The city of Garching demands a free laptop for all students.
The acquisition is the responsibility of the Ministry of Culture.
Garching
- Laptops and tablets must be made available to schools free of charge, they are part of the freedom of teaching materials.
Armin Eifertinger, Rector at the Werner-Heisenberg-Gymnasium in Garching, and the city council agree on this.
Garching sees it as the task of the Free State, especially the Ministry of Culture, to make these devices available to the students.
The political pressure from below must be increased, education should not depend on the wealth of the municipality.
Mayor Dietmar Gruchmann (SPD) is of this opinion and has the support of the city council.
"The municipalities have to see how they cope with it"
Once again, it is the coronavirus that shows failures.
In school it is now becoming clear who is responsible for ensuring that all students receive equal educational opportunities.
“The Free State demands and the municipalities must see how they cope with it,” grumbled Gruchmann.
In the current case, the issue is that schools have to be made ready for digitization: Broadband and WLAN have to be provided, and teachers and students have to be equipped with appropriate end devices, i.e. laptops or tablets.
The WHG is currently in the process of setting up a functioning WLAN, which has already taken two years.
“Even then, digital or hybrid teaching is not possible, the school laptops are eight to ten years old,” Rector Eifertinger recently reported at the association meeting.
He has long been demanding that all students receive a laptop free of charge.
His credo: “Don't ask the students who we think they need, but offer one to everyone.
If someone doesn't need it, he shouldn't take advantage of the offer. ”Eifertinger believes that any other approach is socially unjust.
“If something doesn't happen quickly, the weaker children will fall by the wayside.
Lessons or learning with a smartphone just doesn't work, "
Pre-financing?
"I see it critically"
For a few weeks now, schools have been reporting to the Garching city administration on a regular basis, all of which urgently need laptops.
However, there is a lack of budgetary resources for this.
"At the WHG we will use up the 60,000 euros set in the budget for the infrastructural measures alone, nothing will be left for the end devices," said Gruchmann.
The alternative would be to procure the equipment and make advance payments.
With the "danger" that the city will not receive funding.
“However, I see this as the freedom to use teaching materials and thus as a task of the Ministry of Education and Cultural Affairs.
But it does not bring itself to courageously go into the template here, ”said Gruchmann and Hans-Peter Adolf (Greens) agreed:
“The Free State ducks here once again.
I take a critical view of pre-financing. "
Jürgen Ascherl (CSU) called for quick action: “We really shouldn't ask ourselves the question.” Using inexpensive devices that, according to Adolf, can also be obtained by appeal for donations, warned Managing Director Sylvia May: “It has to be on all devices uniform software is installed and this is also updated regularly.
We are bound by certain guidelines here. "
Another argument in favor of Gruchmann and Eifertinger's demand to equip all students with a laptop is that it is not just about the group of “individual students in need”.
Many parents are technically well equipped, but have two or more children.
If they are in quarantine at the same time, the second or third device is missing.
For Ulrike Haerendel (SPD), fairness in education is right at the top, "Better to buy a tablet too much than too little".
Ultimately, the councils agreed that municipalities, teachers and parents must build up political pressure.
"The state must stop the funds and must not just demand or gossip," said Adolf.
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