The poor performance of German students in the current PISA study does not come as a surprise to many observers, but the results are still making waves. In some key areas of competence, the values are partly below those from the year 2000 - the results collected at that time and presented in 2001 caused a stir in society and politics as a so-called PISA shock.
Now fundamental changes in education policy are once again being called for from all directions - particularly with regard to equal opportunities for children and young people.
Union calls for “radical reversal”
From the perspective of the Education and Science Union (GEW), a “radical reversal” is now necessary. “It is a real scandal that we in Germany still have such problems with inequality of opportunities and educational injustice,” said GEW board member Anja Bensinger-Stolze. She proposes a "master plan against educational poverty and social injustice", including significantly better financing.
The German Children's Fund also called on the federal government, states, municipalities and schools to place a much greater focus on educational equality. The discrimination against children from families affected by poverty contradicts the right of every child to access to education without discrimination and to the best possible development.
Left parliamentary group leader Heidi Reichinnek took the federal government to task and accused it of failing to ensure educational equality. She told the Rheinische Post that educational success in Germany depends so much on social background is infuriating: "A state that sticks to an education system like that of the imperial era will neither prepare its children for the future nor overcome the devastating social divide."
SPD wants crisis meeting at federal level
The Federal Government Commissioner for Migration, Refugees and Integration, Natalie Pawlik, called for a mandatory final year of daycare or preschool as a consequence of the PISA results. “Language skills and social skills are two important requirements for everyday school life,” said the SPD politician to the dpa news agency. A mandatory year could help to create these conditions. Pawlik also spoke out in favor of mandatory language proficiency surveys. They could help to identify individual needs for support early.
In view of the PISA results, Pawlik's SPD parliamentary group called for a crisis meeting at the federal level. “After these results, we cannot simply move on to the agenda,” said deputy group leader Dagmar Schmid. "We expect Federal Education Minister Karin Prien to take the initiative now. Germany needs an education summit between the federal, state and local governments," she added. At such a meeting, concrete, joint consequences would have to be drawn from the results. “Education federalism must not be an excuse for standstill.”
Is there a problem with implementation?
The head of the Ifo Center for the Economics of Education, Ludger Wößmann, warned of the economic consequences of poor PISA performance. The “glaring decline” in results must lead to a rethink in education policy: teaching basic skills must have the highest priority.
Employer President Rainer Dulger stated: "PISA has once again sent a blue letter to the country of poets and thinkers. This time politicians must draw conclusions." What is specifically needed are “more binding educational standards, regular learning status surveys and targeted support for schools with particularly big challenges”.
According to the General Manager of the Reading Foundation, Jörg Maas, Germany is not lacking in knowledge, but rather in implementation. "We've long known what works. Now we need a binding support chain that starts in the family and doesn't stop across daycare, primary school and secondary school," Maas told the KNA news agency. Parents must be reached early and at a low threshold: "With multilingual information, book gifts and the clear message that ten minutes of reading a day should be as normal a part of everyday family life as brushing your teeth."
Education expert calls for “state education treaty”
Education expert Silke Müller also focuses on this implementation problem in an interview with tagesschau24. The school system, which has functioned for a long time, is 100 or 150 years old and has not grown with social changes such as digitalization, artificial intelligence and social media. “I like to talk about ruin management,” said the former headmistress.
As a long-term solution, Müller calls for a “state education treaty” in which basic competencies must be defined. It is intended to guarantee children a reliably good education regardless of where they live, where they come from and political majorities. “That means we also have to get out of the logic of political legislation,” said Müller at tagesschau24. The long-term development of the school system should not depend on new political majorities after every election, but should be accompanied by an independent committee of experts.
