Education policy - More lateral entrants in Brandenburg than ever before
Potsdam (dpa/bb) – In the schools of Brandenburg, there are currently more unqualified teachers than ever before. In the ongoing school year 2023/24, approximately 17.7 percent of all teaching staff at public schools do not have teaching certifications, according to the Education Ministry in Potsdam in response to a query from the Left Party faction. In the rural regions, known as the further metropolitan area, it is almost 24 percent. Of the 12,603 teaching staff in these regions, 3,006 have no teaching certifications.
Percentage of Unqualified Teachers Rising
In the Berlin area, the percentage of unqualified teachers is nine percent. Among the 9,022 teaching staff there, 814 have no corresponding degree. In the middle of the year 2020, the percentage of unqualified teachers among all teachers in Brandenburg was 12.3 percent. Three years prior, it was only 8.5 percent.
According to an earlier forecast by the Education Ministry, the percentage of teachers without a completed teaching degree among all teachers in Brandenburg will not decrease before the year 2026 at the earliest. However, this assumption is based on the assumption that more than 1,000 students who began their teaching studies at the University of Potsdam in the winter semester 2020/2021 will be taken on in the Mark brand schools from the summer semester 2026/2027.
Teachers' Union: No Alternative to Unqualified Teachers
For the President of the Brandenburg Teachers' Association, Hartmut Stäker, there is no alternative to the increasing recruitment of unqualified teachers. "We can already be grateful if the level of education at the schools does not sink even further," he told the German Press Agency.
To maintain this level of education, the qualification of unqualified teachers must be further improved. It will still take roughly seven years before the current teaching students are taken on in the state service. In primary schools, the focus on arithmetic, writing, and reading should be ensured as early as Class Three.
Landeseducation Council Spokesperson Stefan Tarnow emphasized the importance of "first having personnel at the schools." However, one must be careful not to suffer losses in educational quality. Unfortunately, there is always personnel who lack the necessary subject-matter and pedagogical qualifications.
Training for School Leadership Personnel
The teaching profession should be made more attractive, and further training should be expanded – also for school leadership personnel, Tarnow demanded. "A school principal must also know how to work with non-subject-specific personnel."
The Spokesperson of the Parents' Council, Ulrike Mauersberger, called it a "sad fact" that the school operation in Brandenburg is no longer possible without unqualified teachers. She spoke of a "long-term failed education policy." "We still don't have enough study places for future teachers' requirements."
While the training of unqualified teachers is positive, parents in the Berlin area report that at some schools, an overwhelming majority are unqualified teachers. "We don't need to discuss how this affects the quality of education," Mauersberger said.
The state government in Potsdam is facing criticism for the high percentage of unqualified teachers in Brandenburg's schools, with approximately 17.7% in public schools lacking teaching certifications. This issue is particularly prominent in rural regions, where it reaches almost 24%. The Education Ministry predicts that the situation may not improve before 2026, contingent on the recruitment of over 1,000 students who began their teaching studies in 2020.
Hartmut Stäker, the President of the Brandenburg Teachers' Association, acknowledges the necessity of recruiting unqualified teachers due to the current situation, but stresses the need to improve their qualifications to maintain educational quality.
Stefan Tarnow, a spokesperson for the Landeseducation Council, emphasizes the importance of having personnel at schools while ensuring educational quality, acknowledging that there are always teachers lacking subject-matter and pedagogical qualifications.
To address these issues, Tarnow suggests making the teaching profession more attractive and expanding further training, including for school leadership personnel. Ulrike Mauersberger, Spokesperson of the Parents' Council, expresses concern over the high number of unqualified teachers in schools, particularly in the Berlin area, which she deems a result of failed education policy and insufficient study places for future teachers.
