Education
Spelling – Karlsruhe judges the certificate entry
The Federal Constitutional Court wants to clarify whether a comment can be included in the high school diploma of dyslexics. photo
© Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa
In some reports from people with dyslexia there is a note that their spelling was not graded. Three high school graduates from Bavaria think this is unfair, but have so far failed legally.
The Federal Constitutional Court wants to clarify today whether the Abitur certificate of dyslexics may contain a comment about the fact that their Spelling played no role in the grading. Three former high school graduates from Bavaria with dyslexia believe that many employers would be put off by information such as “Spelling was not assessed.”
People with disabilities receive so-called disadvantage compensation in school exams. For dyslexics, for example, this can mean that they have more time to write.
In addition, many federal states – including Bavaria – have the option of “grade protection”. Upon request, teachers will not allow spelling to be included in the grades. They note in the certificate that they assessed the performance differently. In the opinion of the school authorities, this is intended to ensure the validity of certificates, the chairman of the First Senate, Stephan Harbarth, explained at the hearing in Karlsruhe in June.
“As if we get a stamp”
The three Bavarian students who graduated from high school in 2010 see themselves as being discriminated against by the certificate comment and have sued the authorities. In 2015, the Federal Administrative Court rejected them because, in its opinion, there is no entitlement to grade protection without documentation of this in the certificate. The plaintiffs filed constitutional complaints against this with the highest German court.
During the trial, the men confirmed in a statement that the comments restricted their professional lives. “Everyone who reads this can only think that the applicant is too stupid and terrible for everything,” said the statement, which was read out by lawyer Thomas Schneider. “It’s like we get a stamp saying: Careful, do you really want to hire me?”
On the other hand, the then Bavarian Minister of Education, Michael Piazolo (Free Voters), argued that the notes created the necessary transparency and that the general evaluation standard had been deviated from. This is important because final certificates in particular have to be objectively comparable. The Bavarian legal situation is not unique; several other federal states handle it similarly.
Grade balancing and grade protection
From the perspective of the plaintiffs’ lawyer, grade compensation and grade protection cannot be separated. There is no difference between an aid such as a laptop that automatically checks spelling and not assessing spelling. The Senate also asked the Bavarian state government many questions about the distinction between compensation for disadvantages, grade protection and what is sorted where.
3.4 percent of students in Bavaria have a reading and spelling disorder, said the reporting constitutional judge Josef Christ. According to the Federal Association for Dyslexia and Dyscalculia, around twelve percent of the population in Germany is affected by at least one of the impairments. In the case of dyscalculia or arithmetic disorder, arithmetic skills are impaired, although this cannot be explained solely by a reduction in intelligence or inappropriate schooling.
The German Teachers’ Association stated in the hearing that everything would be done in schools to avoid discrimination. Students generally do not point the finger at those affected or are jealous of the relief efforts.