Education reform
From an educational reform is referred to in the German language when multiple sectors of the education system to be redesigned according to an overarching concept.
Unique innovations such as the widespread introduction of hoarding, the bringing forward of foreign language teaching in primary schools, the shortening of the grammar school, switching to Central High School or renovation of study programs within the framework of the Bologna process add up to no education reform, as long as they do not consist of a uniform approach out to be justified.
Therefore, there is an almost permanent in education reform debate, but rarely a phase in which a large majority of professionals, the public opinion and decision-making authority politicians in consensus on the direction to enforce a noticeable such as education reform.
Most educational reforms arising from a set of measures over a longer period of time under a central idea or principle.
- 2.1 Reforms to a " two- tiered secondary "
- 2.2 Reforms to the " community school "
History of Education Reforms in German-speaking
The educational reform of Charlemagne
In the beginning the Carolingian educational reform is available throughout the Frankish Empire. It led to the first Renaissance by new attention to the ancient literature to use this Christian and dynastic.
The humanistic grammar school at the beginning of the modern era
The high and late Middle Ages was dominated by Roman Catholic theology, scholastic philosophy and the knowledge monopoly of the clergy. Secondary schools were only the ecclesiastical Latin schools.
In the wake of the Reformation, this slowly changed in the 16th century, Philipp Melanchthon is still known as " praeceptor Germaniae ", sat down already for a better education for broad strata of the population, in order to be able to read the Bible. He promoted the humanist schools that were already under the supervision of local authorities. In the Catholic world, the Jesuit schools contributed with some delay a corresponding education reform. In this phase, numerous school -ups fall in Germany (see List of the oldest schools in the German-speaking area ).
The introduction of compulsory education in the 18th century
Other important reformers, such as John Amos Comenius in the 17th century, called for a comprehensive general education for all - including poor, peasants and girls. After the Thirty Years' War built in not a few places local nobility and clergy a village school network and the recovery of social discipline.
In the 18th century, the Prussian kings with the general edict of 1717 and again General Land School Regulations 1763 introduced compulsory education. It was initially implemented only with large gaps, always with regard to the necessary field work and later the factory work of the children. The education system was divided into the elementary school for broad strata of the population, on which teachers often no training for the teaching profession had not rare old soldiers, and the higher schools where teachers or university- educated clergy taught. The first approaches to an average realities School existed also in Berlin in 1747 opened Johann Julius Hecker, the first junior high school. Access to universities directed without checking on the financial potential. The officer's career still hung on the privilege of the nobility.
The Humboldtian educational reform in 1810
For the end of the 18th century, the number of students is estimated at "learned schools " in Prussia to approximately 16 000 boys. One hundred years later, there were approximately 150 000 1930, 300 000 pupils and now students. Thus, the educational reforms accompanied a significant expansion of the higher school.
Core of Humboldt's educational reforms was the humanistic Gymnasium. At the core of the curriculum were the languages of Latin and Greek classical antiquity and the basic knowledge of the history and philosophy of classical antiquity, including mathematics. Furthermore, Christian values were deeply rooted in the school of Protestant Prussia. Natural sciences, however, played a more peripheral role, equally art, music and sports, the artistic and aesthetic education should certainly as well as sports activities round out the holistic education. The basic structure of man must be a purely idealistic education, regardless of issues of professional usefulness of this knowledge.
Humboldt seeks a humanistic education for children of all classes, but reached de facto with the reform of secondary schools and the universities that he guaranteed state in their existence, but to directives made , almost only the upper and ambitious middle class. Much was from the outset pure planning.
The emergence of the tripartite school system in the 19th century
Until the 1840s, the school system was often only horizontally, ie by age group, divided into pre-school, and high school. Most of the students left the school well before graduation. It was still a considerable social openness in the pre-March period.
Only slowly formed vertically a tripartite school system out: elementary school, junior high school, high school. Important milestones for this were the high school seniors Regulations 1834 and the curriculum reform in 1837. With the teaching of foreign languages in Latin and Greek decided that the way to high school was still possible. Many parents opted for nine years, Latin loosely secondary school. A major reason for the differences were in the school money to 1888 " per child per year " in the elementary school was in Prussia 10 Mark, in secondary schools, but much more: up to 100 marks, which accounted for a significant portion of the average income.
The elementary school mediated the basic skills such as reading, writing, arithmetic, natural history and Christian values and lasted eight years. A 1854 issued by Anton Stiehl Prussian Regulative for the elementary school, Präparanden and seminar beings put the provision of education in the " school of the subjects" fixed. Only Otto von Bismarck implied by the Prussian Kulturkampf state supervision, which stood until 1872 when the churches. Slowly the last children were required to attend school from the country: in 1871 reached the Prussian school attendance rate 92 percent. The teacher-student ratio was here until 1:80.
The funds or real (s ) school mediated realities, ie basic scientific knowledge and maybe one or two modern foreign languages. She served the formation of a middle layer of the employees and smaller officials and took at least nine years. The " Annual " ( the end of the tenth school year ) was prerequisite to afford only one year instead of three years military service and have to pursue the sub- officer's career. About more military exercises could lead to a reserve officer. The privilege of the nobility was abolished legally and a high school requirement for active military career. The direct and usual route to the officer led over cadet schools. With the annuals you could be in the average civil service career at business schools, art colleges or agricultural colleges.
A human High School, however, was a narrow elite - against Humboldt's original intention - and prepared for university studies. In addition, secondary school and upper secondary school who have renounced Ancient Greek and instead offered natural sciences or modern languages developed. Upper secondary schools were preparing for study at technical universities such as mining academies and schools of engineering. Only with the Prussian school conference 1900, the three types of school were equal, so that the academic exclusivity of Humboldt's school was formally terminated.
Educational reform initiatives for 1900-1933
Under the name of reform pedagogy various approaches to the reform of school education and general education are summarized, from the late 19th century and the first third of the 20th century turned against lack of realism and authoritarianism of the prevailing Wilhelmine " cram schools ". In Germany there was a strong mutual influence with the youth movement. Some education reformers joined a liberal attitude with a strong social commitment, while others thought so too ethnic.
Important principles were the self-activity of the pupil, the free conversation, experiential education, school community education, practical activities or learning by doing. Education reformers came with the concept of education to work on the Imperial School Committee at the beginning of the Weimar Republic.
With Nazism ended from 1933, the reform movement for greater equality and self-determination in school. Nevertheless, some features of the youth movement were in the Hitler Youth as the cult of the camaraderie.
The educational reform initiatives remained despite their " spokesman role " ( Detlev Peukert ) total margins of society and did not constitute a profound educational reform in Germany.
The West German educational reform of the 1960s and 1970s
Partly as a result of the Sputnik shock in 1957, but also in the course of the general penetration of society by scientific thinking of the 1950s and beginning of the 1960s, attempts were made to a educational expansion and higher qualification in the United States since the end.
In the Federal Republic after 1945, since more than 8 % of an age cohort studied, the majority of the population but only had elementary education, began a discussion about a required educational expansion. In particular, the book " The German educational catastrophe " by Georg Picht from 1964 pushed a journalistic and political discussion of this topic. The expansion was partly technical, economic, partly political, with the aim of greater democratization of society (Ralf Dahrendorf ) founded. The student revolt 1967/1968 they came near Marxist theories of emancipation. Even among voters encountered concepts of modernization of education for approval, since they made hopes for a " Advancement through Education ". Last but not least came deficits of women's education in the discussion. One focus of the social-liberal coalition in 1969 was in education policy.
In the 1960s, the Hamburg Agreement in 1964 led the reform of the lower school types and unification of the school systems of the states a, followed by the high school expansion as a joint task of federal and state governments and many university start-ups such as the Ruhr- University Bochum, Bielefeld University or in Bavaria, the universities Augsburg, Passau or Bamberg.
The introduction of a general funding by the Federal Training Assistance Act 1971 for students in secondary school, the vocational school and students allowed wider strata of the population access to higher education and better education.
The training was reformed in the Vocational Education Act 1969. Since then called the former apprentice trainee.
A further increase in the level of education, the reformers promised by the scientific nature of the school lessons and the advanced level reform from 1972. The course system should improve the study preparation, wissenschaftspropädeutische function of the baccalaureate.
The so-called " opening decision " for higher education by the responsible federal states took place in 1977. The gap between the freshmen and places opened and was regulated only by consuming legal restrictions on access. While the decision reduced the number of fields in numerus clausus, but led to an overcrowding of the universities or under-funding, given the high numbers of students.
The lack of money, there was the problem of this phase of education reform, the many approaches and impoverished in empty public coffers. Mid -1970s was after the reform zeal, the consolidation and rectification was given priority. Conservative critics accused the reforms at the expense of services to promote the expansion of education ( " education inflation "). Left found disillusioned that they had used the least -favored lower-class children. With the increasing number of migrant children is also a lot of questions for an inclusive school system presented quite differently.
The socialist education reform in the GDR
Main article see the education system of the GDR
The development of the education system of the GDR, in so far as it had not already been converted in the Soviet occupation zone, occurred in two reform episodes after the founding of the GDR in 1949 and with the educational reform of 1965 in the " law on the unitary socialist education system ." Much was the ideological orientation of the entire school and higher education on the socialist ideology. This was accompanied by the abolition of the differentiated school system, the participation of the socialist youth organization, the Free German Youth, the school system, the introduction and strengthening ideologically agreeable subjects ( Russian as a compulsory foreign language, Polytechnic, civics, and later military instruction ) and elimination system adverse subjects ( religious education, old languages). All lesson content were made as far as possible conform to the system, aligned teacher training ideologically. It thereby pass some improvements in the education system with commendable services such as: the high level of mathematical and scientific knowledge, the low rate of young people without education, the improvement of girls' education.
Current reforms in education structure
Reforms to a " two- tiered secondary "
In 1990, the acquisition of western education structure in the new federal states decency to Saxony and Thuringia opted for a two-tier secondary to the high school from class 5 to 12 and the middle school or mainstream school from grade 5 to 10, according to the orientation stage the secondary school transition and the main school gear combines. Suitable students can achieve after thirteen years of schooling a high school at the high school after 12 years or at the trade school.
This model have followed Mecklenburg- Vorpommern, Saarland and Rhineland -Palatinate under other names such as Regional School. In Bremen and Saxony- Anhalt says secondary school.
In Hamburg, a two-pillar model was after the rejection of the " six -year primary school" decided by referendum. After visiting the four-year primary school visit to the neighborhood school or the high school follows. After that district schools are to continue to offer all degrees up to the high school after 13 years. The school is intended to lead to university after 12 years. What kid goes to which school should first decide how far after the fourth by parents decision, then finally after the sixth class by the class council ( school) provisionally. The one years difference to achieve the baccalaureate can be compared with the shortening of training for half a year: it has the same effect, but is a little harder.
In Berlin, the elementary school was abolished in 2010 and established a two-tier school system. In addition to schools, there are now integrated secondary schools (ISS ). In most cases, secondary schools and junior high schools were combined for this. On the ISS, a high school is like in high school, as far as the school offers, possible. On the ISS, the School takes 13 years at the high school twelve. Student representatives are concerned that only caused by the reform of the " three-class system" means a " two-class system." In particular, the sample half of the year at the high school is criticized since children are further sorted out and so is the risk that the ISS for "leftovers school" is.
Reforms to the " community school "
In Berlin, Saxony and Schleswig -Holstein attempts are made with the so-called Community School, which is a comprehensive school with a new name substantially and includes various forms of long joint learning. It is favored by the political left and is located on the successful " Finnish model " oriented.