Education - School refusal: trade union calls for more help
The German Trade Union Education and Science (GEW) advocates for more specialized institutions for school refusal by children. There are already institutions in the field of child and youth welfare that specialize in dealing with school absenteeism, explained GEW-state chairwoman Christiane Herz in response to an inquiry by the German Press Agency in Mainz. Such institutions should be widely available.
In Rhineland-Palatinate, according to Education Minister Stefanie Hubig (SPD), there are no institutions that exclusively deal with the issue of school absenteeism - repeated, unjustified absence from school-aged students in the classroom. Schools and parents, however, receive advisory support at all 14 educational psychological counseling centers in the state. At all locations, there are contacts to the responsible youth authorities and school administration representatives. School social work is also involved in specific cases.
Schoolchildren see it differently
The Rhineland-Palatinate State Student Council currently sees no urgency for a special institution that deals exclusively with school absenteeism. However, if a trend towards truancy in Rhineland-Palatinate is proven, such a place would not be harmful, said a spokeswoman.
Principally, school principals and teachers would know how to handle the issue of school absenteeism - even if there are not enough trainings for this, explained the Association of Education and Education (VBE) in Rhineland-Palatinate. It would be much better, however, to help the affected children and young people through school social work and educational psychology.
Duties of the School
According to the School Law, school principals and teachers, as well as teaching staff, are obliged to monitor the school attendance of children and young people. If they notice irregularities, the main responsibility for taking appropriate measures lies with the class teachers, explained Education Minister Hubig in response to a parliamentary question from the CDU state faction.
This includes identifying the causes of school refusal and implementing appropriate measures. This should ideally take place in close cooperation with the parents' home, school social workers and educational psychologists, the youth welfare office, the authorities, or the police.
GEW sees problems outside of school
According to GEW's assessment, school principals in Rhineland-Palatinate are sufficiently trained for such cases. Problems arise in cooperation with the youth welfare offices. Depending on the provider of public child and youth welfare, the school principals and teachers are confronted with very different approaches, reported state chairwoman Herz.
Schools must handle things differently depending on the catchment area of the students and sometimes work with various youth welfare offices and different procedural approaches. It often shows up that the youth welfare offices do not have enough personnel and therefore cannot provide sufficient support, criticized the union leader.
Various causes for school refusal
Classical truancy, which is supposedly common, often shows up from the eighth grade. This is often connected with the increasing desire for autonomy among adolescents. For school refusal, however, performance pressure, bullying, or failure anxieties of students could also be reasons. In addition, there are familial problems, oppositional behavior of adolescents, and sometimes religious and ideological motives of parents, explained the Education Minister.
The State Student Council urges taking the broad reasons seriously. Truancy has many more reasons than just not wanting to go to school, emphasized a spokeswoman. "It is therefore all the more important that teachers are able to talk properly and professionally with students and even reach out to them if they want this." In this regard, trainings on violence or mental health are also meaningful.
How many students are truants?
Concrete numbers on truants and absenteeism in Rhineland-Palatinate are not available. However, the GEW assumes, like the federal average, that about four percent of the student body falls into this category. The State Student Council also has no knowledge of an above-average number of adolescents who regularly miss school without excuse.
According to the assessment of the Parents' Council, the number of cases has significantly increased with the introduction of coronavirus measures in primary schools. The reason is the lack of socialization in kindergarten and the shift of the weaning phase into the primary school period.
Sanctions
In addition to talks and warnings, the compulsory attendance at school is also possible as a means of enforcing order, explained the Education Minister regarding sanctions and referred to Paragraph 66 in the School Law. For students who are already 14 years old, there is also the possibility of an administrative offense procedure. For younger children, the proceedings are then directed at the parents and guardians.
A prerequisite for this procedure is a persistent violation of duty, which must be precisely examined in each individual case. Clear regulations are also necessary as to when the school administration or the order office must intervene in order to impose sanctions against the parents, added the VBE.
- The Education and Science Trade Union (GEW) in Rhineland-Palatinate has expressed concern about the lack of specialized institutions for handling school refusal cases, as mentioned by GEW-state chairwoman Christiane Herz in an interview with the German Press Agency in Mainz.
- While there are no exclusive institutions for dealing with school absenteeism in Rhineland-Palatinate, schools and parents receive support from educational psychological counseling centers, as stated by Education Minister Stefanie Hubig (SPD).
- The Rhineland-Palatinate State Student Council sees no immediate need for a dedicated institution for school absenteeism, but acknowledges that it could be beneficial if the issue becomes more prevalent, as suggested by a spokeswoman for the council.
- According to the Association of Education and Education (VBE) in Rhineland-Palatinate, school principals and teachers are generally capable of dealing with school absenteeism issues, but it would be more beneficial to support the affected students through school social work and educational psychology.
- GEW has identified challenges in collaborating with youth welfare offices, where school principals and teachers may encounter different approaches from various providers, as reported by GEW state chairwoman Herz.
- In response to a CDU state faction's parliamentary question, Education Minister Hubig clarified that schools are obligated to monitor attendance, identify causes, and work together with parents, school social workers, educational psychologists, youth welfare offices, and authorities to address school refusal issues.
