Sondierungssgespräche: A breakthrough in education policy

Hard to believe, but true: politicians take into account the central results of child and youth research. Young people are finally being strengthened and disadvantage reduced.

Sondierungssgespräche: A breakthrough in education policy

As a scientist I am used to: professional results take a long time to enter into political decision-making process. But now it is actually once again so far. Hard to believe, but true: in family and education policy area, protocol of exploratory talks of CDU, CSU and SPD takes into account central results of social science research.

For decades, school performance in Germany depends very much on social background. One reason for this is appallingly high level of child poverty, which leads to poor start-up opportunities in schools and professions in one fifth of younger generation. If you look at what negotiators of three parties have decided to do, you can talk about a breakthrough.

For years, as well as many or children and youth researchers, I have been calling for legal status of children to be strengned in order to reduce discrimination. And now, in exploratory protocol, re is indeed sentence that we have all been able to dream of: "We will explicitly anchor children's rights in Basic Law." And this sentence is not alone, it is underlining with concrete proposals: a package of measures to combat child poverty is announced. This includes a noticeable increase in child benefit, coupled with a first step towards securing a requirement for each child.

A higher child benefit must help needy children

The combination of se two steps would be crucial, because a higher level of child benefit alone will not help really needy children, for example if y live in a household with a Hartz-IV reference. Two million children are affected by this in Germany, but ir families are not paid child benefit because it is charged in transfer payments. If new government coalition creates a basic child protection system that bundles child benefit, child allowance, social money and tax allowances, n that would be a real step forward. Even more so if announcement is made to improve well-intentioned but hirto unhappily administered education and part-time package. It was intended to offer concrete educational support to needy children, but was so bureaucratically designed that it had almost completely evaporated.

Klaus Hurrelmann

is an educational and youth researcher at Hertie School of Governance in Berlin. He is author of many relevant studies, including Shell Youth Study, which appears every four years.

The reigning federal government has neglected child poverty and poor educational opportunities that are closely related, criminally, and thus accepted that social inequality among children today is as high as ever. This would change with a new Groko that implements notified package of measures. In future, support for children should be promoted from early on, continued at school, working in vocational training and higher education and involving furr training:

  • The Kita places are to be increased free of charge, quality of childcare. Again, combination of se two steps is crucial. It would be disastrous if abolition of daycare fees swallows up so much tax money that it could no longer be invested in training and payment of Kita staff and pedagogical equipment of institutions.
  • Parents are entitled to full day care of ir children in primary school age. Here too, care must be taken to ensure that number of places is not secured, but that schools are promoted which establish a real, pedagogically well-rhythmical and high-quality full-time operation.
  • An investment offensive for schools is announced. The countries are to be supported in ir expenditure on education infrastructure, and cooperation ban between federal government and countries in field of education will be greatly eased – a coup that will make many new initiatives possible.
  • The combination of studies and vocational training is strengned. In field of higher education already existing cooperation will be furr developed. The unduly law is significantly improved, vocational training is modernised with an education pact, and furr training is strengned. We have waited a long time for such initiatives.
  • And finally, an independent council is used to coordinate and accompany all se measures. No such body has existed since 1960s. It would do country good.

Dear Family and educational researchers – what more do we want? A great coalition with se goals deserves our full support.

Exploratory results-» I give grand coalition a 55 percent chance «© Photo: Ana-Marija Bilandzija
Date Of Update: 20 January 2018, 12:03
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