What do the parties in Hesse say on education?

The AfD demands strict political neutrality from teachers, daycare staff and social workers and wants to keep the Beutelsbach Consensus without reinterpretation. Institutions it considers harmful to the community should no longer get tax and financial advantages.

Teachers and daycare staff should be politically neutral. Students should be able to state their opinion without fear. The AfD wants to strengthen the Beutelsbach Consensus for this. That is a rule against political influence in class. Some institutions should lose their tax benefits.

The AfD backs a performance-oriented, permeable system of different school types. Admission to the Gymnasium (academic high school) would be decided by uniform statewide entrance exams, and the practice-oriented Mittelstufenschule would be expanded.

The AfD wants to keep different types of schools. Performance should matter more again. Anyone who wants to go to the Gymnasium should take an exam. The exam should be the same across Hesse. The practice-oriented middle school should become more important.

The AfD opposes closing special-needs schools and considers them the best place for children with disabilities or learning impairments. Inclusion in regular schools should happen only where the degree of impairment and the conditions make success likely.

Special-needs schools are schools for children with disabilities. The AfD wants to keep these schools. It says children get the best help there. Only some children should go to regular classes. The conditions must be good for that.

The AfD wants to make teaching in Hesse more attractive: more practice during training, faster hiring, permanent instead of temporary contracts and relief from administrative work. Teachers should also be able to impose effective sanctions quickly on disruptive students.

Hesse does not have enough teachers. The AfD wants to make the job more attractive. Teachers should get permanent contracts. The state should not let them go during school breaks. Assistants should take over office work. Teachers should be able to punish disruptive students faster.

The AfD wants parents to choose freely between all-day care at school and care at home. All-day care should be free and of high educational quality; parents who look after their children themselves should receive financial compensation.

Parents should choose for themselves: all-day care at school or at home. Care at school should be free and good. Parents who care for their children at home should get money. The state should set aside enough money for this.

The AfD wants to change Hesse's sex education curriculum in force since 2016. Instead of acceptance of different lifestyles and sexual orientations, the goal should be tolerance and respect, and the note that lessons do not depend on parental consent should be removed.

Hesse has a curriculum for sex education. The AfD wants to change it. The word acceptance should be removed. Tolerance and respect should take its place. Parents should have more say. The topic should be handled with restraint in class.

The AfD wants no faith-based Islamic instruction in Hessian schools because it believes this hinders integration. Instead there should be Christian religious instruction as a required elective and non-denominational ethics classes.

The AfD does not want Islam classes that teach the faith in schools. It says they harm integration. There should be Christian religion classes. Students who do not want that go to ethics class. Mosque associations should have no influence in schools.

The AfD wants to strengthen career preparation in all types of schools. A redesigned crafts and work-studies class would be offered everywhere, and more company internships than today would become standard.

Students should be better prepared for working life. All schools should offer crafts and work-studies classes. Students should do internships at companies more often. Schools should work closely with trades and industry.

The AfD wants to keep and expand the dual vocational training system and opposes reducing the number of vocational school sites. Master craftsman courses should be free if graduates then work in Hesse. The master craftsman bonus should rise from 1,000 to 4,000 euros.

The AfD wants to strengthen training in companies and vocational schools. Vocational schools should not close. Training to become a master craftsman should cost nothing. In return, people must then work in Hesse. The bonus for new masters should rise to 4,000 euros.

The AfD wants better digital equipment in schools: Wi-Fi in every classroom, uniform tablets from grade 5 at no extra cost, and computer science as a required subject in secondary schools. In elementary school, traditional teaching of reading, writing and arithmetic should remain the focus.

The AfD wants more technology in schools. Every classroom should have fast Wi-Fi. Students from grade 5 should get a tablet without paying for it. Computer science should become a required subject. In elementary school, children should mainly learn reading, writing and math.

The AfD wants aptitude tests before admission at universities in Hesse, in order to prevent what it sees as over-academization and to reduce dropout rates. At the same time, university autonomy should be strengthened and the "Diplom-Ingenieur" degree should be available again.

The AfD wants tests before people start university. Only those who pass may study the subject. This should mean fewer students drop out. Universities should decide about their own work. The Diplom-Ingenieur degree should still exist.

The AfD wants to introduce tuition fees for students from countries outside the EU. It argues that many Chinese students, for example, take their knowledge home after graduating, so that Hesse is training its own competition.

The AfD wants to charge money for studying. This should apply to students from countries outside the EU. The AfD says many go back home after their studies. The money should go to the universities in Hesse.

The AfD wants to end what it sees as a one-sided preference for university study and boost the reputation of non-academic training. Dual vocational training should be valued as highly as a university degree. The party points to shortages of tradespeople and care workers.

There are not enough tradespeople and care workers. The AfD says politics focuses too much on university. Job training in a company should count just as much. The AfD wants to strengthen the skilled trades.

The AfD wants to keep schools and kindergartens in rural communities wherever possible and to question rules such as class sizes. Other services should be offered on a mobile basis, and hospitals would be replaced by local medical centers.

The AfD wants to keep schools and kindergartens in villages. Classes may be very small for this. Banks, shops, and libraries should travel to the people. Small centers for emergencies should replace hospitals.

The CDU wants to make attending a childcare facility compulsory in the year before a child starts school. Language screening and German-language support in daycare centers are to become mandatory statewide so that all children have a command of German when school begins.

The CDU wants one required year of daycare before school. All children should take a language test. Children who need extra help must attend a preparation course. This way all children should speak good German when school starts.

The CDU wants to keep Hesse's school system with several types of schools and rejects a single comprehensive school for all. Special-needs schools (Förderschulen) are to remain and be expanded as needed; the focus should be on good teaching rather than debates about structure.

The CDU wants to keep the different types of schools in Hesse. It is against one single school for everyone. Special-needs schools should stay and grow where needed. The state should keep spending a lot on schools.

The CDU wants to gradually revise the core curricula so that certain content is taught uniformly across Hesse. More practical life skills and knowledge about the stock market and shares are to be added to lessons.

The CDU wants to renew what schools teach. All students in Hesse should learn certain things the same way. They should learn more for daily life, such as contracts and healthy food. They should also learn about stocks.

The CDU wants to keep expanding all-day programs at schools and hire more staff for them. It rejects compulsory all-day schooling and points to parents' freedom of choice.

The CDU wants more afternoon care at schools. More staff should be hired for this. But parents should decide for themselves. The CDU does not want all-day school to be required.

The CDU supports inclusion in schools as a goal but sees limits and does not consider it the best path for every child. It therefore wants to keep Hesse's Förderschulen (special-needs schools) and rejects a single solution for all children.

Children with and without disabilities can learn together. This is called inclusion. The CDU likes this, but not for every child. So special-needs schools should stay.

The CDU wants to add one more German lesson in grades 1 and 2 and to support math skills even before children start school. Small primary schools are to be kept, especially in rural areas.

Children in grades 1 and 2 should get one more German lesson. There should also be math courses before school starts. Small primary schools in the countryside should stay. That keeps the way to school short.

The CDU wants to keep numerical grades as well as holding students back, grade repetition and transfers to another school track. At the same time, mandatory learning assessments are to be introduced so students can be supported in a more targeted way.

The CDU wants to keep number grades at school. Students should still be able to repeat a year. New tests of learning progress will be required. They should show teachers what help a child needs.

The CDU regards vocational and academic education as equal in value and wants to strengthen dual vocational training. To this end, career guidance is to be expanded, more mandatory internships introduced and all vocational school locations kept.

The CDU says job training is worth as much as university. Students should learn about jobs earlier. There should be more required internships. All vocational schools should stay open.

The CDU wants to make training for the Meister (master craftsman), technician and Fachwirt (business specialist) qualifications free of charge. In addition, an advancement grant is to lower financial barriers to continuing education.

People who want to become a master craftsman or technician should no longer pay for it. The CDU also wants to give money for further training. Money should not stand in the way.

The CDU wants to offer more free swimming lessons for students and to help municipalities maintain and modernize their pools. Physical activity programs at schools, especially in all-day settings, are to be strengthened together with sports organizations.

More students should learn to swim for free. The CDU wants to help towns with their swimming pools. Schools should offer more sports and exercise. Sports clubs should take part.

The CDU wants to pay primary school teachers at the A13 civil-service pay grade and guarantee basic teacher staffing of 105 percent. Additional educational staff, career changers and more funding for schools in difficult settings are to relieve teachers.

Primary school teachers should get more pay. Schools should have more teachers than the minimum they need. Other experts should also help at schools. Schools with many poor children should get more money and staff.

The CDU wants schools to continue teaching democracy, values and extremism prevention and to strengthen historical and civic education. It stands by denominational religious instruction and ethics classes and wants to expand child protection, school psychology and suicide prevention.

Students should learn more about democracy and German history. They should visit important places for this. Religion and ethics classes should stay. Muslim children should also get an offer. Schools should protect children better from violence.

The CDU wants vocational and academic education to be treated equally in law, funding and schooling. Vocational schools are to be better equipped, and students are to come into contact with skilled trades earlier.

The CDU wants job training to count as much as a college degree. Vocational schools get modern equipment and more teachers. Children should learn more about skilled trades at school. There will be a skilled trades day at schools.

The CDU wants to set up a separate Hessian ministry for research and technology and to conclude a "Stärke-Pakt" (strength pact) with universities, research institutions and business. Permit applications for research projects are to be free of charge in the future.

The CDU wants a separate ministry for research and technology. Universities, researchers and firms should agree on a pact. Applications for research should no longer cost money. This should keep Hesse at the top in research.

The CDU wants to raise universities' core funding in the next higher education pact from 2025 and give them more independence again. Rising costs are not to come at the expense of research and teaching.

Universities should get more fixed money from the state from 2025. Prices and building costs are rising. Research and teaching should not suffer from this. Universities should also be allowed to decide more on their own.

The CDU wants to increase funds for the university construction programs HEUREKA and COME and launch a new HEUREKA DIGITAL program for digital infrastructure. An expanded digital pact, a shared university portal and a statewide student app are to follow.

The CDU wants to give more money for university buildings. A new program should improve digital technology at universities. All universities should get one shared online portal. An app should replace the student ID card. Administration should become simpler.

The CDU wants to improve the ratio of teaching staff to students by reforming the teaching-load regulation and capacity law. It adds better student advising, more permanent positions for mid-level academic staff and a more focused range of bachelor's programs.

The CDU wants to improve teaching at universities. There should be fewer students per teacher. Advice for students should get better. More university staff should get permanent jobs. More students should finish their studies successfully.

The CDU wants to continue and increase the funding program for student housing and strengthen the student services organizations. It also wants to examine whether the broadcasting fee can be lowered or dropped for trainees and students.

The CDU wants to fund more housing for students. Cafeteria food should stay cheap and healthy. The CDU will check whether students and trainees can pay less for the broadcasting fee. It will also watch BAföG. BAföG is state money for studying.

The CDU wants Hesse to gain a University of Excellence and to continue and develop the LOEWE research program. Major research sites such as FAIR, hessian.AI and the ESA in Darmstadt are to be strengthened.

Hesse should get a University of Excellence. That is a university with a special award. The LOEWE research program should continue. The state and private firms should do research together. Large research centers in Darmstadt should grow.

The FDP wants daycare centers to lay the groundwork for confident use of digital technology. It plans a funding program for equipment and infrastructure.

Children should learn about digital technology in daycare. The FDP wants to give daycare centers money for this. They can buy devices with it. Staff should get more training.

The FDP wants more state money for language support that starts in daycare and continues throughout school. Sprach-Kitas (language-focused daycare centers) are to be kept and expanded, and the voluntary school preparation year is to grow.

Children should learn to speak well. The FDP wants the state to spend more money on this. Support should start in daycare. It should continue in school. Experts should test early whether a child needs help.

The FDP wants a 'Digital Strategy for Schools in Hesse' covering technology, teaching, teacher training and administration. All schools are to get Wi-Fi, fast internet, modern devices and learning platforms; tablets should be able to replace textbooks.

The FDP wants to give schools modern technology. Every school should have Wi-Fi and fast internet. Children should be able to learn with a tablet instead of books. They should also learn to use media wisely.

The FDP wants compulsory computer science classes available everywhere in lower secondary school by the end of the next legislative term. It also wants to promote the use of artificial intelligence in schools.

All children in grades 5 to 10 should learn computer science. This should be possible everywhere in a few years. The FDP also wants to use artificial intelligence in class. These are computer programs that learn by themselves.

The FDP wants to streamline or scrap reporting duties at schools so more time is left for teaching. Additional secretarial and assistant positions are to take over administrative tasks.

Teachers should have less paperwork. The FDP wants to get rid of some reports. Schools should get more office staff. That leaves more time for teaching.

The FDP wants to expand the self-governing school model and help all schools get there. Schools should decide on their own budgets and staff, which the party believes leads to better results.

Schools should be able to decide more for themselves. They should manage their own money. They should also pick their own staff. The FDP says children then learn better.

The FDP wants to secure basic teaching coverage and plan reserves for absences. Against the teacher shortage it relies on better planning, more attractive working conditions and career changers.

Schools do not have enough teachers. The FDP wants to plan better how many are needed. The job should become more attractive. People from other jobs should be able to teach too.

The FDP wants schools to work more closely with psychologists, therapists, youth welfare services and other professionals. School social work is to grow.

Schools should not only have teachers. The FDP wants more social work at schools. Experts for health and psychology should help too. Elementary schools can get meeting places for families.

The FDP backs the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and wants children with special needs taught at mainstream schools. At the same time, parents should still be able to choose a special school.

Children with disabilities should be able to learn at regular schools. Schools should get enough rooms, materials and staff for this. But parents should also be able to choose a special school. So special schools should stay.

The FDP wants more schools to focus on math, computer science, natural sciences and technology. Schools are to work more closely with out-of-school learning sites, universities and companies.

STEM means science, technology, engineering and math. The FDP wants to strengthen these subjects at more schools. There should be offers during vacations. Children should get to know jobs in this field early.

The FDP wants economics and finance to play a bigger role in the school subject PoWi (politics and economics) at all school types. It sees this knowledge as a precondition for taking part in society.

Children should learn more about money and the economy at school. This applies to all schools. The FDP wants to change the curricula for this. Schools should also be allowed to teach politics and economics as two subjects.

The FDP wants to guarantee at least three hours of physical education per week at all schools, taught by trained PE teachers. Every child should be able to learn to swim safely.

All children should have three hours of sports per week. Trained sports teachers should teach these classes. Every child should be able to learn to swim. So the FDP wants to consider swimming pools when money is shared out.

The FDP wants to identify gifted children early and support them in a targeted way. In the party's view, unrecognized giftedness should not lead to failure at school.

Some children are especially gifted. The FDP wants to spot these children early. They should get advice and help. Teachers should learn how to recognize such children.

The FDP wants a statewide communication strategy that quickly points children, teenagers and parents to available help in a mental health crisis. The platform cites the rise in psychological problems since the pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Many children and teenagers have mental health problems. The FDP wants families to find help fast. All of Hesse should get clear information on where to go. Parents and teachers should also get training.

The FDP wants to abolish fixed catchment areas for elementary schools so that parents can pick the school that suits their child and family situation. Schools would also be allowed to fill up to a quarter of their places based on aptitude, and upper-level students would choose their advanced courses freely.

Today each child is assigned to one elementary school. The FDP wants to change that. Parents should be able to choose the school. Children who live nearby still get a place first. Schools may give some places based on ability.

The FDP calls for a program to recruit more elementary school teachers and to give them more relief and support. In the platform's view, elementary school lays the groundwork for later success in school.

The FDP wants to strengthen elementary schools. It wants to recruit more teachers for them. Teachers should get more support. The degree for this teaching job should take longer. Better pay should come faster.

The FDP wants to keep expanding all-day schools and all-day programs across the state according to need and to deliver the legal right to all-day care that applies from 2026. The party says good all-day care improves equal opportunity.

The FDP wants more all-day schools in Hesse. From 2026, children have a right to all-day care. The FDP supports this goal. The programs should be good and have enough trained staff.

The FDP wants to secure long-term funding for Ersatzschulen, state-recognized private schools that substitute for public ones. Disadvantages these schools face in dealing with the administration are to be removed.

Some schools are not run by the state. They are called Ersatzschulen. The FDP thinks these schools are important. They should get enough money in the long run. The authorities should not treat them worse.

The FDP wants to expand career orientation and counseling in every type of school so that fewer young people drop out of training or college. More internships and close cooperation with businesses and public agencies are meant to help.

Students should learn more about possible jobs. The FDP wants more career advice in all schools. There should be more internships. Then fewer young people should quit their training.

The FDP wants to keep vocational school locations and specialized classes of the dual training system, especially in rural areas, and to attract more young people to vocational training. It sees this as a way to counter the skilled-labor shortage and as local economic development.

The FDP wants more young people to learn a trade. Vocational schools should stay in rural areas too. The way to school should be short. Online classes should also be possible.

The FDP wants to give teacher education more weight and organize professional development at schools better. Every school would get a designated training coordinator, and teachers would have a say in choosing and shaping the courses.

Teachers should be able to keep learning more easily. Every school should have one person in charge of this. Courses should take place more often outside class time. Then fewer lessons are canceled. Teachers who take courses should get career benefits.

The FDP wants fixed-term teacher contracts to continue through the summer break when the state intends to keep employing the teacher afterward. This is meant to end the practice of temporary teachers becoming unemployed over the summer.

Some teachers only have a temporary contract. In the summer break they are often out of work. The FDP wants to end this. The contract should continue in the break if the teacher stays on.

The FDP wants Hesse to have a broad range of adult education by the end of the 2020s and to fund the Volkshochschulen (public adult education centers) permanently rather than project by project. Continuing education should become as ordinary as going to the movies.

Adults should also be able to keep learning. The FDP wants to strengthen adult education centers. They should get steady money from the state. Applying for money should be simpler. More courses should be digital.

The FDP supports faith-based Islamic religious education in Hesse's schools, with outside influence ruled out. Together with universities, it wants to set up German-language imam training.

Schools in Hesse should offer Islamic religion classes. The state trains the teachers for this. Foreign governments should have no influence. Imams should be trained in Hesse in German.

The FDP wants to strengthen school sports and introduce a daily PE lesson at every elementary school equipped for it. Daycare centers, schools and sports clubs are to work together more closely, especially in all-day schooling.

Children should do more sports at school. Elementary schools should offer PE every day if they are able to. Schools and sports clubs should work together more. PE should stay its own school subject.

The FDP wants law students in Hesse to receive a Bachelor of Laws once they have passed all exams required for admission to the first state examination. Those who then fail the state exam would not be left without a degree. Training for legal trainees (Referendare) is also to become more professional.

Some law students fail the big final exam. Then they have no degree. The FDP wants to give them a bachelor's degree before that. The training after university should also get better.

The FDP wants to bring data protection into school lessons and turn the subject of computer science into a subject called Digitalkunde (digital studies). Besides technical knowledge, it is to teach media literacy and security.

Children should learn early how to protect their data. The FDP wants a school subject called digital studies. It should grow out of computer science. Older people should get training too.

The FDP wants to make Hesse one of Europe's leading knowledge regions and move research results into companies faster. Universities are to offer help with spin-offs and share in the success of collaborations. The state is also to ensure sufficient base funding for universities.

The FDP wants Hesse to lead in research. Ideas from universities should reach companies faster. Every university should help people start companies. The state should give universities enough steady money.

The FDP wants positions for staff who already hold a doctorate to generally offer a prospect of permanent employment. According to the platform, short contract terms get in the way of academic work.

Many researchers only have short contracts. The FDP wants to change that. People with a doctorate should have a chance at a permanent job. Women and people with immigrant backgrounds should move up more easily.

The FDP wants to create an office in the state science ministry that people can turn to if they feel disadvantaged at a university because of their opinions. The platform sees freedom of research and teaching as threatened by ideological and political pressure.

The FDP says researchers and students sometimes face pressure over their opinions. So the ministry should have a contact point. People can report there if they are treated unfairly. Every lawful opinion should be possible at universities.

The FDP wants to leave as many decisions as possible to the universities themselves. Those that wish should be able to act as employer and as building owner and to conclude their own collective pay agreements.

Universities should decide more for themselves. They should be able to hire their own staff. They should be able to build on their own. They should also be able to make their own pay agreements. This applies only to universities that want it.

The FDP wants the state parliament rather than the state government to appoint the members of university councils. In the senate, each group's share of votes would depend on the subject, giving students more weight on teaching matters.

The university council oversees the university. In the future, the state parliament should pick its members. In the university senate, students should have more say on teaching. On research, professors mostly decide.

The FDP wants to remove the obligation to have a verfasste Studierendenschaft (statutory student body) from the Hessian university act. Membership would become voluntary.

Today all students automatically belong to the official student body. It represents the students. The FDP wants to end this duty. Each student should decide whether to join.

The FDP wants to continue and expand the Hessian Hochschulpakt (university funding pact) and raise universities' core funding. This is meant to allow longer-term planning and more permanent jobs, while increasing competition on quality in research and teaching.

The university pact is an agreement between the state and universities. It covers money and tasks. The FDP wants to keep it. Universities should get more stable money. Then they can plan better and offer more permanent jobs.

The FDP wants a first degree up to and including the master's to be free at public universities in Hesse. Beyond that, universities should be free to decide whether students contribute to the cost. High-achieving students should get more scholarships.

The first degree up to the master's should stay free. After that, universities may decide whether to charge money. That money stays with the university. Strong students should get more scholarships. A scholarship is money for studying.

The FDP wants to reorganize university funding between the federal and state governments: the state would pay a fixed amount per student to whichever institution the student chooses, regardless of who runs it. Private universities would also receive this money under certain conditions.

The FDP wants to share out university money in a new way. The state pays a fixed amount for each student. The money goes to the university the student picks. Private universities should also get money if they follow certain rules.

The FDP wants more part-time, work-compatible and distance-learning programs as well as digital and hybrid teaching. Dual study programs and university offerings outside the main sites are to be expanded, partly in response to the shortage of skilled workers.

Studying should fit people's lives better. There should be more part-time programs and programs alongside a job. Online offerings should grow too. Rural areas should get more study options. The Fulda site should be strengthened.

The FDP wants to offer considerably more dual study programs in rural regions so that young people do not move away to attend university. Vocational schools should offer good teaching and short commutes.

Many young people move to the city to study. The FDP wants more study programs in the countryside. In a dual program, you learn at a college and at a company. Vocational schools should be close and good. That keeps skilled workers in the region.

The FDP wants every student to be able to use a suitable digital device, either their own or a loaned one. By the end of the legislative term, digital learning materials are to replace textbooks entirely.

Every student should be able to use a digital device. Children can bring their own device. Those who have none get one on loan. Paper textbooks should be replaced by digital learning materials.

The FDP wants to test artificial intelligence in schools in a targeted way, creating a framework for its use and AI innovation schools. Teachers are to acquire digital skills throughout their studies and continuing education, and an expert council would monitor digital education.

The FDP wants to test artificial intelligence in schools. There should be special schools for this. Clear rules should guide its use. Teachers should learn more about digital technology. A council of experts should give advice.

The Greens want to invest heavily in daycare, schools, vocational training and universities. The legal entitlement to education and care for elementary school children is to be put into practice as fast as possible. Every student is to get a tablet with learning software.

The Greens want to spend a lot of money on education. The money is for daycare, schools, job training and universities. Elementary school children should get a right to care. Every student should get a tablet with learning programs.

The Greens want to make dual vocational training more attractive because the number of trainees is falling. New trainee service organizations, modeled on student services, are to support trainees, for example with housing.

Fewer young people start job training. The Greens want to make this training more attractive. New trainee services should help, for example with housing. Students should learn more about jobs at school.

The Greens want to strengthen vocational training and scrap remaining tuition fees, especially for social professions. Extra incentives for shortage occupations, more training places, and a state program for career changers are meant to address the skills shortage.

Hesse lacks skilled workers. So the Greens want to strengthen job training. Some training courses still cost school fees. These fees should go. People without work should also find jobs again.

The Greens want every child to be able to attend an inclusive school while keeping the choice between inclusive schooling and a special-needs school. Inclusion is to apply from nursery through university and in leisure activities.

Children with and without disabilities should be able to learn together. The Greens want this for every child. Parents should still be able to choose a special school. Helpers at school should support the children.

The Greens want to give extra resources to schools facing particular challenges. Teacher allocation based on a social index and state-funded school social work are to be expanded, as are school psychology and school health care.

Some schools have a harder job than others. These schools should get more teachers and more help. The Greens also want more school psychologists. Every school should have a fixed service for this.

The Greens want to reorganize school transport for all grades in a way they consider fairer. Whether the cost of the Schülerticket Hessen (statewide student transit pass) is covered should no longer depend on where a student lives.

Many children take the bus or train to school. Today, where you live decides who gets the ticket paid. The Greens want to change that. Travel costs should not affect which school you choose.

The Greens want to implement the legal right to all-day care for elementary school children as quickly as possible and expand all-day schooling at secondary schools too. Each year 50 more schools should be able to become fully all-day schools; a permanent "Chancenbudget" (opportunity budget) is to pay for extra activities.

The Greens want more all-day schools. Children learn and play there in the afternoon too. Each year 50 more schools should join. Schools should also get their own money for extras, such as sports and culture.

The Greens want to provide every lower secondary student with a tablet or similar device that becomes the student's property through a rent-to-own model. At the same time, media protection, prevention work and computer science skills in schools are to be strengthened.

All students from grade 5 on should get a tablet. Those with little money can borrow one for free. Students should also learn to use the internet safely. In elementary school, reading and writing on paper stay most important.

The Greens want to develop a program for up-to-date school buildings together with the school authorities. In the party's view, schools should be designed as living spaces because children in all-day schooling spend many hours there.

Children spend a lot of time at school. So school buildings should become more modern. The Greens want to develop a program for this with the school authorities. There should be bigger classrooms and more room to move.

The Greens want a learning and exam culture with less test pressure and more individual support. Numerical grades are to be dropped before third grade, written class tests are to become less frequent, and students are to get more choice in the Abitur (university entrance exam).

The Greens want less pressure from tests. In grades 1 and 2 there should be no more grades. Instead, there are reports on how the child is developing. There should be fewer class tests. Students should have more choice in their final exams.

The Greens see multilingualism as an asset and want to promote it more deliberately. Turkish is to become a regular foreign language option, teaching content is to reflect different perspectives, and trans, intersex and non-binary students are to be able to use a self-chosen first name.

Many children speak more than one language. The Greens want to support this more. Turkish should become a normal subject that all schools can offer. Trans students should be able to use the name they choose at school.

The Greens want to develop ethics into a compulsory joint class for all students that covers different worldviews. They cite growing secularization and religious diversity; faith-based religious education is to remain alongside it.

All students should have ethics class together. There they learn about different religions and worldviews. Religion class will still exist. Islamic religion class should grow too.

The Greens want vocational and academic paths to be recognized as equal and movement between them made easier. They justify this with respect for individual strengths and the high demand for skilled workers in trained occupations.

Job training should count as much as a university degree. Students at academic high schools should also learn more about jobs. There should be more internships. The Greens want a big meeting on education, an education summit.

The Greens want to add one weekly lesson to the subject Politics and Economics in every type of school. Student councils and parents are also to get a stronger say at school, municipal and state level.

The Greens want one more lesson of politics and economics each week. This applies to all types of schools. Students should have more say in school decisions. Parents should have more say too.

The Greens want to tackle the teacher shortage with better working conditions, more training and new routes for career changers. Schools are to be allowed to add an administrative head who relieves the pedagogical head of paperwork.

The Greens want to recruit more teachers. Working conditions should get better. People from other jobs should be able to study while working. Schools should be able to have a second head for office work.

The Greens want to keep every vocational school site in Hesse and develop them into competence centers. Digital and hybrid teaching is to cut long commutes, and the state is to cover tuition at private schools for additional shortage occupations.

The Greens want to keep all vocational schools in Hesse. The schools should become specialist centers. More lessons should take place online. That means fewer long trips. For some jobs, the state should pay the school fees.

The Greens want to keep and expand easily accessible education for adults. Volkshochschulen (adult education centers) and other recognized providers are to get more money, and second-chance education is to be strengthened.

The Greens want more education for adults. Adult education centers should get more money. Adults should find it easier to earn school diplomas later. A first job training should also be possible later in life.

The Greens regard teaching and research as equally important tasks of universities. Support programs for students are to become permanent, teaching-focused lectureships are to be expanded, and digital courses are to be shared across universities.

The Greens say teaching matters as much as research. Help programs for students should stay for good. There should be more posts for good teaching. Online courses should be open across all universities.

The Greens want to make it easier to switch between university and vocational training and to expand counseling for students who doubt their choice. According to the platform, the educational path should depend on interests and abilities, not on family background.

The Greens want no one to get stuck in their education. Students with doubts should get good advice. Switching paths should be easier. Family background should not decide a person's education.

The Greens want to strengthen both the basic funding of universities and top-level research. The LOEWE funding program is to become more flexible and faster, and a new fund is to ease spin-offs and the transfer of knowledge into society.

The Greens want to strengthen research in Hesse. The LOEWE funding program should decide faster. A new fund should help start-ups at universities. Knowledge should reach business and society more easily.

The Greens want results and data from state-funded research to be freely available as a rule. Universities are to be allowed by law to adopt civil clauses, meaning commitments to civilian-only research. Research on climate, AI, and peace and conflict is to be a priority.

Research paid for by the state should be free for all to read. Universities should be allowed to adopt civil clauses. That means they do research for civilian purposes only. Research on climate, artificial intelligence and peace should grow.

The Greens want to continue university autonomy and make internal decision-making more transparent. University councils are to have only an advisory role in future, while departments and senates are to be more involved.

Universities should keep deciding many things themselves. It should be clear how decisions are made. University councils should only give advice. Departments and senates should have more say.

The Greens want to fund the Studierendenwerke (student services organizations) according to their tasks through a university social pact. The state subsidy is to be in balance with students' contributions in order to curb price increases in cafeterias and dorms.

Student services run cafeterias, dorms and counseling. The Greens want to give them reliable funding. The state should pay as much as the students do. This should keep prices stable.

The Greens want to keep increasing funds under the Hochschulpakt (the state's funding agreement with universities) by four percent a year. The party rejects tuition fees, and students' administrative fees are to be phased out swiftly.

Universities should get 4 percent more money every year. There should be no tuition fees. Students now pay a fee for administration. This fee should go away soon.

The Greens want to bring universities' continuing-education offerings together in one joint center. The platform points to the high demand for skilled workers caused by economic transformation.

The economy needs many skilled workers. So universities should offer more further training. A joint center should collect the courses. Getting into science and technology should become easier.

The Greens want every child in Hesse to have access to cultural education. A pact for cultural education would anchor creative activities in schools, music schools would get more public money, and libraries would become meeting places.

Every child should be able to discover art and music. Schools should get regular activities for this. Music schools should get more public money. Their teachers should be paid better. Libraries should become places to meet and learn.

The SPD wants to make the exams for Meister (master craftsman), Fachwirt (certified business specialist) and technician free of charge in Hesse. This is meant to help the skilled trades and the economy secure young skilled workers and spare journeymen from taking on large loans. In the preface, the party also promises to secure training sites and vocational schools.

The SPD wants to make the master craftsman exam free. The same goes for similar advanced job exams. Then nobody has to take out a loan for them. More people should get these qualifications. This should help with the shortage of skilled workers.

The SPD wants to secure vocational schools and training sites across Hesse, especially in rural areas. To do so, the minimum number of students per school is to be lowered, and the state government's "future-proof vocational school" concept is to be halted. The schools are to get more teachers and better digital equipment.

The SPD wants to keep vocational schools everywhere in Hesse. This includes schools in rural areas. Small classes should be allowed for this. The schools should get more teachers. They should also get better technology.

The SPD wants students in dual study programs to be treated like apprentices under the law during their in-company phases. Hesse is to push for this at the federal level. Until then, binding statewide rules are to secure training quality and a minimum pay level.

Some people study and work in a company at the same time. This is called dual study. There are few fixed rules for them so far. The SPD wants to treat them like apprentices. Until then, Hesse should make its own rules.

The SPD wants career orientation to start earlier and be offered in every type of school. Topics such as in-company training, workplace democracy and labor unions are to enter the curricula of general education schools. Career counseling is to be reviewed and, if needed, reorganized.

Students should learn about jobs earlier. This should happen at all schools. They should also talk about job training and labor unions. Career advice should fit young people better.

The SPD wants education to be free of charge from early childhood care through to a master craftsman certificate or a master's degree. Educational success should depend neither on parents' income nor on where a child lives. The teacher shortage in Hesse is to be ended.

Education should be free for everyone. This goes from toddler groups to a master's degree. All children should have the same chances. Where they live should not matter. There should be enough teachers.

The SPD wants to present a concrete plan for turning schools into all-day schools, preferably with mandatory or partly mandatory afternoon programs. The legal entitlement to all-day care for elementary-age children is to be met everywhere and secured in the school law. The party sees this as a contribution to equal opportunity.

The SPD wants more all-day schools. Children also learn there in the afternoon. Every elementary school child should get a place. This should be true in every village and neighborhood. The school law should set firm rules for this.

The SPD wants to make digitally supported teaching possible in every classroom. The rule that learning materials are free is to cover digital devices and platforms as well. A digitalization master plan and a new "Center for Education in the Digital World" are to guide the change.

Schools should work more with digital media. Students and teachers get the needed devices for free. Teachers get training for this. A new center should help the schools. Children should also learn to use media safely.

The SPD wants to give schools more independence in teaching and organization. Written descriptions of learning achievement are to become an equal alternative to grades, since the party considers grades to be of limited informative value. Quality is to be secured through a Hesse education report.

Schools should be able to decide more on their own. They should also be able to try new ways of teaching. Instead of grades, schools may write reports on progress. The reports say what a child can already do. They also show the next learning steps.

The SPD commits to religious education that the state runs jointly with churches and religious communities, and wants to offer it for as many denominations as possible. Schools run by independent providers are to remain secured. At the same time, regular checks are to ensure private schools comply with the ban on selecting students by family wealth.

The SPD wants to keep religion classes. They should exist for many faiths. Private schools should also stay. But they may not pick children by their parents' money. The SPD wants to check this regularly.

The SPD wants to expand inclusive teaching in all school types and equip every school for it in terms of buildings, materials and staff. Children are to learn together for longer, above all in integrated comprehensive schools. Schools in difficult settings are to get smaller classes and more support based on a social index.

Children with and without disabilities should learn together. All schools should be able to do this. There will be more staff and smaller classes for it. Children should learn together in one school for longer. Schools with many problems get more help.

The SPD wants to strengthen career and life-skills orientation in all school types and, to that end, introduce the subject Arbeitslehre (work studies) at Gymnasium schools. According to the program, this is meant to give students more freedom of choice for their future path.

The SPD wants a new subject at Gymnasium schools. It is called Arbeitslehre, which means work studies. Students learn about jobs there. All schools should also teach everyday topics. Examples are rental contracts and tax returns.

The SPD wants to support municipalities and nonprofit providers so that adult education centers (Volkshochschulen) and other adult learning programs are kept and expanded. Language support, basic education and civic education are to grow. The party opposes precarious employment in continuing education.

The SPD wants more education for adults. Adult education centers should get help from the state. There should be more language classes. Digital classes should be added too. People who work in adult education should have better conditions.

The SPD wants to end the teacher shortage and canceled classes. To do so, it plans a major expansion of lateral entry into teaching, more university places, and starting pay at grade A13 for all teachers. The party argues that the work of all teachers is of equal value.

The SPD wants more teachers in Hesse. Classes should no longer be canceled. All new teachers should get the same starting pay. This pay grade is called A13. People from other jobs should find it easier to become teachers.

The SPD wants to relieve teachers and principals of administrative tasks and take better account of the hours they actually work. It plans additional administrative posts, an institute for teacher health and an independent ombuds office. The program points to the state's duty of care as an employer.

The SPD wants to take work off teachers. Schools should get more office staff. There should be an institute for teachers' health. Overworked teachers should be able to turn to an independent office. Contracts without pay over the summer break should end.

The SPD wants to expand participation in schools. In the school conference (Schulkonferenz), teachers, parents and students are each to hold the same number of seats. Democracy education is to be anchored in the curricula of all school types.

The SPD wants more say for people at schools. In the school conference, three groups should have the same number of seats. The groups are teachers, parents and students. Students should learn about democracy at school.

The SPD wants to fund school social work at every school and support teams made up of different professions. Schools are to work more closely with clubs, music schools and other partners. Youth work outside of school is to remain independent.

The SPD wants social workers at every school. Schools should work more with local clubs. Music schools should be part of this too. Volunteer work by students should appear on report cards. The SPD also wants more student exchanges.

The SPD wants learning materials to be entirely free of charge and free of advertising, and aims for free lunches at schools. This is meant to counter child poverty. School psychology, school health professionals and protection against sexual abuse are also to be expanded.

The SPD wants learning materials to cost nothing. School lunch should become free too. This should help poor children. Schools should get more health professionals. Schools should protect children better from abuse.

The SPD wants to keep university study free of fees and abolish Hesse's administrative fee. Access to higher education should depend less on family background, so a state program for children of non-academics is planned. Vocational training and university study are to become more permeable.

The SPD wants university to cost nothing. An administrative fee should be dropped. Children of parents without a degree should get help. More people should be able to study without the Abitur school diploma. Part-time study should become easier too.

The SPD wants to give the Studierendenwerke (student services organizations) more money and make the semester transit pass cheaper through state subsidies. A Hesse scholarship is to support students entering professions with lasting skills shortages. At the federal level, the party wants to press for a reform of BAföG (student financial aid).

The SPD wants to help students more. The student services organizations should get more money. They run dorms and cafeterias. The semester transit pass should get cheaper. There should be a Hesse scholarship for jobs that lack workers.

The SPD wants to turn the currently voluntary "Kodex für gute Arbeit" (code for good work) at universities into a binding rule covering all staff groups. Fixed-term contracts are to be cut back sharply. Student assistants are to get a collective agreement and, in the short term, 15 percent higher pay.

Many university staff only have temporary contracts. The SPD wants more permanent jobs. Rules for good work should become mandatory. Student assistants should get a collective pay agreement. Their pay should quickly rise by 15 percent.

The SPD wants to reduce teaching loads and improve the student-to-teacher ratio at universities. Digital teaching is to get binding standards, and universities are to teach digital skills. According to the platform, good teaching shortens study times and lowers dropout rates.

University teachers in Hesse have to teach a lot. The SPD wants to lower this load. There should be fewer students per teacher. Digital teaching should follow fixed rules. Students should learn how things like artificial intelligence work.

The SPD wants to give students, mid-level academic staff and non-academic staff more say in universities. As a reference, the platform points to states with "Viertelparität" (four-way parity), where all four groups are equally represented on governing bodies. Volunteer work should be easier to combine with studying.

More groups should help decide things at universities. This applies to students and staff. Students should get a body that speaks for them across Hesse. It should also be allowed to speak on general politics. Students who volunteer should get more time for their studies.

The SPD wants to raise funding for Hesse's universities to the level of institutes jointly financed by the federal government and the states. An immediate program is to offset higher prices. The platform stresses predictability for research and teaching.

Universities in Hesse should get more money they can count on. Prices have gone up, so there should be a quick emergency program. The SPD does not want to wait until 2025. It also wants to pay for more permanent jobs.