#IchStehAuf: "Children have a voice that counts"

Wars, extremism, and elections – society’s conflicts are reflected in schools and this is increasingly putting the focus on democracy education. The Robert Bosch Stiftung and the Heidehof Stiftung have therefore launched the "#IchStehAuf – Schulen für Demokratie und Vielfalt" (Istand up – schools for democracy and diversity) in cooperation with ARD and the ZEIT publishing group. The highlight is a nationwide day of action on June 6.  The initiative was launched by the German School Award winners’ network, which includes more than 100 schools. We asked three head teachers from the network how interaction at their school has changed and why it is so important to promote democracy right now.

“This school year, we have realized that we need to focus much more on democracy education. Participation has actually been a big topic at our school for a long time, but due to the school closures during the coronavirus pandemic, a lot of it has been lost on the children. The students were less connected to the school because there weren’t many activities on offer for a long time. This was reflected in vandalism, for example.

We reacted to this by involving the students even more. We asked the kids about the toilets: ‘What do you need to make this place work?’ The children wanted art in the toilet areas, and we implemented that. We have just organized a toilet unveiling. Vandalism has decreased by 90 percent. That means we have to show the children that they have a voice that counts. Not just in the classroom.

In a school, there are situations of togetherness everywhere and therefore also situations of practiced democracy everywhere. At the beginning of the year, there were large demonstrations in Heidelberg following CORRECTIV’s research into the deportation plans of right-wing extremists. I also saw students from the Waldpark school there. There are a lot of children with a migration background at our school. With the #IchStehAuf campaign, we can give our students a voice.”

“October 7 caused a lot of upheaval at our school. I learned a lot myself, as did the whole staff. When Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, schools in NRW were on their autumn vacations. There was a lot of uncertainty in the staff chat about how to communicate the terrorist attack and the retaliation to the many Muslim children and young people at our school. We feared there might be conflicts that we as teachers would no longer be able to control.

We actually had a very different experience. The students took a very differentiated view of what was happening in the Middle East conflict when we listened to them seriously. Especially those who come from the Palestinian territories themselves were often better informed than the teachers. Something has changed since then. Many teachers are more aware of the dialogue, ask questions, listen. Statements are not immediately categorized. And the students notice that. They’re pleased that we have become more open to political discussions, that we’re genuinely interested in what they think. I’ve often heard them say the following: “No one has ever asked us that before.” 

We organized two training days here on the subject of racism and exclusion. The aim was to respond to the children and young people with genuine attention rather than clichés. At the end of the school year, we’ll organize three project days with the entire school community on the topic of diversity.”

“The agony that can currently be observed in society can also be seen locally. A new state parliament will be elected in Thuringia on September 1, and we are looking – like a rabbit staring at a snake – at political developments that could prevent us from continuing to live in a country that is open to the world. It is important for us to break out of this stagnation and actively participate in social discussions.

As a school, we have joined the “For an open-minded Thuringia” network. Since then, this has been visible to everyone on a large banner on the street. So, we have already taken a stand and we want to send out a conscious signal: We are not closing ourselves off, we are defending universal human rights that are there for everyone. We remain open to people with experience as refugees, even if the associated challenges for local authorities are huge. With the #IchStehAuf initiative, we can also send this signal nationwide, which is important to us. Quiet people with constructive ideas are often not audible, in contrast to those who are loud and resort to shallow slogans. We want to make ourselves heard as a school, join forces with others, and make it clear that it is now a matter of our remaining a democratic country.

Of course, we discuss fundamental issues such as migration or war and peace with the studentsat our school. And, of course, just like in society, we also have different opinions. We arrange discussion groups with organizations and politicians throughout the year. Participation is part of the Jenaplan school concept. Our experience shows that if the children have learned to formulate their own opinions well, to listen to others, and to discuss, then it is also possible to agree on common basic demands on society.”