Free schools in Saxony-Anhalt: student numbers break records!

Free schools in Saxony-Anhalt: student numbers break records!

Free schools are becoming increasingly popular in Saxony-Anhalt: almost 22,000 students now attend an independent school. This corresponds to a considerable increase of 13.7 percent compared to the 2019/20 school year, when 21,996 children and young people went to such facilities. This impressive development shows that there is great interest in free educational opportunities in the region. Ten years ago the number of students at independent schools was around 15,700, which underlines the dynamics of the last few years. Loud stern.de This is just 10 percent of the total number of students in the country.

A look at the current school landscape shows that there are 112 general education alternative schools in Saxony-Anhalt, most of which can be found in the Salzland district. Compared to five years ago, when there were 107 such schools, this is a positive trend for parents looking for alternative education models. What is particularly striking is that almost half of these schools are primary schools.

Costs and challenges

A private school place can cost between 100 and 200 euros per month, which is a significant investment for many families. Nevertheless, a look at the numbers shows that access to private schools is certainly appealing. However, private schools are not without challenges in meeting demand: the Association of German Private Schools (VDP) reports a shortage of teachers. This particularly affects independent schools, which often have difficulty retaining their teachers because many of them migrate to public institutions that can benefit from permanent employment and better financial incentives.

In order to counteract the shortage of teachers, independent schools are increasingly relying on social media campaigns and collaboration with external service providers to recruit teachers from abroad. Given the ever-increasing competition among schools and the search for qualified personnel, they have a good knack for attracting the best specialists for their schools in the future.

The vocational training offer

If you look at the independent vocational schools, you will notice that 5,583 students were enrolled here in the last school year. This represents a decrease of 21.4 percent compared to five years ago, which shows that there are also increasing challenges in the area of ​​vocational training. The independent schools in this sector offer high-quality training courses such as child care, cosmetics, special education, speech therapy and occupational therapy.

In summary, it can be said that Saxony-Anhalt is taking a step in the right direction through its great progress in the area of ​​independent schools. Despite the challenges that schools face in terms of personnel, the trend is clear: parents' interest in more flexible educational structures remains unbroken. The recovery phase for independent schools could just be beginning.