This information is intended to provide the background context of structure and control, within which the curriculum and assessment frameworks are implemented.
See section 2.1.1 of the mainstream Germany Archive.
See section 2.1.2 of the mainstream Germany Archive.
The private sector plays an appreciable role in special education in Germany. A considerable number of churches, welfare organisations and other non-public bodies run Sonderschulen (special schools), often in conjunction with residential homes. These schools are subject to state supervision. In their teaching methods, rehabilitation measures and childcare and supervision, such schools sometimes pursue their own educational methods.5
Private schools in Germany, 2000
| Type of school | Number of schools | Students | Proportion of the total of students attending the respective school type in % |
| Vorklassen |
171 |
3,641 |
4.9 |
| Grundschule |
363 |
41,924 |
1.3 |
| Erprobungsstufe/Orientierungsstufe (independent of school type) |
72 |
9,526 |
2.4 |
| Hauptschule |
189 |
20,971 |
1.9 |
| Realschule |
278 |
95,263 |
7.5 |
| Schools offering both Hauptschule and Realschule courses |
18 |
2,335 |
0.5 |
| Gymnasium |
367 |
237,061 |
10.5 |
| Gesamtschule or similar |
28 |
11,605 |
2.1 |
| Other schools, private evening classes and colleges |
265 |
77,894 |
|
| Special schools |
575 |
59,749 |
14.2 |
| Total |
2,326 |
559,969 |
5.6 |
| Selected types of vocational schools | |||
| Berufsschulen (in the dual system) |
197 |
39,203 |
2.2 |
| Berufsfachschulen |
782 |
74,547 |
17.9 |
| Fachschulen |
565 |
48, 479 |
34.1 |
Source: EURYDICE UNIT, GERMANY (Länder) (2002). The Education System in Germany (2000/2001). Available [online] via the EURYBASE database at http://www.eurydice.org/
See section 2.1.3 of the mainstream Germany Archive in addition.
Mainstream
As compulsory school regulations apply equally to children with special educational needs (see 3.1), those students with special educational needs who are able to follow educational courses in normal, mainstream schools do so (see 3.2.5). Various alternative types of state-funded provision exist in addition, in all of the 16 Länder.9
Special schools/Sonderschulen
Sonderschulen usually provide education for students from Year 1 to Year 10 (ages 6-16) and specialise in the teaching of children with learning difficulties, physical or mental disabilities, or behavioural problems. Following Sonderschule education, (at least part-time) attendance at vocational schools is compulsory for most disabled students, with a view to ensuring their integration into the world of work. The State usually provides special assistance with vocational training for such students and attendance at public Sonderschulen is free. Travel costs are usually also paid by the State.8
Many Sonderschulen act as transitional institutions which, after several years of supportive assistance, transfer students back to normal, mainstream schools. Consequently, many Sonderschulen are originally conceived either as primary schools (Grundschulen), or as secondary schools (Hauptschulen, Realschulen or Gymnasien). This not only facilitates a student's transfer back to mainstream education in circumstances where it is deemed possible, but it also helps students attending Sonderschulen to have a clearer idea of the types of qualification his/her particular Sonderschule might offer.9 The most common occasion for transfer back to normal mainstream education is when a student is completing Sonderschule at primary level and is about to move on to some form of secondary education.9
Home tuition for sick children
In most (but not all) Länder of the Federal German Republic, seriously ill children with long-term illnesses who are not attending/unable to attend hospital schools or other schools for sick children, can be provided with (free/state-funded) tuition in their home (or wherever the child is located). Children and young people are usually entitled to home tuition if, for example, the degree of their illness or handicap prevents them from attending compulsory school and/or, because of illness, they have been prevented from attending school for more than eight weeks. Indeed, if, at the outset, it can be foreseen that an illness will last longer than eight weeks, home tuition can take place right from the start. Home tuition is also granted to children who, although they are attending school, have to continually miss lessons on certain days because of a long-term illness. In those Länder where home tuition is available for sick students, the extent of the tuition provided varies. Ideally, home tuition is provided by teachers from the school responsible for the sick child (that is to say, the school they have been attending throughout their illness, in the case of a long-term illness, or the school they were attending prior to becoming ill). This is regarded as the best way of preserving the link and ensuring that, if possible, the child can return to mainstream education at a later date.9
Early provision
If medical examinations or diagnosis of babies or infants indicate a possible handicap, parents can be provided with state-funded help via local advice centres, usually located in Sonderschulen. These centres, staffed by teachers, childcare workers, physiotherapists, speech therapists, socio-educational and medical services, all working in close collaboration, aim to identify handicaps at an early stage and to provide parents with guidance as to how to overcome or even prevent them. Children who, because of a handicap identified during this procedure seem to be in need of remedial help before reaching compulsory school age (6) can, with parental agreement, be admitted to Sonderschulen at Kindergarten level at age 3, or age 2 for physically handicapped children. Such Sonderschulen are specialised (for children who are blind, have impaired vision, are mentally handicapped etc.).9
Provision for students with a non-German mother tongue
Foreign students in Germany have the same rights and duties as German children. However, most of them have the disadvantage that they are not being taught in their native language. To help foreign children cope in their German environment and to enable them to succeed at school, the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Culture of the 16 Länder makes some special provision. This can include:
The school year into which foreign students are placed when they arrive in Germany generally depends on how well they speak German. In order to facilitate their transition into German schools, most of them are provided with additional remedial classes. If they have been in Germany from an early age, they will usually attend the first Year of Grundschule at the age of 6, like their German contemporaries. Young foreigners who do not come to Germany until they are 14 or even 16 cannot usually be placed in normal, mainstream schools. The time they need simply to learn German will generally be longer than the period in which they still have to attend school. Such students receive teaching developed specially for their particular situation.8
Gifted children
There are very few state schools in Germany for gifted children. If parents believe they have a gifted child, they can ask the Federal Ministry of Education for information about support available outside school. Such support usually includes special summer academies during the school holidays in various disciplines, such as mathematics, natural sciences, philosophy, history, languages, music, etc. Such summer schools are, however, usually only offered to students in the upper Years of the Gymnasium (ages 15/16+). Other gifted children often skip a year of compulsory schooling, enabling them to develop their talents further by earlier entry into higher education.8
A separate school for particularly gifted lower secondary students is planned in the federal Land of Saxony. 1
In addition, the DGhK "Deutsche Gesellschaft für das hochbegabte Kind" (German Society for the Gifted and Talented Child) is active throughout Germany. Members include amongst others, parents, experts and psychologists who work voluntarily to provide support for gifted and talented children. Further information is available from the DGhK website at: http://www.dghk.de/dghk.html
See section 3.2.5 in addition.
The main form of provision for students with special needs is in Sonderschulen, but programmes have been introduced to encourage the integration of students with special needs into mainstream education. In 1998, almost four and a half per cent of all students in full-time compulsory school age (6-16) attended separate special schools. In the dual system of vocational training (for students aged 15/16+), help is provided and regulated by law for young people who have special learning problems or who are socially disadvantaged (for example, support in on-the-job training or vocational training in institutions outside the workplace). In 1998, some eight per cent of some 1.6 million trainees received this help.6
Sonderschulen in Germany have the purpose of educating and training children and young persons who are educable, but who, because of physical or mental disorders and the special care they require, cannot attend a normal school. The following types of Sonderschule exist, catering for the percentage of the school population specified: 8, 9, 5
Students with special educational needs in general education in schools, 2000 (national)
| Focus of special education: | Students with special educational needs in: | Attendance rate in % * | ||
| Mainstream schools | Special schools | General education schools in total | ||
| Learning difficulties |
28,207 |
230,647 |
258,854 |
2.8 |
| Visual difficulties |
1,675 |
5,174 |
6,849 |
0.1 |
| Hearing difficulties |
2,856 |
11,296 |
14,152 |
0.2 |
| Speech defects |
9,598 |
34,218 |
43,816 |
0.5 |
| Physical and motor development difficulties |
3,985 |
21,338 |
25,323 |
0.3 |
| Mental development difficulties |
1,844 |
64,337 |
66,181 |
0.7 |
| Emotional and social development problems |
9,200 |
25,702 |
34,902 |
0.4 |
| Sick children |
65 |
9,097 |
9,162 |
0.1 |
| Types of special education not assigned to any other disability category |
11,000 |
17,665 |
28,665 |
0.3 |
| TOTAL: all types of special education |
68,430 |
419,474 |
487,904 |
5.3 |
* Percentage of students of full-time compulsory school age (Years 1-10, ages 6-16), including special schools.
Source: EURYDICE UNIT, GERMANY (Länder) (2002). The Education System in Germany (2000/2001). Available [online] as part of the EURYBASE database at http://www.eurydice.org/
In 2004, the percentage of students of compulsory school age in special schools was 3.5 per cent. 19
For private sector special schools, see 2.1.3.
Although Sonderschulen are usually controlled and organised by authorities at Land (rather than national) level, some secondary education courses at Sonderschulen are organised on an inter-Land basis. Because of the relatively small number of blind students requiring Gymnasium level education, for example, there are only two Sonderschulen throughout the country which offer Gymnasium level courses for blind students. Consequently, students from other Länder attend these schools (as boarders).9
Administration of all schools in Germany is usually divided into three levels. The top level is the (Land) Ministry of Education. At the middle level, there are the Schulaufsichtsbehörden (Land authorities responsible for school inspection) or the Oberschulämter (senior education offices); and at the lower level, the Schulämter (Land education offices). As a rule, the Schulämter are responsible for Grundschulen, Hauptschulen and Sonderschulen.8
See sections 2.1.1 and 2.1.2 of the mainstream Germany Archive in addition.