wishes, the teacher’s recommendation and/or the so-called “Compass 4” performance test. At secondary school there is also the possibility of a potential test.
“For us, educational success is determined by what you do with your life after graduation,” said Sturm. Educational success should therefore not be equated with a university degree. The CDU member self-critically added that in the past there had been too much support for top-class workers, while the crafts did not receive sufficient attention.
From the next school year, a new G9 would be introduced across the board, which would also include innovation elements such as consistent computer science lessons with media education from the fifth grade onwards, greater appreciation of career orientation in school, promotion of democracy and the strengthening of basic skills,” explained Andreas Sturm. The innovation elements of the high school would also be translated into secondary level 1 (5th to 10th grade). The serious staff shortage, which is due, among other things, to very good childcare ratios in Baden-Württemberg, continues to be the most pressing problem. This picture also emerged from numerous requests to speak from educators and teachers present who welcomed the concepts of language support and school social work, however Difficulties in implementation due to the strained personnel situation were expressed. As a countermeasure, the study place capacity was increased and new opportunities for direct entry and the recognition of qualifications were created.
Difficult sponsorship
In his welcoming speech, local mayor and CDU parliamentary group leader Andreas Lehr addressed the difficulty of school ownership. Sturm agreed that school management in the 21st century urgently needs to be revised: “We need a stable system with enough teachers, but also school social workers, laptops in the school and proper work equipment for the teachers,” explained Sturm. “The often very emotional discourse on the subject of education not only contributes to democratic decision-making. tp-cdu
