According to a survey, a large majority of Germans are dissatisfied with the schools and educational policy in Germany. According to a representative Forsa survey commissioned by the editorial network Germany (RND), only 13 percent believe that children and young people are adequately prepared for life after school. 85 percent of those surveyed think this is not the case.
More than half (57 percent) believe school leavers are less qualified today than they were 30 years ago. Almost a quarter see no major differences, only 13 percent believe that today’s graduates are better qualified.
The survey confirms past surveys in which the desire for more education control by the federal government was expressed. Almost three out of four Germans (73 percent) say that the federal government should be given more powers and a say in school policy. On the other hand, 24 percent think it is right that the federal states alone are responsible for this. That is how it is set out in the Basic Law. Germany thus has 16 education systems, which repeatedly makes a joint approach difficult. A corresponding amendment to the Basic Law would require a two-thirds majority in the Bundestag and Bundesrat, which is currently not foreseeable.
“The German education system is in a deep crisis”
The problems in the German education system have been the focus of political debate for months. The challenges are piling up: persistent shortage of teachers, drop in performance among elementary school students, learning gaps after the restricted school operations in the Corona pandemic, educational success that continues to depend heavily on the country of origin, more than 200,000 additional students from Ukraine and as yet unforeseeable developments due to the increasing influence of artificial intelligence, such as ChatGPT.
Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) reacted to the Forsa survey on Twitter with the words: “The German education system is in a deep crisis that affects us all. The federal, state and local governments must finally pull together. We must get together now, after all it’s about our children and their chances.”
