Leverkusen headmaster raises the alarm: Education in the crisis!

Leverkusen headmaster raises the alarm: Education in the crisis!

Leverkusen, Deutschland - Leverkusen is currently faced with massive protests of school management in secondary schools. These have sent a protest note to Mayor Uwe Richrath and the political groups in the city council. The content of the communication addresses the blatant contradiction between the publicly expressed confessions on insufficient education investments and the actual austerity measures during the urban budget crisis. While Mayor and the factions emphasized that they should not be saved in education, many schools are facing major challenges due to budget cuts.

In the protest note it becomes clear that the departments 40 (schools) and 65 (building industry) each have to save 15 percent of their budget. These cuts not only burden on ongoing operation, but also lead to urgently needed school construction measures have to be postponed to the coming budget years. The school management warn that these austerity measures are significantly at risk the educational mandate.

criticism of the equipment

Ebermann, the head of the urban vocational college, reports of serious defects in the equipment: sixty -year -old chairs, missing sports halls and cafeteria as well as a non -existent professional orientation room show the poor condition of the infrastructure. The school toilets are also cited as an example of the grievances. In the long term, these neglect could lead to fewer companies sending trainees to Leverkusen and the number of teacher applications drops. Furthermore, schools have increasing absenteeism among students, which is due to the inadequate school infrastructure.

The school management warn of a downward vigor that not only endangers education, but also the economic perspectives of the city. A calculation of the German Economy Institute says that investments in education could double state revenues in the long term. Therefore, the school management demands that school buildings, renovations and cleaning are excluded from all cuts.

educational finances in the national context

The discussion about educational expenses in Leverkusen is part of a major problem that is also important at national level. Since 2008 the The "Education Finance Report", which summarizes the most important information on educational expenses. This report is created and published in agreement with the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. In 2024 it was decided that the report should appear every two years in the future, while a statistical report will be published in the between years, which contains essential tables on the education expenditure.

Public expenditure for education is made up of diverse sources, including households from the federal, state and communities as well as private sectors. According to the data of Destatis , the educational expenses are documented in detail according to various indicators such as euros per inhabitant and shares in the gross domestic product. These comprehensive data, including the expenditure for universities and the financial support according to the BAföG, illustrate the need to invest in education.