Education creates opportunities that last a lifetime. It is the foundation of our prosperity and for strong cohesion in our society.
In times of crisis, we become all the more aware of how valuable and crucial education is for all of us. The coronavirus pandemic posed immense challenges to education systems in Germany and all over the world. The damage it caused is yet to be specified in exact numbers. The war of aggression waged by Russia against Ukraine brings its own major challenge: that of integrating traumatized children and young people into our education system who have fled from the war. Other tasks also remain urgent. We have to move forward in the digital transformation, especially in education, and we have to speed up our efforts. A great deal remains to be done.
It is important to know as much about the current situation as possible if we are to master these challenges. A look at the numbers helps to answer questions like the following: Where exactly does education stand in Germany? Which are the central developments of recent times? What can we expect in the coming years? Which features of the education landscape help us understand these developments? On the next pages we put together central indicators and key figures to highlight the most important of these features.
We would like to start with an example. The value attached to education can be measured by how much money is spent on it. While education expenditure in Germany was 175 billion euros in 2010, it rose to 241 billion euros by 2020. This is reflected in the 2019/2020 budget for education, research and science as reported by the Federal Statistical Office. The Federal Government and the Länder will work to ensure that this positive trend continues.
