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Young people do not believe in a fair education system

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The training is one of the most important areas in life. This is the foundation for future success, and a pathway for the young person’s career is laid out. It is in this precise area where the desire for justice is particularly sought after. However, this requirement is hardly implemented in those institutions. Numerous studies show that the educational success also depends on the origin and input of the parents - knowledge, which is well known to young people. Half of all students think that the education system is unjust; according to the Forsa Study (Forsa = a german statistic institute, polling firm).

The study was commissioned by the Donors' Association, of the SOS Children's Villages as well as the German Children and Youth Foundation. In the fall of 2016, 1000 people, aged between 14 and 21, took part in this study.

Opinion depends on the type of school

Overall, the study reported that 52% of young adults and adolescents thought that the educational institutions are unfair because they do not take into consideration that not everyone has the same opportunities. However, 48% spoke out that just the opposite was true and did not answer with "do not know" or "not specified".

In the study, it was observed that the confidence in the education system depends on the type of school. Only 30 % of the secondary students questioned the school’s equality, while the high school students were more critical with 59% questioning the system’s equality.

What else plays a role?

In addition to the origin and the status of the parents, almost all students think it’s the child's motivation, which is important for its academic success. Another factor (88 %) is, the support kids receive from their parents and the competence of their teachers. Out of that 88 %, they considered the methods of the teachers (87 %) play an essential role in the learning outcome of young people. 31 % of all student said that the land of origin plays another role of how well the student will do.

Improvement from refugee crisis

Ever since more and more refugee children come to German school a lot has changed regarding equality within the educational system. The new policies put great emphasis on the integration of new students and not to discriminate against them because of their ethnicity. And that works well. Compared to 2015 it is assumed that 37% of the subjects, showed an improvement of 13%.

The assessment of how well children with foreign roots integrate into the education system varies between the different groups which were interviewed. 43 % of all children, 28 % of all children from working parents as well as 28 % of university students think that the system is capable of integration.

Particularly in the last year, the confidence of higher school and secondary school students improved. 50 % of them think that the education system is capable of integration. In 2015 it was only 35 %. Most amazingly, there is no difference in the opinion between German and foreign children anymore.

For sure, there are some more factors, which influence whether the child will succeed and therefore has a greater chance of a higher education. Parents, teacher, social workers – in other words, the child’s environment, are the greatest influence on the child’s development.

Therefore, this article on education, learning and learning disabilities might fit here well: