In November 2024, the final event of the TAB Ruhr took place under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Dirk Richter. The central topic: Teacher training in the context of current social and educational challenges in Germany. This blog entry provides insights into the findings that were presented and discusses possible solutions for the future.
Demographic change among teachers
It’s a fact that there will be a lot of change concerning German teachers in the future: one third of the active teachers will retire within the next ten years. This massive wave of retirements means that many young teachers will enter the system and that the recruitment of young teachers will also change the composition of teaching staff. On the one hand young teachers often bring innovative ideas and a high level of digital knowledge and competences, but on the other hand mentoring and the passing on of experience will become more and more important.
Challenges in in-service teacher training
Richter explains that teacher training courses are often selected and attended individually without being systematically integrated into school development. Another challenge is the lack of time for in-service teacher training: In many federal states, there are no fixed times for professional development and teachers are often not released for teacher training. Another problem is the lack of remuneration and sanction: According to Richter, there are only few incentives for teachers to take part in in-service training and no consequences for non-participation. This is why he emphasizes that successful professionalization requires a new attitude towards training.
New approaches: Establishment of CPD coordinators
Dirk Richter’s suggestion in order to face the challenges as mentioned above is the establishment of CPD coordinators. They have tasks like planning and coordinating training courses, managing resources, implementation and evaluation as well as communication and support within the teaching staff. However, Richter’s study of 125 training officers in North Rhine-Westphalia found out that the fulfillment of their tasks depends significantly on role clarity and available resources. Interestingly, hours of relief and salary seem to have less influence than expected.
Workshop: Concrete CPD planning (Fortbildungsplanung konkret)
Another approach suggested by Dirk Richter is the workshop format Concrete CPD planning (Fortbildungsplanung konkret). This model focuses on data-based development goals, the qualification of school teams that consist of a headmaster and a teacher and a close cooperation between both parties. These school teams are supposed to develop a systematic training plan over the course of one school year. The training plan which covers four modules is tested in practice and continuously adopted. Workshops support schools in order to reach their goals, create sustainable structures as well as stronger networking among schools.
Conclusion and outlook
The final event of the TAB Ruhr clearly showed that the demographic change among teachers does not only require new concepts of in-service teacher training but also a change in attitude. Systematic planning, clear responsibilities and incorporation in everyday school life shape this change. For the future, the German in-service teacher training system could improve by giving teachers fixed times for professional learning during working time. Another aspect for improvement are internal school training budgets and the establishment of qualified CPD coordinators.
In our FOOTT PRINTTS project we found out that many European countries face challenges that are similar to those in Germany. Demographic changes and the lack of time for CPD are also widespread issues in Europe. With our framework and guidelines that we are providing we want to secure high quality in-service teacher training and make an impact on the quality of teaching.
Sources:
Cramer, C., Johannmeyer, K. & Drahmann, M. (2019). Fortbildungen von Lehrerinnen und Lehrern in Baden-Württemberg. Tübingen.
Kuschel, J., Richter, E., Lazarides, R., & Richter, D. (2021). Wie oft und zu welchen Themen werden schulinterne Lehrkräftefortbildungen angeboten? Empirische Befunde einer vergleichenden Programmanalyse. Unterrichtswissenschaft, 50(3), 373-397. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42010-021-00123-w
Richter, E. & Richter, D. (2020). Fort- und Weiterbildung von Lehrpersonen. In C. Cramer, J. König & M. Rothland (Hrsg.), Handbuch Lehrerinnen- und Lehrerbildung (S. 345–354). Bad Heilbrunn: Julius Klinkhardt.
Robert Bosch Stiftung (2024). Deutsches Schulbarometer. Befragung Lehrkräfte. Stuttgart: Autor
