German Education in a Nutshell

I always get a bit frustrated when I hear people trashing American public education, and lauding the merits of a system such as Germany.  I always say, "But, but, they track the kids after fourth grade", which somehow seems ok to everyone.  Well, I am here now,  witnessing things first hand, and I still agree with myself.

For those unfamiliar, German schooling starts in grade 1, at age 6.  Everyone gets to go to Grundschule until fourth grade.  After that, there is a review of  the student's 'performance' up to that point, and it is decided (by teachers and administrators, with timid input from parents) whether the child will be recommended to Gymnasium, Realschule, or Hauptschule.  Gymnasium is the academic track.  Kids who graduate from there will likely go to University.  In Realschule, one learns a trade, to be better equipped for the work force.  Hauptschule provides very basic education.

Fourth grade is a time of intense pressure for parents (and probably their kids, but I have only talked to parents, as children here, well, they speak German...).  Appeals are possible, if parents disagree with the placement, but so far, both M and I have the impression that parents are not supposed to interfere much with decisions of teachers, so I have a hard time imagining someone going through the process.  If anyone out there knows of such circumstances, please inform.

Now, let's say that you are a German parent, and your little Hannes has been lucky enough to obtain a recommendation to Gymnasium.  Hold onto your seat, it is going to be a rough ride, at least for a while.

For many years, Western Germany had a 13-year system for Gymnasium.   East Germany managed it all in 12 years, leaving the unified country to wonder why the 13th year.  So, last year, after a couple of decades of squabbling, the curriculum was re-engineered to make 13 years happen in 12.  Of course, to minimize impact, they spread the changes over all 12 years.  Right?  No.  No, they didn't.  They put all of the changes into fifth and sixth grade, and made seventh grade the new eighth.

The first two years are considered the 'weed-out' years.  Not my take.  Ask M's mom, a Gymnasium teacher for 30 or so years, or his sister, teacher and mother of 3, or my next door neighbor, or the one on the other side.  They all say the same thing.  Fifth and sixth grades are where your kid's future is determined (assuming little Hannes wasn't already written off at age 9).

Now consider that a whole lot of poor (or rich, if he's lucky) little Hannes' outcome is determined by his socio-economic status.  Not by some democratic process.  It's largely just his fate.  Here is a short article (in English) regarding this issue in Germany:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/15/germany-middle-class-inequality-schools

And here is a direct quote, for those of you too lazy (as I often am) to read the article (well, if you've read this blog entry up to this point, you are likely to be up to the task :)

"Inequality is rampant. Children from a privileged background are four times as likely to attend Gymnasium as a child with similar grades from a working-class home and, according to the federal education body KMK, children of immigrant families attend the Hauptschule twice as often as native children – even within the same socio-economic class."

Sound familiar?  We are all painfully aware of this sort of thing in the U.S., and equalizing opportunity to account for economic inequality is something people have been struggling with since, well, since forever.  Or maybe not.  Most Germans I have talked to just shrug it off and move on, and the article above suggests that most are happy with the system.  Then again, all the people I meet have their kids in Gymnasium or are hoping to get them there...

But clearly, some things are changing.  My next-door  neighbor teaches at one of the 'inclusive' schools.  This type of school essentially takes the students from Gymnasium, Hauptschule and Realschule, puts them under one roof and attempts to teach them all that is required for University.  Hmmm.... sound like any school system you have heard of?

Now that we understand how the students are tracked (and what the proposed solution is), consider a few other issues with the system here:

Grundschule ends at 12:30pm.  Gymnasium ends the day at 1:20pm.  Where do the kids go after that?  Well, they used to go home (and eat lunch, no such thing as a school cafeteria).  But now, as more families require dual incomes to stay afloat, they go to aftercare.  Or the Gymnasium begins to serve lunch (pizza broetchen anyone?  I am not kidding), and has classes that go all the way till 3:30!  Then, there are 'extras' that go until 5pm.  Germans are now talking about 'reliable' schools, i.e. schools that can be relied upon to provide childcare until 5pm when parents get home from work.  Interesting idea...

What about financing?  Think the U.S. needs to spend more on education?  As percentage of GDP, the U.S. spends 5.5% of it's GDP on education.  Germany spends 4.5% GDP on education.  I am guessing this number will increase, as at the moment, there is no national school lunch program, and very little busing is provided.  Are you thinking, "But Germans do not have the same poverty issues, and so do not need to provide meals or bus kids from poor neighborhoods to better schools"?  Well, income disparity is lower, but percentage of population below poverty level is 15% for both the U.S. and for Germany.  (All these numbers are from the CIA World Fact Book, in case you were wondering.)  They will certainly need busing and free lunches, if they are interested in equalizing the system.

My prediction:  Germany's system will begin to look very much the U.S. system in the coming decade, if trends continue.  Not sure that's even a bad thing, at least from a fairness perspective.  Or maybe not?  Maybe Germany will find a better solution?