Germany’s schools are increasingly dependent on teachers who have not passed a teaching qualification. The proportion of these teachers is particularly high at vocational schools.
The proportion of lateral entrants in the teaching staff of German schools is increasing. In the 2022/23 school year, 9.8 percent of teachers at general education schools had not taken a recognized teaching qualification, the Federal Statistical Office announced on Tuesday in Wiesbaden. That is around 71,100 of the total 724,800 teachers.
According to statistics, the proportion was 5.6 percent in the 2012/13 school year. At that time, almost 37,400 of the total 665,900 teachers at general education schools were lateral entrants. According to the Federal Office, the increase is a result of the shortage of teachers.
A good fifth of teachers at vocational schools without examination
According to the Federal Office, the proportion of lateral entrants is more than twice as high at vocational schools. In the 2022/23 school year, 21.2 percent of the total 123,500 teachers at vocational schools did not have a recognized teaching qualification. In the 2012/13 school year, this was the case for 11.9 percent of 122,900 teachers.
Lateral entrants are people who do not have a completed teaching degree and who are hired into the teaching profession without a traineeship. In contrast, lateral entrants are required to complete a traineeship.
Number of new students increased slightly
After a decline in previous years, the number of new students starting a teaching degree course at bachelor’s or state examination level rose slightly last year. According to statistics, a good 46,400 people began a corresponding course of study in the 2023 academic year. That was 2.4 percent more than in the previous year, but 2.1 percent less than ten years ago.
The number of teaching graduates with a master’s or state examination degree has recently been declining. In the 2022 examination year, for which the most recent data is available according to the Federal Office, around 28,700 teaching students passed the corresponding final examinations. This was only slightly fewer graduates than in the previous year with around 28,900. However, in a ten-year comparison, the corresponding number fell by 10.5 percent.
Source: Stern
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