Fight for teaching positions: protests in Barnim for savings plans!

Fight for teaching positions: protests in Barnim for savings plans!

Barnim, Deutschland - The educational situation in Brandenburg is facing a serious change. The Brandenburg state government is planning a drastic reduction in teacher positions in the 2025/2026 double budget. This is a topic that moves not only the teachers themselves, but also students and parents. According to Barnim currently could be affected by a reduction of around 500 teacher plan positions, although an easy increase Pupil numbers are forecast.

In the planned reforms, an increase in weekly working hours for teachers is also planned by one hour. This already met with massive resistance from the ranks of the educational institutions. The BVB / Free Voters in the Barnim district council have submitted an application for a resolution to the state government in order to request more financial means for the use of teachers. Teachers, parents and students protest loudly against the government's plans.

job stop and protests

in the teaching staff and among the parents, resistance is stirring. The Education and Science Union (GEW) has announced protest actions for May 21. CDU parliamentary group leader Jan Redmann warned of a possible “school start in chaos”, while Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD) described lesson failures as an urgent problem.

education in comparison

These developments are particularly worrying if you look at the current educational monitor for Brandenburg. According to the Insm Bildungsmonitor 2024 Brandenburg has deteriorated to 15th place. The study evaluates 98 indicators in 13 fields of action that take into account the educational poverty and securing skilled workers.

Although Brandenburg can show impressive strengths in some areas, such as first place in integration and sixth place in internationalization, there are also serious weaknesses. The university/MINT capabilities are in 16th place, and the low rate of new IT training contracts shows that there is a considerable need for action here.

In addition, schools and daycare centers have to fight with a high care key - with 8.2 children per supervisor in daycare centers, the value is far worse than the national average of 5.5. It is important here that the state government is investing to improve early childhood education and digital infrastructure.

The current developments and the planned job cuts for teachers raise a major question mark about the future of education in Brandenburg and the training of young people. It remains to be hoped that the voice of the protesting hearing and the state government takes the necessary steps to secure the quality of education in the long term.