After special holiday courses for schoolchildren due to missing learning content in the pandemic, the University of Augsburg is planning a similar offer in the future. The summer school she designed had clearly positive effects, said Professor Klaus Zierer, full professor for school education. Three quarters of all students took part with pleasure. Only about a tenth stopped the courses prematurely.
The university, together with the Schulwerk of the Diocese of Augsburg, had offered a special program over the past summer holidays, especially to catch up on the corona-related arrears. Students offered remedial classes for fifth to seventh graders at the Schulwerk’s 31 secondary schools and high schools for one week at the beginning and one at the end of the vacation. The Free State had also made similar offers at the state schools.
But according to Zierer, the one in Augsburg is one of the few projects that received comprehensive scientific support. It was not only the majority of the supervised students who accepted it positively – more than 120 teacher training students were trained as summer school teachers and were thus able to gain practical experience at an early stage. The schools would also receive committed support in times of teacher shortage. Zierer sees the continuation of the project as a sensible component of the teacher training course at the University of Augsburg; She is also planning the Catholic school work.