- School Administrators and Labor Organization Identify Challenges in Educational Institution
The Brandenburg State Parents' Council and the education union GEW are voicing concerns about substantial issues in education as schools reopen. "If we don't have substitute teachers, the school system would implode entirely," the Council stated bluntly. According to the Education Department, 455 full-time teaching positions remain unoccupied. "However, we believe the gap is larger, as the need increases with the growing student population," the parents' advocates stressed.
Despite the Ministry's claim that essential subjects are secure, there are still anxieties, the State Parents' Council asserted. "The knowledge gaps from the pandemic period haven't been tackled yet," they remarked. They urged remedies and boosted funding in education. The political spotlight needs to be shifted to education.
Similarly, the Education and Science Union (GEW) recognizes a worsening scenario. The demand will keep escalating, "and we can't find teachers on the job market," said GEW state chairman Günther Fuchs. The proportion of substitute teachers has grown, and regions are drifting further apart. He also highlighted an impending wave of teacher retirements.
Green state parliamentary group leader Petra Budke blasted the previous red-red government for failing to prepare enough teachers. The dropout rate among trainee teachers is also high. To lighten the teachers' workload and promote social learning, more multi-professional teams and more school social workers should be introduced in schools, she proposed. CDU education politician Gordon Hoffmann acknowledged that the problem of missing teachers is still huge, particularly in regions far from Berlin.
This school year, Education Minister Steffen Freiberg (SPD) stated that more teachers are working in Brandenburg than in a long time. Over 3,110 teachers have been recruited, with close to 1,700 being substitute teachers. Around 322,000 children and young people started school on Monday, including 25,000 first-graders.
The Potsdam Education Department needs to address the concerns raised by the Brandenburg State Parents' Council and GEW, as they believe the number of unoccupied teaching positions is underestimated. The Potsdam City Council should consider investing in education to bridge the knowledge gaps resulting from the pandemic and tackle the increasing demand for teachers.
