How political can schools be?
A conversation about the so-called duty of neutrality, democracy in the classroom, and what education journalism must deliver now
Date
Wed, Nov 11, 2026
Admission
6:00 PM
Start
6:30 PM
End
8:00 PM
Promoter
Publix gGmbH
Speakers
Annette Kuhn, Prof. Dr. Michael Wrase, Bent Freiwald, Eva Gerth
Homeschooling instead of compulsory education, the end of inclusion, more emphasis on the German Empire in history classes: the AfD's programme for Saxony-Anhalt shows how deeply the party wants to change the social role of schools. At the same time, it repeatedly invokes an alleged duty of neutrality to denounce criticism from teachers as partisan. But how neutral can schools be when democratic core values are called into question?
At this Publix Thursday, we turn our attention to the classroom:
- How does political polarization affect everyday school life?
- How much of a stance can teachers show, and how much must they?
- And what does it take now to keep schools a place where participation and democracy can be lived?
Eva Gerth, teacher and state chair of the GEW Saxony-Anhalt, education law expert Prof. Dr. Michael Wrase, and education journalist Bent Freiwald discuss these and other questions with Annette Kuhn.
This Publix Thursday takes place as part of the Nina Grunenberg Fellowship for Education Journalism.
Speakers
Annette Kuhn
Moderation: Education dossier Kuhn + Schleper
Prof. Dr. Michael Wrase
University of Hildesheim and head of the research group “Law and Governance in the Context of Social Inequalities” at the WZB Berlin Social Science Center
Bent Freiwald
Education journalist at the online magazine Krautreporter, podcaster, and author
Eva Gerth
teacher and state chair of the Gewerkschaft Erziehung und Wissenschaft (GEW) Saxony-Anhalt