Berlin, 22 September 2026. The Confederation of German Employers’ Associations (BDA) and the German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) are jointly advocating better education in Germany as part of their Education Conference. In their joint statement for the 2024 Education Conference, the social partners already called for an education drive with clear objectives, binding cooperation and long-term responsibility across all levels of government: by 2035, the number of young people who do not achieve basic competencies, leave school without a qualification or have no vocational qualification should be significantly reduced. To achieve this, public spending on education must be increased in a targeted and effective manner. These demands remain as relevant as ever.

Educational quality and equal opportunities are crucial challenges for the future. Every young person must have the opportunity to pursue a successful educational pathway, participate in society and make a successful transition into working life. Educational success must not depend on social background, where someone lives or their parents’ financial means. To achieve this, the education system needs clear objectives, binding responsibilities, qualified professionals, effective measures, and consistent monitoring and adjustment. The recently agreed joint “Roadmap” by the Federal Government and the Länder is an important step in this direction. What matters now is to implement these plans decisively and swiftly take further steps. Improving educational quality and equal opportunities is urgent and must be a priority.

Digitalisation is fundamentally changing the demands placed on education. Young people must be equipped to use digital media and technologies responsibly, critically and competently. Media literacy, sound judgement and resilience are key competencies in a digitally shaped world. Education policy must actively shape this development and systematically promote the relevant competencies. At the same time, demographic change makes one thing clear: Germany cannot afford to leave potential untapped. Declining birth rates make every individual educational pathway all the more important. Educational disadvantage must therefore be systematically reduced, individual support strengthened and the educational success of all young people placed at the centre of policy. This is the only way to safeguard social cohesion, the supply of skilled workers and economic performance in the long term.

Artificial intelligence is having a particularly profound impact on education, the world of work and society. Education policy must actively respond to this development. AI competencies must be taught as a binding element throughout the education pathway. The potential of AI must be harnessed to improve education, while at the same time ensuring transparency, data protection, equal opportunities, a sense of responsibility and human decision-making authority.

Education is the foundation for individual opportunities, social cohesion and economic strength. A strong democracy needs citizens who think critically and act responsibly. It needs an education system that passes on the values of our free, democratic order under the rule of law and enables young people to experience them in practice. Tolerance, respect, diversity and openness to the world are essential prerequisites for living well together and for our country’s future viability. Educational institutions are places where children and young people learn together, encounter different ways of life, acquire values and practise open and respectful interaction. Anyone who calls compulsory schooling into question is seeking to remove children from this shared space for education and experience. The social partners are unequivocal: compulsory schooling is indispensable. The Bundesrat’s resolution reaffirming compulsory schooling sends a clear and positive signal.

Education is a shared investment in our country’s future and must receive sufficient and sustained public funding. More than in the past, education policy must be guided by clear objectives, take a science-based approach and reflect more systematically on the impact of its measures. Alongside approaches that can deliver results in the short term, what is finally needed is a long-term strategy, reliable priorities and needs-based provision of the necessary resources. The “Roadmap” agreed by the Federal Government and the Länder for better educational quality and greater equality of opportunity must be further specified, underpinned by binding milestones and implemented decisively. Achieving the agreed objectives requires education governance capable of identifying the need for action at an early stage, making progress transparent and enabling effective allocation of resources. Data-based insights should provide effective support for teachers and schools in meeting individual learning needs.

Improving educational quality and promoting equal opportunities require a shared understanding of the key education policy objectives as well as coordinated action among the Länder and between the Länder and the Federal Government. Given the scale of the challenges, joint agreements, binding commitments and consistent implementation are becoming increasingly important. Local authorities, as key actors responsible for local education landscapes, must be closely involved. Social partners and civil society should be systematically involved in developing and implementing education policy measures. Good education succeeds where responsibility is shared, expertise is brought together and common objectives are pursued consistently. Social partnership also makes an important contribution by taking responsibility, balancing interests and developing joint solutions.

Safeguarding and further improving the quality of schools must be consistently geared towards ensuring that all pupils acquire the basic competencies they need for their personal development, further education and working life. These include subject-specific, social, democratic and digital competencies alike. Particular attention must be paid to children and young people with less favourable starting conditions, whose needs should be identified early and addressed through targeted support. Data-informed school and teaching development must not stop at analysis but must have a positive impact on teaching and learning outcomes. Teachers must be able to rely on effective support in meeting the individual learning needs of all pupils. They need practice-oriented initial training and more needs-based continuing professional development, including the more targeted use of data that is now required and learning both with and about AI.

The rapid development of AI is presenting the education system and education policy with new challenges. The objective must be to ensure that young people can use AI competently, responsibly and critically. AI offers considerable opportunities for personalised learning, supporting educators and improving educational processes. Education policy must now create the conditions needed to realise these opportunities. These include clear legal frameworks, appropriate learning opportunities, staff training and investment in digital infrastructure. The DigitalPakt 2.0 must now be implemented swiftly in the Länder so that schools receive the necessary funding and support. The use of AI places renewed emphasis on key competencies. Critical thinking, teamwork, creativity, personal responsibility and shared responsibility must be developed and strengthened throughout the education pathway, both in curricula and in practice. The use of AI must always be guided by pedagogical criteria. Digital learning environments and AI can provide support, but they cannot replace qualified education professionals and teachers.

Early childhood education lays the foundation for subsequent educational and developmental pathways. Alongside the family, early childhood education and care settings are now the most important places of learning. They make a crucial contribution to individual development, social learning, language development and equal opportunities. Although demographic trends mean that demand for childcare is declining in some regions, there remains a high overall demand for childcare places. Further expanding early childhood education and care and safeguarding its quality must therefore remain a priority for the Federal Government, the Länder and local authorities. Children who have so far been unable to benefit from early education in an early childhood education and care setting must be reached more effectively. Existing barriers to access must be removed and all families provided with easy access to high-quality early education.

The legal entitlement to all-day education and care for primary school children is an important step towards greater educational equality, participation and the reconciliation of family and working life. Further efforts by local authorities, the Länder and the Federal Government are required to turn this legal entitlement into a reliable and high-quality provision across the country. Alongside expansion in line with demand, the focus must be on safeguarding and further improving quality. This requires a common quality framework, robust pedagogical concepts and sufficient skilled staff. All-day provision creates additional opportunities for individual learning, support, participation and social development. Cultural, sporting and creative educational activities, as well as initial encounters with the world of work, can be effectively integrated into all-day provision. Involving the wider local community, for example associations, businesses and volunteers, is a valuable complement to what schools themselves provide.

The shortage of skilled professionals and teachers in the education system is increasingly affecting both the provision and quality of education. Attracting, qualifying and retaining staff requires attractive working conditions, good development and career prospects, and a long-term workforce strategy. At the same time, effective measures are needed to reduce the burden on education professionals and teachers so that they have more time to work directly with children and young people. Multi-professional teams should be expanded as an integral part of quality development. Their members are important points of contact for children and young people and provide support for their learning and health. A supportive learning environment is indispensable for sustainable learning and the willingness to perform.

Young people should be able to shape their future careers confidently and on the basis of sound information. This requires early, systematic and strengths-based careers guidance that opens up opportunities and enables choices free from stereotypes. Schools have a responsibility to help young people discover and develop their strengths and interests, build a sound understanding of occupations and education pathways, and formulate plans for their own futures. Practical experience, particularly in companies, and close cooperation between schools and businesses, social partners, careers services and other regional partners are indispensable. Youth Employment Agencies (Jugendberufsagenturen) and comparable structures must be strengthened and should proactively reach out to and support young people who leave general education without a clear next step, wherever possible until they complete vocational training. The social partners also make an important contribution through their work in this area.

Vocational schools are indispensable partners in Germany’s dual vocational education and training system and provide vocational preparation, opportunities to obtain general school qualifications at a later stage, as well as school-based vocational education, training and continuing education. They contribute to securing the supply of skilled workers and to the professional and personal development of young people. They provide the competencies required for successful working lives and careers as well as for participation in society. To continue fulfilling this role in the future, they need modern equipment and infrastructure, sufficient numbers of qualified teachers, and attractive learning and working conditions. Close cooperation between vocational schools, training companies, social partners and other stakeholders in vocational education and training is a particular strength of the German system and must be continuously developed.