Ministry allocation | Ministry of Education: Karin Prien finally restructures

With the coalition agreement signed on May 5th and the allocation of ministries between the CDU/CSU and SPD, several things are changing, including in the area of ​​education. For example, education policy will no longer be assigned to the Ministry of Research, but will be transferred to the Ministry of Family Affairs. This will result in changes in responsibilities.

Perhaps most importantly, the educational path of children and young people up to school graduation is now regulated within a single ministry. Karin Prien (CDU), who will head that ministry in the future, was previously Minister of Education for Schleswig-Holstein and is known nationwide for her professional expertise. During the coalition negotiations, she advocated for the ministerial integration of early childhood education, child and youth welfare, and family policy, and in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), she expects the merger to offer "huge opportunities" for Germany. According to the relevant interest groups , these must now be implemented politically.

"Issues such as early childhood education, language support, and all-day education could be better considered together in this way, rather than if each ministry insisted on its own responsibility."

Nicole Gohlke, education expert for the Left Party in the Bundestag

Nicole Gohlke, education expert for the Left Party in the Bundestag, explains the new ministries' structure: "Issues such as early childhood education, language support, and all-day education could be better considered together in this way, rather than if each ministry insisted on its own responsibilities." Separating the Ministry of Education from the Ministry of Family Affairs would have delayed the expansion of all-day education, among other things, due to complicated decision-making processes. "The pressure to act in education, and thus for children and young people, is enormous," says Gohlke.

Gohlke is referring to the pervasive education and childcare crisis, which particularly affects children and young people from poor families . To counteract this inequality, the Bundestag and Bundesrat passed a legally enforceable right to all-day support in primary schools in October 2021. The All-Day Support Act is to be phased in starting in 2026. A lot of changes to the provision situation still need to be made by then. Investments in space, pedagogical concepts, more specialists, and multidisciplinary teams are needed.

Another project originating from the previous legislative period is the Start Opportunities Program. According to the new federal government's ambitions, this program should be expanded from schools to daycare centers. However, the project was already criticized last year . The program requires a personal contribution to support eligible schools. This has led to repeated conflicts between poorer municipalities and state governments over funding.

The funding of "educational infrastructure," announced by the new federal government with its "Special Infrastructure Fund," must therefore be implemented in close cooperation between the various political levels. Benedict Kurz and Gunhild Böth, spokespersons for the Left Party's Federal Working Group on Education Policy, therefore welcome the merger of the Ministry of Education and Family Affairs: "It initially looks positive if the educational path up to school graduation is placed under one roof." However, they criticize the fact that vocational training remains with the Ministry of Labor. The transition from school to university or training is currently "made difficult, especially for disadvantaged young people," according to Kurz and Böth.

The new Minister of the Federal Ministry of Education, Family Affairs, Women, Senior Citizens and Youth (BMFSFJ) – the ministry's official abbreviation does not yet include the "B" for education – Karin Prien faces a host of challenges. In addition to programmatically aligning the interests of teaching staff and families and financing the planned projects, the organizational merger of the ministries is also pending: Of the 1,200 employees of the former BMBF, those working in the education sector will now have to change employers.