Education in East Germany

Education in the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) was a high priority for the communist government, and was compulsory from age six to age sixteen.

There were state run crèches, kindergartens, polytechnical schools, vocational training and universities.

Crèches

As almost all East German parents (85%) worked outside of the home, there was a significant need for adequate childcare services. East German crèches [Kinderkrippe] were for children up to age three. Crèches often were next to the Kindergarten-building. There was even a time for young GDR women to serve or volunteer in crèches in order to bring their own children up well.

In many crèches, doctors and dentists were located to take care of the young kids. The same applied to the Polytechnic Schools.

As many of these crèches were built during the post-Second World War period, when many new buildings were constructed in East Germany, they were often incorporated into residential blocks so parents could pick their children up without travel long distances to and from home.

Many factories and collective farms also had their own crèches.

Overall, the crèches provided spots for 58% of East German children to attend. There were no fees charged for crèches, and none for Polytechnic Schools or East German Universities.

Kindergartens

East German kindergartens, as with others around the world, acted as a chance for children from age three to six to learn to interact with other children and get used to the idea of learning.

Children were also encouraged to take an active role in the running of their kindergartens. Children often served each other meals and helped keep the kindergarten clean and tidy.

There were enough places in kindergartens for 94% of East German children to attend.

Polytechnical schools

East German equivalent of the primary school and high school was the ten-year polytechnical school, for children six to sixteen. It was a progressive school and students went to school six days a week. On Saturdays, there were approximately four hours of lessons.

Polytechnical schools focused strongly on science, mathematics, geography, astronomy, chemistry, sport as well as practical work [Werken- works or PA = Produktive Arbeit- productive work] , and until the tenth year there was little opportunity to deviate from either of these. The East German government considered these subjects to be of key importance to a fast growing, industrial country like East Germany and to give the young people of East Germany the best key and preparation for post-secondary education.

Special emphasis was also placed on learning Russian, as the GDR was a satellite state of the Soviet Union. Also available were English and French. A majority of students had little motivation for Russian, and achievement was generally poor; few students reached fluency. In spite of the state-proclaimed friendship with the USSR, there were few opportunities for student exchanges and to experience the pleasure of communicating in the other's language. Appreciated by parents were the so-called head marks [Kopfnoten] which assessed behavior, industriousness, order, and cooperation. These were combined with a short teacher's essay about the student's character, success or progress - often from a socialistic point of view.

From the seventh year onwards, students visited a factory, power station or farm one day per week, depending on their location. At any of these places, the student would work alongside regular employees.

There were annual championships on various subjects with the winners receiving prizes. The Russian language and mathematics championships were very prestigious and competitive as well as regular championships in sport, called Spartakiade [from the word Spartacus] .

Vocational training

After the tenth year of polytechnical school, a student could either end his education or continue on to 2 1/2 or 3 years (depending on subject) of vocational training in a specialised subject such as building, telecommunications or electronics.

Vocational training was split in practical work and theoretical learning which focused both on the studied subject of career.

The student was then integrated in a collective farm or in a factory, depending on what he wished to do for a career.The vocational training could take place in the students home town, but often occurred in another city. Students lived there in an Internat(bording school). In most cases that was the first time in the young persons life they lived "independent" from their parents home for one or two years. The students where allowed to visit home on the weekends.

At the end of vocational training, a student could take the "Abitur" (similar to the A-level in England), and if he passed, go on to university or a specialised technological school. But in most cases the student worked in a factory or in the field of his or her vocational training subject.

Universities

East German universities were very closely linked to both schools and to industry.

Mostly focused on technical education, these universities were highly regarded all over the world to be of a very high standard.

There were two ways to get into a university: continuing straight on from vocational training, or, for those who did not choose to continue past polytechnical school, there was a choice of entering university several years afterwards, through night classes organised by State firms.

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