Proposals Made by the Commission to the Council and Council
In a surprising turn of events, Saxony-Anhalt's Minister President Reiner Haseloff dismissed Education Minister Eva Feußner on Sunday evening. The reason for the dismissal remains unclear, as neither Haseloff nor Feußner has provided a statement on the matter.
Dr. Hans-Thomas Tillschneider, the spokesperson for the AfD state parliamentary fraction for education, culture, and science, has made a statement regarding the dismissal. However, he did not offer a reason for Feußner's departure, reiterating his belief that the move is a desperate attempt to find a scapegoat for poor education policy and make it public, given the approaching election date.
Tillschneider has been a vocal critic of the current education system in Saxony-Anhalt, highlighting issues such as violence in schools, declining quality of diplomas, overburdening of teachers, and resulting teacher shortages. He has not expressed support for the appointment of Jan Riedel as the new Education Minister, but has suggested that the changes he proposes will only happen when the AfD takes over the state in September 2026.
As for Riedel, the gymnasial director is set to become the new Education Minister, although Tillschneider has not commented on his appointment. The location of the events is Magdeburg.
The current education policy in Saxony-Anhalt follows the general federal framework where education is accessible and compulsory for all children, including migrants and asylum seekers, regardless of their status. School attendance is mandatory from age 6 to 16, with provisions for early childhood education and vocational training. However, dual study programs are not very popular in Saxony-Anhalt, with only about 1% of first-year students enrolled, reflecting limited uptake compared to other German states.
Regarding the AfD party's proposals for education reform in Saxony-Anhalt, specific details are yet to be found. Generally, the AfD advocates for conservative changes in education that often emphasize traditional national curricula, increased focus on German language and culture, and skepticism towards EU integration in education policy. However, recent proposals by AfD in Saxony-Anhalt would need to be sourced from party manifestos or regional policy documents.
Tillschneider attributes these problems to a policy that has lost sight of the purpose of schools. He suggests that the state does not need a new Education Minister, but a new education policy that frees schools from non-academic tasks, ends the inclusion madness, sets up special classes for refugee children, disciplines violent students, and restores the educational level through a performance-differentiated school system.
For precise and up-to-date AfD proposals for Saxony-Anhalt’s education system, direct party sources or recent regional policy reviews would be necessary.
- The policy-and-legislation surrounding education in Saxony-Anhalt, as outlined by the AfD party, tends to emphasize conservative changes, including a focus on traditional national curricula and increased emphasis on German language and culture.
- In the general news, Dr. Hans-Thomas Tillschneider, a spokesperson for the AfD state parliamentary fraction for education, culture, and science, has suggested that the current education policy in Saxony-Anhalt has lost sight of its purpose, proposing reforms such as ending the inclusion madness, setting up special classes for refugee children, and disciplining violent students.
