german+schools

February 18th, Today was my first day of school in Germany. Their school system is really confusing! I only go to school in the morning. But we have a lot of homework. I'm in the last year of Grundschule. (grades 1-4). It's their elementary school.I missed Kindergarten here in Germany because I just moved here. In Grundschule all of the subjects are the same for all of the kids. If I do really well, I might get to go to a Gymnasium school, which is one of the options that I have for school after the Grundschule. The other two options I have are Hauptschule and Realschule. I will probably have to go to a Hauptschule, since I can't speak much German at all. They teach the same things at a Hauptschule, but they go slower, and I can also start to learn some German there. My teacher will most likely recommend a Hauptschule. But I don't know what my parents will say to that. Everyone's parents have the final say in where they go. If my parents say that I will go to a Realschule, I don't know what I'll do there. They don't teach you as much language, so I'd be lost on most of the things they would do. But if I learn enough German to go to a Realschule, I can switch to a Gymnasium on graduation. But I have to go to school for nine years. So if I go to a Realschule and drop out before nine years are over, then I need to go to a Hauptschule until the nine years are up. Or if I go to a Gymnasium and drop out before nine years are up, I can go to either a Realschule or a Hauptschule. There are some other kids who will most likely go to a Gymnasium school. Only the really smart people. My teacher said that <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">the most common education tracks in a Gymnasium school are classical language, modern language, and mathematics-natural science. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> They'll get this <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">degree called the Abitur. If they <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">get that they can go to a college/ university type place for free, but <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">they have to prove that they can through tests. One of the places you can go is a Technische Hochschulen (a technical university). You can also <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">go to a Hochschulen for art and music. When you go to a Universtity <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">you go for about for four and a half years .But to get into a big place like that <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">you have to pass a German Language test. My teacher also said that their is a a type of school called <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Gesamtschule <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);"> that you can only find in some states. It takes the place of Hauptschule and Realschule. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> If you <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);"> go there for the full nine years you will get a HauptschuleRealschule certificate. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">If you <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">go to a Hauptschule or a Realschule you can go to a Berufsschule after. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">My teacher said <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);"> it combines part time studying and apprenticeship. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">That's where I'll probably be going. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> They have a lot of breaks in the school year. They<span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);"> have Christmas beak and Easter break, but they <span style="color: rgb(0, 128, 128);">have mid-term breaks too. It gets really confusing, because half the time I don't nkow when we're off of school.



Alison's-

March 22nd, 2009

Today was my first day in a german school. I just moved to Germany with my family last week from the US. There is 2 types of schools you can choose from. There is <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">__<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">//Realschule and// ////Hauptschule//// __. If your 5-10th or 11th grade you have those choices. If your like me and like to work. you would choose Hauptschule. Hauptschule is a school were <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">to prepare students for their entry into the world of work.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">
notes:

[] <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> <span style="color: rgb(152, 0, 255);">- Children aged three to six may attend kindergarten. After that school is compulsory for nine or ten years. - From grades 1 through 4 children attend elementary school //(Grundschule)//, where the subjects taught are the same for all. - After the 4th grade, they are separated according to their academic ability and the wishes of their families, and attend one of three different kinds of schools: //Hauptschule//, //Realschule// or //Gymnasium//. - The //Hauptschule// (grades 5-9 in most German states) teaches the same subjects as the //Realschule// and //Gymnasium//, but at a slower pace and with some vocational-oriented courses. It leads to part-time enrollment in a vocational school combined with apprenticeship training until the age of 18. - The //Realschule// (grades 5-10 in most states) leads to part-time vocational schools and higher vocational schools. It is now possible for students with high academic achievement at the //Realschule// to switch to a //Gymnasium// on graduation. - The //Gymnasium// (grades 5-13 in most states) leads to a degree called the //Abitur// and prepares students for university study or for a dual academic and vocational credential. The most common education tracks offered by the standard //Gymnasium// are classical language, modern language, and mathematics-natural science. //- Grundschule// teachers recommend their students to a particular school based on such things as academic achievement, self confidence and ability to work independently. However, in most states, parents have the final say as to which school their child attends following the fourth grade. - The //Gesamtschule//, or comprehensive school, is a more recent development and is only found in some of the states. It takes the place of both the //Hauptschule// and //Realschule// and arose out of the egalitarian movements in the 1960s. It enrolls students of all ability levels in the 5th through the 10th grades. - Students who satisfactorily complete the //Gesamtschule// through the 9th grade receive the //Hauptschule////Realschule// certificate. - No matter what kind of school a student attends, he/she must complete at least nine years of education. A student dropping out of a //Gymnasium//, for example, must enroll in a //Realschule// or //Hauptschule// until nine years have been completed. - Beyond the //Haupschule// and //Realschule// lies the //Berufsschule//, combining part-time academic study and apprenticeship. The successful completion of an apprenticeship program leads to certification in a particular trade or field of work. - German children only attend school in the morning. There is no provision for serving lunch. There is a lot more homework, heavy emphasis on the "three R's" and very few extracurricular activities. - A free higher education could lie beyond a German //Abitur//. No tuition is charged at Germany's hundred or so institutes of higher learning, but students must prove through examinations that they are qualified. - There are several varieties of university-level schools. The classical universities, in the tradition of Alexander von Humboldt, provide a broad general education and students usually attend them for six and one-half years. - The Technical Universities //(Technische Hochschulen)// are more aimed at training students for specific careers and are usually attended for four and one-half years. - There are also Hochschulen for art and music. The whole German education system, including the universities, is available at no charge to the children of bona fide expatriates. The catch, of course, is that the classes are conducted in German, which is usually all right for school beginners but becomes more and more of a problem as the children get older. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"> <span style="color: rgb(127, 11, 254);">Sarah Schultz []

<span style="color: rgb(159, 20, 250);">- The origins of the German education system date back to church schools in the Middle Ages. - The first university was founded in 1386 in [|Heidelberg]; others were subsequently established in [|Cologne], [|Leipzig], Freiburg, and a number of other cities. - These universities, which trained only a small intellectual elite of a few thousand, focused on the classics and religion. In the sixteenth century, the Reformation led to the founding of universities along sectarian lines. It was also in this century that cities promulgated the first regulations regarding elementary schools. - By the eighteenth century, elementary schools had increasingly been separated from churches and had come under the direction of state authorities. Prussia, for example, made school attendance for all children between the ages of five and fourteen compulsory in 1763. A number of universities dedicated to science also came into being in the eighteenth century. - The defeat of Prussia by France led to a reform of education by the [|Berlin] scholar Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767-1835). His reforms in secondary schools have shaped the German education system to the present day. - He required university-level training for high school teachers and modernized the structure and curriculum of the //Gymnasium//, the preparatory school. He also proposed an orientation phase after the //Gymnasium// and a qualifying examination known as the //Abitur// for university admission. - In 1810 Humboldt founded the university in Berlin that now bears his name. Humboldt also introduced the three principles that guided German universities until the 1960s: academic freedom, the unity of teaching and research, and self-government by the professors. Also of much influence in education, both within Germany and abroad, was Friedrich Froebel's development of the kindergarten in 1837. For much of the nineteenth century, Germany had two distinctive educational tracks: the //Gymnasium//, which provided a classical education for elites; and the //Volksschule// , which was attended for eight years by about 90 percent of children. - The two schools were administered and supervised separately. Later in the century, two additional types of school emerged: the //Realgymnasium//, which substituted modern languages for the classics, and the //Oberrealschule// , which emphasized mathematics and science. - Most children, however, could not attend the schools that prepared students for the professions or university entrance because of the schools' high standards and long duration. Hence, around the turn of the century, the //Mittelschule//, or middle school, was introduced to meet parental demand for expanded educational and economic opportunities. - Children entered the //Mittelschule// after three years of elementary school, and they attended that school for six years. - A serious problem of German education before World War I was the rigid differentiation between primary education, received by all, and secondary education, received mainly by the children of the more prosperous classes. - This division meant that most children of the poor had no access to secondary schooling and subsequent study at the university level. After the war, the Weimar constitution outlined a democratic vision of education that would address the problem: supervision by the state, with broad legislative powers over education; uniform teacher training; a minimum of eight years of primary school attendance; continuing education until the age of eighteen years; and free education and teaching materials. However, many of these reform proposals never came to fruition. - During the Hitler era (1933-45), the national government reversed the tradition of provincial and local control of education and sought centralized control as part of the regime's aim to impose its political and racist ideology on society. - Despite an agreement with the Vatican that theoretically guaranteed the independence of Roman Catholic schools, during the 1930s the regime considerably reduced church control of the parochial school system. Universities also lost their independence. - By 1936 approximately 14 percent of all professors had been dismissed because of their political views or ethnic background. The introduction of two years of military service and six months of required labor led to a rapid decline in university enrollment. By 1939 all but six universities had closed. - Both Germanys faced the task of "denazifying" teachers and reeducating students, but they moved in different directions. The authorities in the East sought teachers who had opposed fascism and who were committed to a Marxist-Leninist ideology. In the West, authorities dismissed several thousand teachers and replaced them with educators holding democratic values. The ensuing Western reform program included reconstructing facilities and reinvigorating the system. - In 1953 reforms were introduced that aimed at standardizing education throughout the //Länder//. - In the 1960s, reforms were undertaken that introduced apprentice shops and new instruction techniques for vocational training. The 1970s saw further major educational reform, detailed in the document //Structural Plans for the Educational System//. The plan was approved in 1970 by the Council of Education, which was established in 1957 to serve as an advisory committee for the entire education system, and by each //Land// minister of education and cultural affairs. - The main components of the reform program were the reorganization of the upper level of the //Gymnasium//, the recruitment of more students into colleges and universities, and the establishment of the comprehensive school (//Gesamtschule// ). - The //Gesamtschule// brings together the three kinds of secondary schools--the //Hauptschule//, the //Realschule// , and the //Gymnasium// --in an attempt to diminish what some perceived as the elitist bias of the traditional secondary education system. The program also proposed expanding adult education and vocational training programs. - The reform program achieved some but not all of its goals. The university entrance examination was made easier, and the number of students attending institutions of higher education rose from just over 200,000 in 1960 to about 1.9 million in the 1992-93 academic year. Between 1959 and 1979, twenty new universities were built, and university academic staff increased from 19,000 to 78,000. However, some Germans opposed the lowering of university entrance standards, and some also resisted the introduction of the //Ge-samtschule//. In addition, the worldwide recession brought on by the oil crisis of 1973 caused serious financial problems for the government at all levels and made reforms difficult to realize. - Despite the different educational policies implemented by the two Germanys between 1945 and 1990, both systems regarded education as a constitutional right and a public responsibility, emphasized the importance of a broad general education (//Allgemeinbildung// ), taught vocational education through the so-called dual system that combined classroom instruction with on-the-job training, required students to pass the //Abitur// examination before beginning university studies, and were committed to Humboldt's concept of university students' becoming educated by doing research. <span style="color: rgb(127, 11, 254);">Sarah Schultz []

<span style="color: rgb(138, 11, 249); font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">**-** In Germany there are at present some 312 state and state-recognised higher education institutions divided into three types. - There are two semesters each academic year. - The standard study period in which a degree programme can be completed is at least eight to ten semesters at universities and at Fachhochschulen six semesters, or eight semesters for degree programmes with integrated practical semesters. - These comprise universities and equivalent higher education institutions such as technical universities, comprehensive universities (Gesamthochschulen) and specialised institutions at university level (eg. for medicine, sport, administrative studies, philosophy and theology). - Only universities and equivalent institutions are entitled to confer doctorates. Fachhochschulen are institutions which have the task of providing students with practical training on an academic or artistic basis. Degree programmes and teaching at Fachhochschulen are strongly oriented towards vocational studies and the practical requirements of working life. A second strand of higher education establishment is the Kunst-und Musikhochschulen which, as well as the corresponding subject areas in the universities and Gesamthochschulen, provide training in the fine arts and performing arts and also in music subjects. German is the language of instruction for all lectures, classes and seminars and you will be required to pass a German language test to be admitted to, or registered with, a higher education institution. This is usually administered by the institution itself and is taken before you start your studies. There are various language courses available through the German cultural institute (the Goethe-Institut) in Germany or abroad, as well as courses offered by language schools and higher education institutions in Germany; these include summer holiday courses, pre-study courses and courses accompanying regular study. <span style="color: rgb(138, 11, 249);"> <span style="color: rgb(127, 11, 254);">Sarah Schultz []
 * - Fachhochschulen**
 * - Colleges of art and music**
 * - Linguistic ability**

<span style="color: rgb(138, 11, 249);">__<span style="color: rgb(127, 11, 254);">No notes. Calendar of school. <span style="color: rgb(152, 4, 236);"> __ <span style="color: rgb(127, 11, 254);">Sarah Schultz

- I<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">n **Germany**, as in the United States, public education is the responsibilty of each state (the 16 //Bundesländer//).

-Germany has compulsory school attendance (//Schulpflicht//) rather than compulsory education.

-As a result, home schooling is not permitted. By law (since 1871), young people between the ages of 6 and 14 must attend school. German public education is free, including university study. (Although there is no tuition cost, German university students must pay for books and living expenses.)

-German students usually attend a //Grundschule// (//Volksschule// in Austria) for the first four years (kindergarten is not mandatory, nor is it usually part of the public school system). At the age of ten in most //Bundesländer//, students and their parents must decide the next step in their education. That is, which type of school they will attend: //Hauptschule, Realschule// or //Gymnasium// (in that order of prestige and difficulty). The many school choices are listed below.


 * -Private German Universities** have a better teaching method with features like:
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Study in small disciplined groups
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Strong ties with allied business and industry
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Emphasizing practical experiences and exposure
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Strong international orientation
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Short studies
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Good career prospects

<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">-Most of the male incoming students of a **German University** are compelled to serve three-fourth of a year in military or alternative services, known as //Zivildienst// before attending classes.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">//Hauptschule//
<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">-in the majority of the //Länder// (federal states), children spend five years at the //Hauptschule// (grades 5-9 or 10) - The main objective of the //Hauptschule// is to prepare students for their entry into the world of work. From the first year of //Hauptschule//, all children learn English (sometimes French). They are also taught German, mathematics, physics / chemistry, biology, geography, history, religion (or a substitute subject), music, art, politics and sports, and are given an introduction to the world of work (//Arbeitslehre//).

- Once students have obtained their leaving certificate at the age of 15 / 16, they can go into practical vocational training, start work in the public service at basic or secretarial level, or attend a //Berufsfachschule// (full-time vocational school).

-//Realschule

-//Students attend //Realschule// for six years (grades 5-11). Unlike the //Hauptschule//, the //Realschule// gives children a broader general education and expects them to show greater independence.

-They also have a chance to learn a second foreign language (usually French), in addition to the first compulsory language (generally English).

-In comparison with the //Gymnasium//, the pupils are given a more vocationally-oriented education. At the end of their 10th year, successful pupils will obtain the //Realschule// leaving certificate. With this certificate, they have access to several training options: in-company vocational training, work in the public service at secretarial and executive level, further education in school at Secondary Level II or at a //Fachhochschule//. The //Realschule// is very popular in Germany.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">//Realschule//
<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">- Those school students who leave the //Grundschule// and go straight on to the //Gymnasium// still have another 8 or 9 years of school education before they take their final examination (//Abitur// or //Hochschulreife//).

-//Gymnasium// is designed to provide students with an education which will enable them, once they have passed their //Abitur//, to study at a German university or equivalent. Students receive intensive specialised instruction to prepare them for academic work at a higher level.

-Secondary Level II, i.e. the last 2 or 3 years at the //Gymnasium//, consists of courses, which students select themselves, depending on certain conditions and on their own preferences (with certain restrictions).

-All pupils have to select 2 //Leistungskurse// (special subjects) - 3 in the Saarland and Rhineland-Palatine. Students following //Leistungskurse// have to attend five hours of classes each week. The //Abitur// is based on the assessment of the subjects chosen as //Leistungskurse// and of two other subjects. - - <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">**Private German Universities** have a better teaching method with features like: <span style="color: rgb(51, 102, 0); font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Study in small disciplined groups
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Strong ties with allied business and industry
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Emphasizing practical experiences and exposure
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Strong international orientation
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Short studies
 * <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">Good career prospects

-from the age of 6 through 14, is mandatory, and in public state-run school's, it's free.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">-The Abitur (pronounced ab eh tour) is a crucial examination that German students take to get in to a University. They take this week long test at the end of their 13th year. <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">

-If they fail they only have a few more chances to pass or they won't be allowed to attend a University. The gymnasium is one of the tracks a student could go to after primary school. This school prepares students to enter a university. The gymnasium goes for eight years or from the 5th through 13th grades.

-A Gesamtschule (comprehensive school) is a school that combines the Gymnasium, the Realschule, and the Hauptschile. This type of school was first introduced in Germany in the 60's and has been controversial ever since. (Scholars have debated whether students can learn better in this type of environment.)

-A typical school day starts at 7:30 or 8:00 in the morning. Classes are on a college-style schedule, with some courses offered only two or three times a week. There is also school on Saturday mornings, in some areas only on alternate Saturdays.

-The grading scale runs from one (the best mark) to six (five in Austria). Students receiving a poor mark of five or six in several subjects may have to repeat a year, but this is rare.

-Students and their parents have the choice of which school they want to attend, provided their grades are good enough and that the school will accept the student.

-In all of the German-speaking countries, educational reform has been a hot topic of discussion in recent years. At all levels, from kindergarten to university, critics have been calling for changes in the traditional way of running schools. At the same time, some educational experiments—notably the comprehensive high school (//Gesamtschule//) and the entire overburdened German university system—have come under fire.

-It was the Swiss **Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi** (1746-1827) who first developed many of the basic pedagogical approaches and teacher training principles that today’s educators all over the world take for granted. Zurich-born Pestalozzi’s ideas had spread as far as the United States by the 1860s, and his theories influenced **Friedrich Froebel** (1782-1852), the German founder of the first kindergarten, as well as many other educators and philosophers.

<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 255);">-A nine-year classical //[|Gymnasium]// (focusing on Latin and Greek or Hebrew, plus one modern language