Ria Schröder criticizes the federal states for their education policy. The FDP federal executive board interprets the ongoing squabble in the traffic light coalition astonishingly positively.
Berlin – Ria Schröder is the FDP’s spokesperson for education policy in the Bundestag. The Hamburg MP is proud of what the traffic light coalition has achieved in education policy. The fact that there is still a shortage of teachers everywhere and that career guidance is out of date has a lot to do with the federal states, according to the liberal: They only think about themselves, says Schröder.
Ms Schröder, the new school year has begun and the teacher shortage is once again becoming apparent nationwide. We know that Children start school at the age of six. Why don’t we plan for enough teachers in advance?
The number of students is actually easy to predict. However, there are factors such as immigration that are difficult to plan for. In recent years, 200,000 Ukrainian children have entered the German school system. But even without immigration, we would have a shortage of teachers; the states have not reacted quickly enough to the changed situation in schools. The proportion of part-time teachers is high and the workload is completely different than it used to be.
What do you think?
Today, teachers have many more tasks than “just” teaching: it’s about integration, inclusion, working with parents, language support, psychological problems in children, digitalization and IT. And I’m not even talking about the bureaucracy that comes with a school trip, for example. All of these things take up an enormous amount of time, which takes away from the actual teaching time.
School not only a place for teachers
What solutions are there?
We must see school as a place of many professions. Teachers, special education teachers, psychologists, school social workers, administrative staff and IT experts must work hand in hand. And of course we need more digitalization and less bureaucracy.
Education is a state matter. The states are happy to accept the money from Berlin, but they refuse to have any influence on education policy. Are your hands tied at the federal level?
Federalism certainly has its pitfalls. It is actually in the states’ own interest to go down common paths. Bavaria, for example, has offered bonuses to lure teachers from other states. This is shortage management and a zero-sum game. It doesn’t help anyone. The Conference of Education Ministers has already drawn up common lines in many areas. And we as the federal government are providing support, for example with the digital pact. Nevertheless, the agreement often doesn’t work because in the end everyone only thinks of themselves. We have to get away from that.
There are also problems due to the high dropout rate among schoolchildren and trainees. In 2022, almost 2.9 million young people did not have a vocational qualification.
This is a huge problem. We need to set the course earlier and better so that people do not become dependent on the social system in the first place and instead have decent working conditions. A school leaving certificate and vocational training are crucial for this. There are good examples, and I would like to see the states copy more from each other. In Hamburg, for example, there is the “AvDual” model as preparation for vocational training in special classes and teaching formats. We can no longer stand by and watch young people leave school and then simply disappear.
Education too closely linked to social background
So we should address the problem beforehand?
Yes, that is why we have launched the Start Opportunities programme. Educational success is still too closely linked to social background. That cannot be the case in our rich country, because education is the only resource we have in Germany. We help schools and children where there is poverty, where there are language barriers, where children have had bad experiences and Parents cannot support them. Schools should be able to decide for themselves what they need to give children better opportunities.
A lack of career guidance in schools is often cited as part of the training problem, particularly by young adults. Do you agree?
Here too, the problem lies with the states. We need to make more room for internships for career orientation. Why shouldn’t students get a taste of two companies each year? Preferably with different focuses. Practical periods need to be better prepared and followed up. Overall, there is still a lot of room for improvement.
In times of a shortage of skilled workers, are the training companies themselves doing too little to remain attractive to young people?
Everyone probably has to stretch a little more. But there are already many companies that do this very well. The best thing for potential employers of young people is to work closely with schools, introduce themselves and simply be present. Trainee ambassadors are important because they can make contact with young people on an equal footing.
Do two different worlds often collide these days? “Boomers” and “Gen Z”?
In some places there is certainly a kind of culture shock when employers realise that young people have very different ideas about good work and the relationship between work and leisure. But one is not better than the other. Worlds are now colliding that did not do so before.
“A secondary school diploma is no less valuable than a high school diploma”
Companies are lacking trainees. At the same time, the number of students in Germany is still relatively high. Should more young people go back to vocational school instead of university?
What matters is where your own skills and inclinations lie. Many people are told by those around them that they have to do this or that. We need to get away from that. Through the Federal Government’s Excellence Initiative, we are also strengthening career guidance at secondary schools. Vocational training should also be shown there as an attractive career path.
Nevertheless, more and more children are going to high school.
A secondary school diploma is no less valuable than a high school diploma and vocational training is no worse than a university degree. We urgently need skilled workers in trades, industry and care. Therefore, the goal must be to every child is supported according to his or her talents, regardless of whether the parents are chief physicians or bus driversThis includes ensuring that all types of schools have modern equipment and excellent teachers who provide the best possible support to students in developing their strengths.
“Traffic light coalition does not make lazy compromises like the grand coalition”
How do you see your educational policy demands being understood in the traffic light coalition? Are you all pulling in the same direction?
In the area of education, we work well together in many areas in the traffic light coalition. Of course, we also argue, but that’s part of it. And in the traffic light coalition, we don’t do that with lazy compromises like in the grand coalition, but each party fights hard for its goals.
This is a very positive interpretation of the ongoing squabbles within the coalition.
People know what the FDP thinks, why the Greens see things differently, and also what reasons the SPD uses. This makes it easier to understand the different positions. But of course, in the end, an agreement must be reached. This is working well in the education sector, the most recent example being the new BAföG law. I am proud of what we as the traffic light coalition have achieved in the education sector.
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