The German School System
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lilwing
The German School System
What's it like? Is it difficult? Can someone summarize the pre-university school system?
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seeyainabit
Hi Liwling,
hope you´re doing fine?
The German school system is much more complicated and complex than the american one. Don´t know exactly where to start....
The Education in Germany is provided to a large extent by the government, with control coming from state level, and funding coming from two levels: federal and state. Funding, teaching, and other policies are set through the respective states ministry of education. Decisions about the acknowledgment of private schools (the German equivalent to accreditation in the US) are also made by these ministries. However, public schools are automatically recognised, since these schools are supervised directly by the ministry of education bureaucracy.
The first stage of learning out of home and by others than family members or family friends are Kindergardens where children normally go to between the age of three and 6/7. Kindergardens are not part of the German public school system. But they exist all over Germany, particularly in former East Germany, where many of these institutions actually are public, but these kindergartens are controlled by local authorities, charging tuition fees and are likewise not considered to be part of the public school system. In my opinion they are, however, an important part of a child´s education although they are not really counted as a school. But there the kids learn how to be creative, how to use their fingers by playing and creating things as self-made pictures and other painted, cutted and sticked stuff and the most important thing is: they learn to socialize themselfs what means that they learn how to follow rules, how to behave and get along with other children and so forth.
The first stage of the German public school system is the "Grundschule". (Primary School - 1st to 4th grade, age 6/7 to 9/10) After Grundschule there are four secondary schooling options:
1) "Hauptschule" (the least academic, much like a modernized Volksschule) until 9th
2) "Realschule" (formerly "Mittelschule", or secondary school in English ) until 10th grade.
3) "Gymnasium" (high school) until 12th grade or 13th grade (with Abitur( A-level or high school diploma as exit exam, qualifying for admission to university).
Students who graduate from "Hauptschule" or "Realschule" always continue their schooling at a vocational school until they have full job qualifications.
This type of German school, the "Berufsschule", is generally an upper-secondary public vocational school, controlled by the German federal government. It is part of Germany's dual education system. In Germany it is set by law that you attend a school until you are eighteen. When you passed one of these two schools you can either improve your degree by doing the secondary school diploma within two years or the A-level within three years. If you decide to not pass the next higher level but start a on the job trainee you have to apply and to a three year practical training with the company. That means you are working four days and attending school one day a week.
Students who graduate from a vocational school and students who graduate with good GPA from a "Realschule" can continue their schooling at another type of German public secondary school, the "Fachoberschule", a vocational high school. The school leaving exam of this type of school, the "Fachhochschulreife", enables the graduate to start studying at a "Fachhochschule" (polytechnic), and in Hesse also at a university within the state. The "Abitur" ( A-Level) from a Gymnasium enables the graduate to start studying at a polytechnic or at a university in all states of Germany.
I can just tell you what I heard from others about the differences but they told me that there are a lot of advantages and disadvantages on both side.
So is the variety of choices much higher in Germany. You always have another way to improve your degree and to change your mind according to what you want to do for the rest of your life or not, too. And they said that the level of education is a little bit higher in Germany. But the social part is supposed to be much better in the US. So, you have the " no child is left behind" - program while our students have to repeat a class ( and loose a year) when their marks are too bad. Moreover, your teachers try to be with the children. In Germany thex do not concentrate on the bad ones but on the good ones and according to them they set the level. I think it´s exactly the other way round in the US, isn´t it? You can see, both systems have their advantages and always two points of view.
So, I hope I could help you a little bit and didn´t confuse you - it was not my custom to do so.
Anyway, have a wonderful day.
hope you´re doing fine?
The German school system is much more complicated and complex than the american one. Don´t know exactly where to start....
The Education in Germany is provided to a large extent by the government, with control coming from state level, and funding coming from two levels: federal and state. Funding, teaching, and other policies are set through the respective states ministry of education. Decisions about the acknowledgment of private schools (the German equivalent to accreditation in the US) are also made by these ministries. However, public schools are automatically recognised, since these schools are supervised directly by the ministry of education bureaucracy.
The first stage of learning out of home and by others than family members or family friends are Kindergardens where children normally go to between the age of three and 6/7. Kindergardens are not part of the German public school system. But they exist all over Germany, particularly in former East Germany, where many of these institutions actually are public, but these kindergartens are controlled by local authorities, charging tuition fees and are likewise not considered to be part of the public school system. In my opinion they are, however, an important part of a child´s education although they are not really counted as a school. But there the kids learn how to be creative, how to use their fingers by playing and creating things as self-made pictures and other painted, cutted and sticked stuff and the most important thing is: they learn to socialize themselfs what means that they learn how to follow rules, how to behave and get along with other children and so forth.
The first stage of the German public school system is the "Grundschule". (Primary School - 1st to 4th grade, age 6/7 to 9/10) After Grundschule there are four secondary schooling options:
1) "Hauptschule" (the least academic, much like a modernized Volksschule) until 9th
2) "Realschule" (formerly "Mittelschule", or secondary school in English ) until 10th grade.
3) "Gymnasium" (high school) until 12th grade or 13th grade (with Abitur( A-level or high school diploma as exit exam, qualifying for admission to university).
Students who graduate from "Hauptschule" or "Realschule" always continue their schooling at a vocational school until they have full job qualifications.
This type of German school, the "Berufsschule", is generally an upper-secondary public vocational school, controlled by the German federal government. It is part of Germany's dual education system. In Germany it is set by law that you attend a school until you are eighteen. When you passed one of these two schools you can either improve your degree by doing the secondary school diploma within two years or the A-level within three years. If you decide to not pass the next higher level but start a on the job trainee you have to apply and to a three year practical training with the company. That means you are working four days and attending school one day a week.
Students who graduate from a vocational school and students who graduate with good GPA from a "Realschule" can continue their schooling at another type of German public secondary school, the "Fachoberschule", a vocational high school. The school leaving exam of this type of school, the "Fachhochschulreife", enables the graduate to start studying at a "Fachhochschule" (polytechnic), and in Hesse also at a university within the state. The "Abitur" ( A-Level) from a Gymnasium enables the graduate to start studying at a polytechnic or at a university in all states of Germany.
I can just tell you what I heard from others about the differences but they told me that there are a lot of advantages and disadvantages on both side.
So is the variety of choices much higher in Germany. You always have another way to improve your degree and to change your mind according to what you want to do for the rest of your life or not, too. And they said that the level of education is a little bit higher in Germany. But the social part is supposed to be much better in the US. So, you have the " no child is left behind" - program while our students have to repeat a class ( and loose a year) when their marks are too bad. Moreover, your teachers try to be with the children. In Germany thex do not concentrate on the bad ones but on the good ones and according to them they set the level. I think it´s exactly the other way round in the US, isn´t it? You can see, both systems have their advantages and always two points of view.
So, I hope I could help you a little bit and didn´t confuse you - it was not my custom to do so.
Anyway, have a wonderful day.