- The educational sojourn in summer has concluded - it's time for scholarly resumption.
Following six weeks of summer break, the rigors of daily life resume in Hesse's 1810 schools from the year 1810. Now, over 810,000 young minds occupy their desks across the state, among whom are 60,400 kindergarteners – 1,600 more than the previous academic year. In line with these numbers, the teaching force has also grown by 1,000 to a total of 65,000 educators, as per the Education Ministry's reports. However, dissenting voices point to a potential teacher shortage worsening.
Majority of the students can be taught post-lunch: Around a fourth of all educational institutions operate on a full-time basis, as per the ministry's declaration. Since the 2013/2014 academic year, there has been a significant increase in the number of full-time schools in Hesse, enhancing work flexibility for families.
Propagation of National Traditions
The more than 36,500 refugee and immigrant children and adolescents in intensive learning programs will now receive additional weekly hours dedicated to promoting local values and democratic education, in addition to German language training.
Expanding the "Digital Truck for Primary Schools", this initiative is now extended to include fifth and sixth-graders, accompanied by workshops on Artificial Intelligence (AI). As per the Education Ministry, around 80 schools with fifth and sixth-graders in Hesse now participate in the pilot project for the new subject of Digital World. Inclusions up to the seventh grade are planned. Regular updates to the "Artificial Intelligence in Education and Teaching" handbook for instructors are underway, as per the ministry.
In these Hesse schools, the first graders return to their desks after the summer break, adjusted to the increased number of 1,600 new kindergarteners. To foster a sense of cultural identity, the Digital Truck for Primary Schools expansion includes fifth and sixth-graders, providing workshops on Artificial Intelligence for their instructors.
