Germany, Austria and Switzerland: All three countries of the DACH region take part in the triennial PISA studies, and over the past two years, there has been a prolonged nationwide debate about the bad results in Germany for the 2022 study*, which showed the worst outcome ever at position 24. Austria forms the mellow middle at position 18, while Switzerland at position 8 is hands down the current winner of the three DACH countries. Former allover winner Estonia is still better than Switzerland, and has only recently been surpassed by a small group of Asian OECD countries, led by Singapore which currently occupies first place in the PISA table.

Photo: Markus Spiske, Unsplash

Why German pupils are performing worse in international comparison of late, even when it comes to basic skills, has given much reason for discussion, especially because until 2018, Germany used to be above the OECD average. Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (Free Democratic Party) wants the federal government to have a greater say in digitisation and other important issues, as she stated in an interview with Rheinische Post: “Together with the federal states, I have just launched the ‘Startchancen’ Program for around 4,000 schools in challenging situations. Ten billion euros from the federal government and another ten billion from the federal states will flow into these schools over the next ten years.” The program is the largest and most long-term education program in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany and is especially aimed at struggling elementary schools.

Photo: Tim Mossholder, Unsplash

Into the Future: Language and Digitisation

Education starts at the earliest possible age, and the most pivotal factor for any individual career path is language competency, says Stark-Watzinger: “We therefore also need mandatory language support for children who do not have a sufficient command of the German language before they start school. At the same time, more daycare places need to be created, especially for children under the age of three. And access must be as simple and non-bureaucratic as possible.” Another challenge currently tackled is the social media phenomena which bears risks through polarizing, distraction and misinformation: “Young people need to learn how to deal with it”, says Stark-Watzinger, “that’s why media literacy is so important and why it needs to be taught more. Democracy education also needs to be taught more in schools. This is one reason why we support the Federal Student Conference: This is where pupils learn to represent their interests by getting together, discussing, electing someone.”

Photo: Kenny Eliason, Unsplash

And what about digitisation? The heads of German state governments are calling for the € 7.15 billion worth of the first digital pact for schools to be extended. With the current agreement, considerable progress has been made in the digitisation of the educational landscape between 2019 and 2024. In its coalition agreement, the coalition government had announced that it would launch a follow-up program with the federal states, a ‘Digital Pact 2.0’, which would run until 2030. This has been the subject of tough negotiations for a long time – even tougher now that it has become clear how cash-strapped the federal government is. In principle, schools are a matter for the federal states and not the federal government. Berlin now wants to finance a maximum of 50 percent.

Photo: element5 digital, Unsplash

Austria: A Master Plan for Digitisation in Education

Possibly with a glance at the persistently good PISA results for Estonia, the wonderland of digitisation in education, the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research has implemented an 8-point master plan*, financed with a total of € 281.3 million distributed between 2021 and 2025. With its objectives, the master plan addresses all school educational institutions, starting with the elementary level through to the upper secondary level. Apart from digital devices for both students and teachers and an expansion of the school IT infrastructure, the master plan also aims at introducing standardized communication processes, distance learning MOOC, an alignment of the Eduthek (a collection of quality-assured links to external materials) with curricula, as well as a seal of approval for learning apps. (source: www.bmbwf.gv.at)

Photo: Martin Adams, Unsplash

Regarding language-based integration as the pivotal tool for success in education, Austria has introduced a standardized nationwide instrument in two versions (“BESK KOMPAKT” for children with German as a first language and “BESK-DaZ Kompakt” for children with German as a second language), used on a mandatory basis throughout Austria to determine children’s language skills in the last year before they start school. Based on the results of the language assessment tool, a mandatory handover sheet is sent from the elementary educational institution to the elementary school, which provides information on a child’s strengths and areas for support in the area of language and offers a concrete starting point for further support planning.

Germany’s new opportunity program for hotspot schools

Back to Germany and the new ‘Startchancen’ program: The primary goal is to decouple educational success from social background and ensure greater equality of opportunity. To this end, schools in difficult social situations have been receiving around 20 billion euros in funding since 2024. The extra money is to be invested in places of learning, or used for additional staff such as social workers.

Photo: Santi Vedri, Unsplash

According to the authors of the Education Monitor, however, this will not be enough. Nationwide support must be expanded from 10 to 40 percent of schools, they argue. Otherwise, only too small a proportion of children will be reached and the problems will be carried further into the future. Education researcher Olaf Köller also says that five to ten times as much is needed to support pupils effectively. (source: Deutschlandfunk)

Fingers crossed, Germany will do better again in the future. Below, are a few other reasons why Switzerland may currently feature much stronger results than Germany.

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Switzerland: Early Learning, Language Training and Evaluation

What makes Switzerland the current winner when it comes to DACH education?

In Switzerland, preschool education is mandatory, and connected with a language skill evaluation at the brink of entering elementary school. Expats even recommend using the mandatory preschool years for an unofficial language education – as many regions have their own dialects such as Swiss German, which the kids need to learn in addition to the official language(s) of the respective canton. Thus there is a strong focus on languages early on, which is also monitored and evaluated before the start of elementary school. This also gives migrant children a much better chance to catch up at an early level. Integration counsellor Matthias Estermann explains: “In Germany, attendance at KITA is voluntary, whereas, in Switzerland, children must have attended preschool for one or two years, depending on the canton. Switzerland is also making efforts to ensure a more flexible start to school life by setting up mixed-age classes.” (source: https://www.deutsch-schweiz.ch/familie/schulen)

Photo: Brooke Cagle, Unsplash

Secondly, at the end of elementary school, teachers’ recommendations with regard to the next school level are binding and can only be declined on the basis of an additional test, while German parents are free to choose if their children should move on to high school or not – which most of them do to avoid the perceived stigma of sending their kid to middle school.

Photo: element5 digital, Unsplash

In Switzerland, it is primarily children with good and stable performance who go to grammar school, which means that classes are smaller and students can be nourished more individually. Matthias Estermann points out: “In Switzerland, 20 children sit in a classroom on average. This remains similar at the secondary level I. In Germany, on the other hand, the numbers increase to around 30 children per class, mainly at grammar schools.” As a result, in Germany, the proportion of pupils aiming for the Abitur (High School Certificate) is twice as high, but the performance is not always up to par. This means, that Swiss students entering university are simply better prepared for higher education as well.

Photo: Arthur Lambilotte, Unsplash

It will be therefore be of no surprise that apart from PISA, also the WEF’s World Competitiveness Report rates the Swiss education system among the best in the world. Apart from the level of the workforce and general qualification, the report also evaluates the quantity and quality of educational measures, including the development of digital literacy, interpersonal skills and the ability to think both critically and creatively.

Photo: Jeswin Thomas, Unsplash

Teachers Matter

All three DACH regions put immense efforts into schooling not only students, but also the teaching personnel. Online schooling, AI inclusion, social media management as well as integration through early language acquisition currently prove to be the most pivotal themes in teacher training. However, especially in Germany, teachers also need to receive appropriate support, motivation and appreciation for their often challenging work.

While – with a look at Switzerland and Austria – reduced class sizes and mandatory early language programs might lead to better long-term results, relief and motivational efforts for the teaching personnel matter just as much.

Teacher motivation as the key to better education is therefore also high on Stark-Watzinger’s agenda: “The teaching profession must become more attractive and be more highly regarded. Just putting up posters at the airport will not solve the problem. Schools must be a place where teachers can help shape things. They need freedom and less bureaucracy.”

Photo: Aaron Burden, Unsplash

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“Everything falls into place,” laughs Anna Bott, Head of Marketing & Communication at the Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz. A former student of the boarding school in the Swiss canton of Graubünden near St. Moritz herself, Bott has returned to Switzerland after several years abroad. How did this happen? Aren’t students usually happy if they never have to see their school again? “That may be the case elsewhere,” replies Bott. “But the Lyceum Alpinum is different.” Just how different, she describes in the following.

“The most important element is the Spirit of Zuoz, which for me translates as the ‘power of community’. This spirit is about working together in teams with people from different backgrounds – something I didn’t learn in management seminars, but at the Lyceum. Recognising, developing and contributing skills and strengths in teams is something that needs to be learned and practised. Ideally at an early age, e.g. in drama class or on the sports field.

The aim of the Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz is not only to provide children with a ticket to Swiss, European or international Universities of Excellence and a priceless network for later life, but also to support them in one of the most important developmental phases of their lives, so that they are equipped for all the challenges of the future”.

“The Lyceum Alpinum offers the opportunity to become part of an international community and to contribute one’s own personality,” stresses Bott. “The challenges of life that are faced here together not only shape and enrich the students’ time at the Lyceum Alpinum, but also their future careers. The friendships made here are often the most important friendships for life,” adds the communications expert.

The elite Swiss boarding school is set in a spectacular Alpine setting, 1750 m.s.l. and offers a wide range of sporting activities in both summer and winter. Teaching and learning at the Lyceum Alpinum is characterised by a multilingual environment (the four official Swiss languages as well as English are taught and Spanish or Mandarin are spoken in our corridors) and a holistic approach to obtaining the Matura or IB, which focuses on the individual development of students, motivation, critical thinking, and creativity. Next to the Zuoz Globe, the school’s own theatre with two ensembles, the boarding school offers an extensive extra-curricular programme which enables all students to optimally develop their intellectual, personal, and physical abilities.

The Lyceum Alpinum and the Spirit of Zuoz – a community that shapes students for life.

 
Web: www.lyceum-alpinum.ch/en

The Spirit of Zuoz

Gerade, wenn es um die Ausbildung der eigenen Kinder geht, sollten Eltern genau hinsehen. Welches Konzept verfolgt die Schule? Wer sind die Lehr- und Bezugspersonen? Das sind nur einige der wichtigen Fragen. Das Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz gibt überzeugende Antworten.

Globe Zuoz. Foto: Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz, Fotograf: Benjamin Hofer

„Alles fügt sich”, lacht Anna Bott, Head of Marketing & Communication am Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz. Bott war selbst Schülerin des Internats im schweizerischen Graubünden bei St. Moritz und ist nach mehreren Stationen im Ausland zurückgekehrt. Wie kam es dazu? Sind Schülerinnen und Schüler normalerweise nicht froh, wenn sie ihre Schule nie wieder sehen müssen? „Das mag anderswo so sein”, antwortet Bott. „Aber das Lyceum Alpinum ist anders.” Wie anders, das beschreibt sie:

„Allem voran steht der der Spirit of Zuoz. Dieser lässt sich für mich mit der ‚Kraft der Gemeinschaft’ übersetzen. Es geht darum, wie man in Teams mit den unterschiedlichsten Personen zusammenarbeitet und das habe ich nicht erst im Managementseminar gelernt, sondern am Lyceum. Das Erkennen, Entwickeln und Einbringen von Kompetenzen und Stärken in Teams, das will gelernt und geübt sein. Am besten bereits früh, beim Theaterspielen oder auf dem Sportplatz. Das Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz hat sich zum Ziel gesetzt, Kinder nicht nur mit einem direkten Zugang für Schweizer, europäische oder internationale Exzellenzunis und dem unbezahlbaren Netzwerk für den späteren Lebensweg auszustatten, sondern sie gleichzeitig in einer der wichtigsten Entwicklungsphasen ihres Lebens zu begleiten, damit sie für alle Herausforderungen der Zukunft gerüstet sind.”

„Das Lyceum Alpinum bietet die Chance, Teil einer internationalen Gemeinschaft zu werden und die eigene Persönlichkeit einzubringen”, betont Bott. „Die Lebenssituationen, die hier gemeinsam gemeistert werden, prägen und bereichern nicht nur die Zeit an der Schule, sondern auch die spätere Laufbahn. Die Freundschaften, die hier geschlossen werden, sind oft die wichtigsten Freundschaften fürs Leben”, weiß die Kommunikationswissenschaftlerin.

Das Schweizer Eliteinternat liegt eingebettet in spektakulärer Alpenkulisse auf 1750 m.ü.M. und bietet sommers wie winters ein breites Angebot an sportlichen Aktivitäten. Das multilinguale Umfeld (hier werden nicht nur die vier Schweizer Amtssprachen und Englisch unterrichtet, man hört auch Chinesisch oder Spanisch auf den Fluren), ein ganzheitliches Konzept für die Erlangung der Matura oder IB, das die individuelle Förderung der Schülerinnen und Schüler fokussiert, Leistungsbereitschaft, kritisches Denken und Kreativität prägen das Lehren und Lernen. Neben dem Zuoz Globe, dem eigenen Theater mit zwei Ensembles, bietet das Internat ein umfangreiches außerschulisches Programm, das alle Schülerinnen und Schüler in ihren intellektuellen, persönlichen und körperlichen Fähigkeiten optimal fördert.

Das Lyceum Alpinum und der Spirit of Zuoz – eine Gemeinschaft, die Schüler fürs Leben prägt.

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The Berlin British School caters to age groups from two to 18 years of age. It has children from 80 countries and the highly qualified staff come from more than 20 nations. The maximum class size throughout the school is 20 students. The school currently has about 500 students in total.

Break time at Primary School.

Fully accredited by the Council of International Schools, and implementing programmes from both the globally recognised International Baccalaureate and Cambridge International Examinations, BBS has been at the forefront of educating students from Berlin’s international community since its foundation in 1994.

Secondary School Campus.

The British foundation of the school explains the enduring presence at BBS of certain traditions and approaches to school life. There is a house system, in which students both cooperate with and compete against each other across a range of diverse pursuits. Wearing a school uniform encourages students to view themselves as proud members of a community of equals. The pastoral system is dependent on a strong, meaningful bond between teacher and student, with excellent communication and early intervention as ways of supporting students. A wide-ranging co-curricular educational programme enables students to develop holistically and appreciate the importance of evolving important skills and dispositions that go beyond the walls of the classroom.

Early Years Campus at the Havelchaussee.

The Berlin British School is a friendly, welcoming school lucky enough to enjoy an idyllic woodland setting in which their students can grow. It is small enough for all students and teachers to know each other, and large enough to offer opportunities for all students to flourish in a challenging yet caring environment.

BBS Library at Secondary School.

BBS is unique in the Berlin education scene as the only international school to offer the choice between a curriculum delivered through the medium of English, ideal for students from an international business or diplomatic background, and a bilingual option that enables native German speakers to enjoy the benefit of studying selected subjects in German.

BBS is proud of how it fulfills its mission to create confident learners and creative thinkers through providing a caring and supportive community. If you are interested in finding out more about the school, it is possible to arrange a tour.

P.E. lesson at the Primary gym.

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The school caters to all age groups from two to 18 years of age. In its classrooms it has children from almost 80 countries, and the highly qualified staff are made up of more than 20 nationalities. The maximum class size throughout the school is 20 students. The school currently has about 500 students.

Fully accredited by the Council of International Schools, and implementing programmes from both the globally recognised International Baccalaureate and Cambridge International Examinations, BBS has been at the forefront of educating students from Berlin’s international community since its foundation in 1994.

The British foundation of the school explains the enduring presence at BBS of certain traditions and approaches to school life. There is a house system, in which students both cooperate with and compete against each other across a range of diverse pursuits; a school uniform encourages students to view themselves as proud members of a community of equals; the pastoral system is dependent on a strong, meaningful bond between teacher and student, with excellent communication and early intervention as ways of supporting students. A wide-ranging co-curricular educational programme enables students to develop holistically and appreciate the importance of evolving important skills and dispositions that go beyond the walls of the classroom.

The Berlin British School is a friendly, welcoming school lucky enough to enjoy an idyllic woodland setting in which students can grow. It is small enough for all students and teachers to know each other, and large enough to offer opportunities for all students to flourish in a challenging yet caring environment. BBS is unique in the Berlin education scene as the only international school to offer the choice between a curriculum delivered through the medium of English, ideal for students from an international business or diplomatic background, and a bi-lingual option that enables native German speakers to enjoy the benefit of studying selected subjects in German.

BBS is proud of how it fulfils its mission to create confident learners and creative thinkers through providing a caring and supportive community. If you are interested in finding out more about the school, it is possible to arrange a tour.

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