School year 2025 begins in Saxony-Anhalt: teachers are missing, solutions sought!

School year 2025 begins in Saxony-Anhalt: teachers are missing, solutions sought!

The new school year starts in Saxony-Anhalt today, August 11, 2025, and the excitement in front of the classrooms is palpable. However, the state's educational landscape is facing major challenges. There are currently massive shortages of teachers.

Education Minister Jan Riedel recently pointed out in Magdeburg that over 1,000 teaching positions have been advertised, while only around 928 new teachers have been hired this year. < Radio SAW > reports that the discrepancy between open positions and available applicants is becoming increasingly clear. Riedel emphasizes that although the timetable is statistically solid, individual solutions are necessary for schools in tense situations.

Teaching provision in comparison

At the beginning of the school year, the teaching provision in general schools was 93.6 percent, which means a decline compared to the previous half-year, when it was 94.5 percent. The state government's goal is to increase this number to 1.03 times, reports < MDR >. Almost 213,829 students, including 18,947 new children, will be taught by 13,934 teachers this year.

Another aspect that exacerbates the situation is that over 1,000 teachers have left active school service and forecasts indicate that the number of students could decline in the future. But the challenge with teaching staff still remains. This year, 923 new teachers were hired, including 355 lateral entrants, and 133 new teaching staff were also added.

Strategies to improve the teacher situation

To solve this problem, Riedel presented a comprehensive 14-point plan. A central element is digitalization, which is to be promoted in schools with the help of the “Lernwelt Sachsen-Anhalt” project. Digital assistants are used to support teachers in dealing with artificial intelligence and digital devices. A new advisory and coordination center will be set up to provide better guidance and support for those entering the field.

There is also light at the end of the tunnel for primary school teachers: from the next school year, pay is to be increased to the A13/E13 level. Riedel has also launched a new online portal that goes live on the first day of school to collect suggestions from teachers on how to improve classroom delivery.

In order to better support socially disadvantaged students, 67 additional schools will be included in the StartChances program and numerous measures will be taken. This is a step in the right direction to counteract the challenges of educating young talent, but the Conference of Ministers of Education also warns of the ongoing shortage of teachers. Education Server provides information about teacher demand forecasts at the federal state level and the current challenges.

The next few months will show whether the planned measures are effective and the situation for schools in Saxony-Anhalt can be improved. Education policy must now show that it has a good hand in offering students the best possible education.