Fight against extremism - Greens call for more political education in schools
The Greens in Bavaria are calling for more political education at all schools in the state. "We demand that at least two hours of Politics and Society be taught in all school types starting from the 5th grade. Political education should be an integral part of the curriculum and should receive correspondingly more time and space", said Fraktionschefin Katharina Schulze to the German Press Agency in Munich. In addition, there is a need for more qualified teachers for political education and opportunities for young people to participate. Digital Minister Fabian Mehring (Free Voters) wants to build an alliance of the state government against false information spread by extremists of all kinds.
The Greens justify their demand, among other things, with study results from the University of Bielefeld, which show that students in Bavaria receive significantly less instruction in political education compared to other federal states. According to these findings, Bavaria has been at the bottom of the national ranking for political education at the gymnasium and at the non-gymnasial secondary level I for years. A gymnasium student from North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse, or Schleswig-Holstein, for example, receives approximately eight times more instruction in the political education sector than students and students in Bavaria.
"The Söder government is a prime example of why we are not yet further in democracy education for young people in Bavaria", emphasized Schulze. "This is shown by the fig leaf idea of the Constitutional Quarter-Hour per week. Such a fueling in 15 minutes cannot be the only answer to the right-wing shift and the increasing populism."
Criticism of off-topic teaching
However, not only the quantity of educational offers is problematic, but also their quality, as the Landtags-Greens see deficits because the teachers are often not properly trained for the subject "Politics and Society" (PuG). Current figures on this are not available, as the Ministry of Culture did not answer the fraction's request. The house announced in December 2022 that at Realschools, around 51 percent of the hours were taught off-topic in the 2021/2022 school year. At gymnasiums, it was 10.2 percent.
Digital Minister wants to expand alliance against fake news
On the part of the state government, Digital Minister Mehring wants to continue and expand the anti-disinformation campaign of the state government. "Domestic and foreign enemies of our democracy use every opportunity to misuse the internet as a medium for manipulations", explained the Free Voter politician.
The Interior and Digital Ministry had founded the alliance against fake news in April, and it is also supported by several tech companies, including Google, Facebook's parent company Meta, and Siemens. Mehring now wants to prepare a "comprehensive measures and action concept" in the run-up to the federal election in the fall of 2025 and the communal elections in the spring of 2026.
Besides the state government and other companies, Mehring also wants to win over media, civil society organizations, and politics. Mehring did not yet provide further details on Sunday. The alliance should work beyond Bavaria and serve as a model for other states.
- Katharina Schulze, the leader of the Greens' faction in the Bavarian state government, urged for increased political education hours in all schools, starting from the 5th grade.
- According to study results from Bielefeld University, Bavarian students receive significantly less political education compared to other federal states, placing the state at the bottom of the national ranking.
- Digital Minister Fabian Mehring, a member of the Free Voters, aims to form an alliance with the Bavarian state government to combat false information spread by extremists on the internet.
- The Greens' demand for more political education stems from concerns about the right-wing shift and increasing populism, with Katharina Schulze criticizing the Söder government's lack of commitment to democracy education.
- The quality of political education in Bavaria is also problematic, with teachers often lacking proper training for the subject "Politics and Society" (PuG).
- Digital Minister Mehring plans to expand the state government's anti-disinformation campaign, preparing a comprehensive measures and action concept leading up to the federal election in 2025 and the communal elections in 2026.
- In an effort to combat fake news, Mehring wants to involve media, civil society organizations, politics, and other tech companies in addition to the state government and existing partnerships with companies like Google and Facebook.
- The alliance against fake news, initiated by the Bavarian Interior and Digital Ministry, aims to serve as a model for other states, combating extremism and misinformation across Germany.
