Foreign language abolition at schools: outrage about Kretschmann's plan!

Foreign language abolition at schools: outrage about Kretschmann's plan!

Stuttgart, Deutschland - A controversial proposal by the Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg Winfried Kretschmann triggers outrage nationwide. The politician of the Greens believes that students will no longer have to learn a second foreign language for the Abitur in the future. "We no longer need that today," emphasized Kretschmann at a media congress in Stuttgart. He argued that modern technology, such as translation devices, made learning languages ​​superfluous. Critics, such as the Philologists' Association, are alerted and feel his assessment as a profound attack on the education system and especially on high school, such as News4Teachers reported.

Heinz-Peter Meidinger, former president of the German Teachers' Association, condemns the plans and points out that the loss of a second foreign language would negate a significant educational value. Using the example of a language, Meidinger explains: "In every language there is a different view of the world that you can only experience if you master the language yourself." Even linguists like Maren Pauli from the Babbel language learning platform warn that learning languages ​​not only promotes linguistic, but also empathetic and intercultural skills. "Learning a new language helps to reduce prejudices and prepares young people for a globalized world", Pauli will be in an article by merkur.de cited.

technology versus education

Kretschmann's idea of ​​exchanging the second foreign language for a subject of digital media literacy is affected by violent resistance. Critics argue that language is the basis for access to cultures and identities and that pupils with only rudimentary language knowledge could fall back in global competition. The GEW chairman Monika Stein emphasizes that learning a language goes beyond the mere ordering of an ice cream on vacation. "The sensible learning of a foreign language needs the conversation with each other," she clarifies. While Kretschmann wants to focus on digital competence, educational experts warn that the loss of language skills could also endanger the use of modern technologies. "Ultimately, missing language is harmful to the AI," said the philologists boss Martina Scherer.