https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Germany in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed In Berlin, around 30,000 Year Six pupils are preparing to move on to secondary school. For some, the stress is heightened by a new requirement to sit an entrance assessment for Germany’s academically focused grammar schools. https://www.thelocal.de/20260218/why-1200-berlin-students-have-to-take-a-high-school-entrance-exam Wed, 18 Feb 2026 16:49:58 +0100 why-1200-berlin-students-have-to-take-a-high-school-entrance-exam German regulations around school attendance for children are notoriously strict. Here's what parents need to know about when children can miss school – and when they can't. https://www.thelocal.de/20250902/schulpflicht-what-parents-need-to-know-about-kids-missing-school-in-germany Tue, 02 Sep 2025 12:41:11 +0200 schulpflicht-what-parents-need-to-know-about-kids-missing-school-in-germany Following a long period of disagreements over funding, the federal government and German states finally agreed on plans last week for a new ‘Digital Pact 2.0’, with a number of eye-catching measures designed to cut bureaucracy. https://www.thelocal.de/20251222/government-confirms-plans-to-invest-five-billion-euros-in-digital-education Mon, 22 Dec 2025 15:09:58 +0100 government-confirms-plans-to-invest-five-billion-euros-in-digital-education Nearly two out of every three German school administrators say their schools are in urgent need of renovation, according to a new survey. https://www.thelocal.de/20251210/administrators-warn-german-schools-are-in-urgent-need-of-renovation Wed, 10 Dec 2025 11:50:00 +0100 administrators-warn-german-schools-are-in-urgent-need-of-renovation Student performance in German schools is in steep decline as a new generation of students grapples with the aftermath of the Covid pandemic and other shocks. How big is the problem, and what are the plans for improvement? https://www.thelocal.de/20251017/sharp-decline-in-maths-and-science-performance-by-students-in-germany Fri, 17 Oct 2025 16:07:31 +0200 sharp-decline-in-maths-and-science-performance-by-students-in-germany Students and parents will notice some significant changes at primary and secondary schools this year. From stricter rules on mobile phones to new admission procedures, we look at the major updates in each state. https://www.thelocal.de/20250916/whats-changing-in-german-schools-this-year Tue, 16 Sep 2025 14:44:10 +0200 whats-changing-in-german-schools-this-year Do you know your 'Lebenskunde' from your 'NaWi'? Or your 'Stunden' from your 'Fächer'? Read our guide and get up to speed with what your children are learning at school in Germany. https://www.thelocal.de/20250910/how-to-make-sense-of-your-childs-school-curriculum-in-germany Wed, 10 Sep 2025 17:15:03 +0200 how-to-make-sense-of-your-childs-school-curriculum-in-germany Summer holidays have come to an end for pupils in the states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia while those in other states will be trickling back until mid-September. Here's when kids go back to school in all of Germany's states. https://www.thelocal.de/20250619/key-dates-when-do-children-go-back-to-school-in-germany Thu, 19 Jun 2025 14:52:25 +0200 key-dates-when-do-children-go-back-to-school-in-germany For foreign parents in Germany, choosing the right school for their children, whether a private international school or a state-owned school, is an anxious time fraught with a number of uncertainties, as Tom Pugh explains. https://www.thelocal.de/20250318/weeks-of-wild-uncertainty-the-stress-of-choosing-a-school-in-germany Tue, 18 Mar 2025 10:49:32 +0100 weeks-of-wild-uncertainty-the-stress-of-choosing-a-school-in-germany All but two German states rotate their summer holidays to prevent gridlock on the roads and railways and spread demand at holiday destinations. Irritation at Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg’s refusal to join in may finally be coming to a head. https://www.thelocal.de/20250716/explained-why-german-states-are-clashing-over-the-school-holiday-schedule Wed, 16 Jul 2025 12:33:15 +0200 explained-why-german-states-are-clashing-over-the-school-holiday-schedule Students in the states of Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia will start their summer holidays at the end of June while those in other states will have to wait until July or August. Here are the vacation periods in all of Germany's states. https://www.thelocal.de/20250619/key-dates-when-are-the-school-holidays-across-germany-this-summer Thu, 19 Jun 2025 14:52:25 +0200 key-dates-when-are-the-school-holidays-across-germany-this-summer Germany has a new education minister who has announced some ambitious plans to reform schools which have long been hampered by a lack of investment. Will they be enough to satisfy parents? https://www.thelocal.de/20250523/what-parents-in-germany-need-to-know-about-the-planned-schools-shake-up Fri, 23 May 2025 13:43:31 +0200 what-parents-in-germany-need-to-know-about-the-planned-schools-shake-up For English-speaking parents in Germany, successfully raising bilingual children can require a surprising amount of forward planning – and vast reserves of patience, explains father of two Tom Pugh. https://www.thelocal.de/20250514/how-i-made-sure-my-german-born-children-were-bilingual-in-english Wed, 14 May 2025 17:00:35 +0200 how-i-made-sure-my-german-born-children-were-bilingual-in-english Leaflets disseminating far-right extremist ideas were found at a number of schools in Germany's southern states, showing that the 'Identitarian Movement' is actively trying to grow its influence. https://www.thelocal.de/20250512/flyers-from-far-right-extremist-group-distributed-at-german-schools Mon, 12 May 2025 14:18:07 +0200 flyers-from-far-right-extremist-group-distributed-at-german-schools Having children in a kita or kindergarten in Germany can be a fast-track course to learning everything about German culture, writes Tom Pugh. https://www.thelocal.de/20250415/what-having-kids-at-a-german-kindergarten-teaches-you-about-the-local-culture Tue, 15 Apr 2025 10:50:25 +0200 what-having-kids-at-a-german-kindergarten-teaches-you-about-the-local-culture The majority of schools in the western German city of Duisburg will stay closed on Monday, police announced, after a local school received 'threatening letters' from suspected right-wing extremists. https://www.thelocal.de/20250407/police-close-schools-in-duisburg-after-far-right-threats Mon, 07 Apr 2025 11:54:05 +0200 police-close-schools-in-duisburg-after-far-right-threats A German state minister of education has called for stricter limits on smartphones for children, but what are the current rules around phones in German schools. https://www.thelocal.de/20250319/what-are-the-rules-in-germany-on-students-having-phones-at-school Wed, 19 Mar 2025 11:21:46 +0100 what-are-the-rules-in-germany-on-students-having-phones-at-school Almost one in six school-age children in Germany is suffering from an acute respiratory illness, with many battling the flu, health experts say. https://www.thelocal.de/20250207/flu-wave-heavily-hitting-school-children-in-germany Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:13:49 +0100 flu-wave-heavily-hitting-school-children-in-germany The move to all-day care in schools is likely to ease the burden on parents, but unions warn it could also exacerbate Germany's dire teacher shortages. https://www.thelocal.de/20241015/how-all-day-school-could-worsen-germanys-teacher-shortages Tue, 15 Oct 2024 12:58:10 +0200 how-all-day-school-could-worsen-germanys-teacher-shortages Flights and hotels are usually cheaper at off-peak times when schools are not on holiday. We look at a reader's question on whether Germany allows children to miss a few days of school to ease family holiday costs or dodge busy periods. https://www.thelocal.de/20230630/reader-question-can-i-take-my-child-out-of-school-in-germany-to-go-on-holiday Fri, 30 Jun 2023 18:18:13 +0200 reader-question-can-i-take-my-child-out-of-school-in-germany-to-go-on-holiday