Staffing ratios at daycare centers in Thuringia not appropriate for children
According to a recent study, nursery teachers in Thuringia have too many children to look after. For example, 95% of under-threes and 88% of children aged three and over are looked after in groups with inappropriate staffing ratios. This was the result of calculations by the Bertelsmann Foundation for the current "State Monitoring of Early Childhood Education Systems". According to the study, one full-time educator in Thuringia looks after an average of 5.1 children in all-day care. In contrast, the ratio in western German states is 1 to 3.4, and the foundation even recommends a ratio of just 1 to 3.
According to the education experts, the staffing ratio in kindergarten groups is also too poor: at 1 to 10.3, it is below the value of 1 to 7.7 in western German states and significantly below the value of 1 to 7.5.
"If one specialist is responsible for more children than scientifically recommended, the quality of educational practice suffers," said Kathrin Bock-Famulla, an expert on early childhood education at the Bertelsmann Stiftung, according to a press release. She called for the state government to create the legal conditions to enable daycare centers to employ more staff.
The Thuringian state parliament is currently debating several bills to amend the Kindergarten Act. The Left, SPD and Green parties want to abolish fees for a third year of nursery school and improve the quality of care for children aged four and over. However, the reform would cost a lot of money, which has not yet been budgeted for in the draft budget. The CDU is open to both concerns, but would prioritize improving the quality of care.
The lack of appropriate staffing ratios in Kindergartens within Thuringia is also a concern, with 1 educator managing an average of 10.3 children in full-day care, which falls below the recommended 1 to 7.5 ratio in western German states. This high ratio may adversely affect the educational quality provided in Kindergartens.
Source: www.dpa.com
