Analogue and hardly any alternating lessons: Berlin’s schools are still looking for the crisis mode – Berlin

Despite the high number of infections and the threat of school closings, Berlin is not making any progress when it comes to digital teaching. Maja Smoltczyk, State Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, criticized on Monday in the House of Representatives the lack of willingness to talk on the part of the education administration.

She has been trying to enter into an exchange with the administration since the outbreak of the pandemic. In vain, said Smoltczyk in the Committee on Communication Technology and Data Protection. There were no reactions or involvement of their authorities. Instead, Smoltczyk offered her help “like sour beer”.

Specifically, she criticized the lack of guidelines from the administration in the area of ​​video conferencing. Smoltczyk referred to information provided by their authority in the spring and summer and accused the education administration of inaction. Instead of making central guidelines, the schools would be left to their own devices, criticized Smoltczyk.

Most recently, in mid-November, her authority reprimanded a primary school in Lichtenberg for using conference software that was unsafe from the perspective of data protection officers. As a result, the primary school went on a “digital strike”. Since then, teaching and communication have been exclusively analogue, with quarantined pupils or entire classes being left behind.

Smoltczyk emphasized that she was ready at any time to check a list of proposed programs for data protection compliance. However, this is the task of the education administration. In addition, she praised the “good exchange” with the authority in the further development of the homeschooling platform “Lernraum Berlin”. “I see him on the right track and would recommend him,” said Smoltczyk, calling the tool criticized in the past a “suitable product for carrying out digital lessons in times of Corona.”

Union demands alternating lessons before and after the holidays

Meanwhile, the teachers’ union GEW demanded that all secondary schools be switched to alternating classes in December and that this mode should be maintained in all secondary schools for the first two weeks after the Christmas break. The measure should be part of a “winter timetable” required by the GEW, the union said.

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Further demands: reduced number of hours and smaller groups at elementary schools, more staff, expansion of the digital infrastructure, room air filters and sufficient FFP-2 protective masks for all school staff. Despite the recent slight decrease in the number of infections in schools, GEW boss Tom Erdmann called on the Senate to “finally take responsibility for the health of educators and students”.

Martin Klesmann, spokesman for the education administration, replied: “Switching classes relevant to graduation generally to alternating classes would possibly endanger the educational success of pupils, especially disadvantaged pupils.” Klesmann made it clear that a winter timetable has long existed – and will apply until January 8th. Klesmann also stated: “There will also be more employees, additional mouth and nose protection is currently being delivered, including type FFP-2 masks.”

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