Almost every eighth student
In Germany, more children drop out of school than the EU average
Too many children in Germany drop out of school – this is reflected in basic skills such as reading, arithmetic and writing
© Bernd Leitner / Imago Images
One in eight children in Germany dropped out of school in 2022, data from the European Statistics Authority show. The Federal Minister of Education is calling for more efforts – she doesn’t want to “lose these young people permanently.”
In 2022, Germany once again recorded the fourth highest school dropout rate in the European Union at more than twelve percent. This emerges from figures from the European statistics authority Eurostat Editorial network Germany presented on Monday. There was therefore no data for 2023 yet.
In Germany, significantly more young people drop out of school than the EU average. In 2022, the Federal Republic had a dropout rate of 12.2 percent, the EU as a whole had a dropout rate of 9.6 percent. The German rate was the fourth highest after Romania (15.6), Spain (13.9) and Hungary (12.4). In view of the figures, Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) is calling for “a turnaround in educational policy”.
Children’s basic skills should improve
The EU average rate has improved by 0.9 percentage points since 2018, while the German rate has worsened by 1.9 points over the same period. However, from 2021 to 2022, Germany reduced the rate to a similar extent as the EU as a whole: by 0.3 points. Nevertheless, the Federal Republic once again recorded a high school dropout rate. This is what the federal and state governments have to do, Stark-Watzinger told the newspapers of the Funke media group. “Every school dropout is one too many. Because this is not just about the future of the children, but also the prosperity of our country.”
Stark-Watzinger therefore wants to start with basic skills such as reading, writing and arithmetic. “The fact that Germany once again has the fourth highest school dropout rate in Europe is something that the federal and state governments have to worry about,” the FDP politician told the newspapers of the Funke media group.
The billion-dollar “Starting Opportunities” program for the targeted support of hotspot schools should be started from the next school year. “But efforts should also be increased beyond that so that the rate falls and we don’t permanently lose these young people.”
The EU-wide average school dropout rate improved from 10.5 to 9.6 percent from 2018 to 2022. In 2018, Germany was even better off than the EU average at 10.3 percent. However, this has been over since 2019.