Germany - Country Background Information
- Describing the forms of education in the country
- Identifying an ‘inclusive setting’ in the country
- What an ‘official decision of SEN’ means in the country
- What ‘out-of-education’ means in the country
The EASIE data collection covers all recognised forms of education at ISCED levels 02, 1, 2 and 3.
This means any type of education organised by or approved by any recognised educational provider in the public or private sector: municipality, local or regional educational provider from the public or private sector, working with/for ministries responsible for education and areas such as health, social, welfare, labour, justice, etc.
Compulsory education in Germany is divided into full-time compulsory education (general compulsory education) and part-time compulsory education (compulsory vocational education).
Compulsory education begins for all children in the year they turn six and usually lasts nine full-time school years (ten full-time school years in Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen and Thuringia, and nine or ten full-time school years in North Rhine-Westphalia, depending on the length of the programme).
After completing compulsory general education, young people who do not attend a full-time general or vocational school at upper-secondary level are subject to compulsory part-time schooling (compulsory vocational schooling). This generally comprises three years of part-time schooling, depending on the duration of the training contract in a recognised training occupation.
What are the typical age ranges for the ISCED levels?
| ISCED LEVEL 02 | ISCED LEVEL 1 | ISCED LEVEL 2 | ISCED LEVEL 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3–5 (or until beginning of primary education) | 6–9 | 10–15 | 16–18 |
Germany has public and private sector education. Both institutions exist side by side and co-operate with each other. As a guarantee under the Basic Law it is possible to establish private schools. This is combined with a guarantee of the private school as an institution. The constitutional law rules out a state monopoly of education.
In the EASIE data collection, an inclusive setting is operationally defined as:
A recognised form of education where the child/learner follows education in mainstream classes alongside their peers for the largest part – 80% or more – of the school week.
The 80% time placement benchmark clearly indicates that a child/learner is educated in a mainstream class for the majority of their school week. At the same time, it acknowledges possibilities for small group or one-to-one withdrawal for limited periods of time (i.e. 20% or one day a week).
Very few participating countries can provide exact data on children/learners spending 80% of their time in a mainstream group/class. However, all countries can apply one of three agreed proxies that provide an approximation to this benchmark:
- Placement in a mainstream class implies over 80% or more
- Data is available on the number of hours of support allocated to a child/learner
- Placement in a mainstream class implies over 50% or more.
In the EASIE data collection, the agreed operational definition is:
An official decision leads to a child/learner being recognised as eligible for additional educational support to meet their learning needs.
Countries may have different types of official decision, but for all official decisions:
- There has been some form of educational assessment procedure involving different people. This procedure may involve the child/learner, parents, school-based team members, as well as professionals from multi-disciplinary teams from outside the child’s/learner’s (pre-)school.
- There is some form of legal document (plan/programme, etc.) that describes the support the child/learner is eligible to receive, which is used as the basis for decision-making.
- There is some form of regular review process of the child/learner’s needs, progress and support.
The procedure for determining special educational needs comprises establishing the individual need for support as well as deciding on the course of education and the place of support.
The procedure may be applied for by the parents or legal guardians of the pupil, by the pupil provided they are aged 18 or above, by the school or by other competent services. It must take into account the competences of the persons who participate in the measures of support and instruction in a suitable manner.
The evaluation of a learner’s performance is a pedagogical process but is also an administrative act based on legal and administrative regulations.
The responsibility for the assessment procedure lies with the school supervisory authorities: The state education authority assigns the responsible special educational support and counselling centre with the educational assessment procedure. Special education teachers carry out the assessment based on the diagnostic procedure described in the Länder’s respective guidelines. If required, they consult other experts like psychologists, doctors, social workers, therapists, etc. The final decision on special educational needs lies with the state education authority.
Each learner’s individual development and performance, as well as their working and social behaviour, are monitored and assessed on a constant basis. Assessment for special education is based on multi-disciplinary reports. Parents can make applications for assessment.
The individual education plan (IEP) is written yearly or twice a year. Standardised achievement tests to assess learners’ performance or learning development in certain subjects or grades are not given at Land level.
Continuous assessment of performance for learners with special educational needs takes place in special schools in a similar form to that of general schools.
Parents can object to a placement decision.
Depending on the law of the respective federal state, the need for special educational support and the defined focus of support is reviewed regularly every one to two years. The class conference, consisting of all teachers who teach in the class, decides on the basis of a learner’s individual support plan whether the requirements for special educational support are still met.
Within the EASIE data collection, specific questions examine children/learners who are out of education. This means children/learners who should, by law, be in some form of recognised education, but who are out of any form of recognised education. A recognised form of education is any type of education organised by or approved by any recognised educational provider in the public or private sector.
Up to now, this is not applicable in Germany. All pupils are accounted for in the data. This topic has to be surveyed in detail.
Data on learners with special educational needs without an official decision in mainstream classes cannot be reported separately. In order not to stigmatise learners with mild special needs, the intention is not to make an official decision at an early stage.
An assessment team examines the learner’s special educational needs. The assessment leads to various forms of support provided by special needs teachers from regional counselling and support centres and classroom teachers, whether or not the learner gets an official decision of special educational needs.
No specific data is available on the time learners with special educational needs spend in a placement.