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Education in East Germany was a high priority for the communist government, and was compulsory from age six to age sixteen.
There were state run crèches, kindergartens, polytechnical schools, vocational training and universities.
Crèches
As almost all East German parents (85%) worked outside of the home, there was a significant need for adequate childcare services. East German crèches were for children up to age three.
As many of these crèches were built during the post-war period, when many new buildings were constructed in East Germany, they were often incorporated into residential blocks so parents could pick their children up and need not travel far home.
Many factories and collective farms also had their own crèches.
There were enough places in the crèches for 58% of East German children to attend.
Kindergartens
East German kindergartens, as with others around the world, acted as a chance for children from age three to six to learn to interact with other children and get used to the idea of learning.
Children were also encouraged to take an active role in the running of their kindergartens. Children often served each other meals and helped keep the kindergarten clean and tidy.
There were enough places in kindergartens for 94% of East German children to attend.
Polytechnical Schools
The East German equivalent of the primary school and high school was the ten-year polytechnical school, for children six to sixteen.
Polytechnical schools focused strongly on science and mathematics, and until the tenth year there was little opportunity to deviate from either of these. The East German government considered these two subjects to be of key importance to a fast growing, industrial country like East Germany.
Special emphasis was also placed on learning Russian, as the GDR was a satellite state of the Soviet Union. A majority of students had little motivation for this subject, and achievements were generally poor; few students reached fluency. In spite of the state-proclaimed friendship with the USSR, there were few opportunities for student exchanges and for experiencing the pleasure of communicating in the other's language.
From the seventh year onwards, students visited a factory or a farm one day per week, depending on their location. At either of these places, the student would work alongside regular employees.
There were annual championships on various subjects with the winners receiving prizes. The Russian language and mathematics championships were very prestigious and competitive.
Vocational Training
After the tenth year of polytechnical school, a student could either end his education or continue on to two years of vocational training in a specialised subject such as building, telecommunications or electronics.
The student could either choose to do this training on a collective farm or in a factory, depending on what he wished to do for a career.
At the end of vocational training, a student could take the Abitur (similar to the A-level in England), and if he passed, go on to university or a specialised technological school.
Universities
East German universities were very closely linked to both schools and to industry.
Mostly focused on technical education, these universities were highly regarded all over the world to be of a very high standard.
There were two ways to get into a university: continuing straight on from vocational training, or, for those who did not choose to continue past polytechnical school, there was a choice of entering university several years afterwards, through night classes organised by many large firms.
Reference
One Europe: East Germany by Sylvia Löf, Ingrid Mållberg and Dietrich Rosenthal, ISBN 0-582-22168-4, published by Longman
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