In 2021, the "Agreement on the Common Basic Structure of the School System and the National Responsibility of the Länder in Central Questions of Education Policy" of the Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder came into force.

Associated with the agreement is the establishment of a "Permanent Scientific Commiss ion for the Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder". The task of this body is to advise the Länder on issues related to the further development of the education system and on how to deal with its challenges.  Particular attenion is on ensuring and developing quality, on improving the comparability of the education system and on developing medium- and longer-term strategies on educational issues relevant to the Länder as a whole.  This Scientific Commission takes an interdisciplinary, longer-term, systemic perspective along the educational biography. It will initially be established for a limited period of time.

The agreement between the Länder replaces the "Agreement between the Länder of the Federal Republic of Germany in the Field of Education" (the so-called Hamburger Abkommen) of  1971. This 50-year-old document has been developed by the members of the Conference over the past decades, whenever current challenges demanded it. The agreement places the cooperation of the Länder on a common basis.

In a total of 44 articles, this document covers central questions of quality assurance, overarching principles of education and upbringing, the tasks of those involved in schools, general regulations (such as holiday arrangements), the structure and organisation of the school system and issues on teacher training.

In connection with this agreement, the permanent Commission agreed on a number of "political projects" to be implemented in the next few years, such as:

• In the area of quality assurance, the Länder undertake to use the instruments described in the overall Strategy and to integrate them into Länder-specific, coherent systems of quality assurance and development.
• The Länder shall consistently pursue the goals agreed in the Strategy "Education in the Digital World" and the DigitalPakt Schule.
• The members revise the "Recommendations for Work in Primary Schools" by 2022 in the light of the results of the relevant school performance comparisons.
• The members fundamentally revises the "Agreement on Types of School and Courses of Education in the Lower Secondary Level" by 2022.
• The Länder continue to harmonise their frameworks for the design of the Gymnasiale Oberstufe.
• In order to strengthen vocational schools, a joint "Pact for Vocational Schools" is to create the necessary update to the framework for vocational education.
• The Länder shall jointly continue their measures to improve the quality of teacher training.

Source: Eurydice Unit Germany