He gives young people a voice

Oliver Sachsze

It all began at the Josephinenschule. It was there that Oliver Sachsze first became class representative almost ten years ago. Today, the 21-year-old can look back on a remarkable career in student representation that has taken him all the way to national level. For three and a half years, for example, he has headed the Chemnitz City Student Council. Oliver Sachsze explains what has motivated him to get involved for so many years and what urgently needs to be changed in the educational landscape in this Doer of the Week interview.

Mr Sachsze, you have been a member of the National Student Conference since November 2021, where you are the subject coordinator for finance. In politics, you would say: career made. Is that how you see it?
Oliver Sachsze: Oh, no. A lot of things just happened. It all started in the fifth grade with the student councils. I thought it was cool and really wanted to get involved. First I was deputy class representative, then class representative from year six. From year seven, I joined the city school council. At some point, you end up as a delegate on the state level via the board of the city student council, and I moved up to the board of the state student council when I resigned. Since November 2019, I was deputy chair of the Saxony State Student Council. But now I'm only on the state board as an advisor because I'm finishing my apprenticeship in the summer and will no longer be a student.

That sounds like a lot of bureaucracy and boring meetings. Is that correct?
In the state student council, we are the point of contact for the Ministry of Education and other political players. In the Federal Pupils' Conference, we act at the level of the Conference of Education Ministers. Of course it's a shame when you have to cancel meetings with friends at the weekend because you have to go to the plenary session in Saarbrücken. But that's how you make contacts and get things moving.

Did your school career go just as smoothly?
No, not at all. I first went to the Josephinenoberschule. After that, I tried the Abitur, but gave up after a year and a half. I wanted to do something, I had the goal of becoming a dance teacher. But that didn't work out, so in 2019 I ended up in a so-called pre-vocational training programme run by the job centre. That was a dark age. We started at 6.30 a.m. and had to write applications the whole time. I swore to myself that I would never do that again. I then ended up at a company via an internship and started training as a wholesale and foreign trade clerk.

What is your role in the National Student Conference?
I deal with applications for funding, for example. There are three subject coordinators and a general secretary. Unfortunately, only 13 federal states belong to the Bundesschülerkonferenz, which was founded in 2004, as membership is not stipulated by law. Nevertheless, our goal is to be an exchange platform for pupils throughout Germany.

Why is a strong student council so important?
Because we experience everyday school life differently to teachers or parents. For example, the pandemic has shown that digitalisation has been completely overlooked. But we are a generation that is incredibly tech-savvy. Digitalisation is not enough if we replace the Polylux at school with a projector and throw the slides up on the wall. We need workshops for teachers. And do I have to lug three folders of worksheets home at the end of the school year or isn't there a digital solution? After all, that's exactly what's expected of us later in our careers. That's why we say: Teachers need media skills.

Can pupils' ideas always be implemented?
No, not at all. Of course we also have crazy ideas: equipping the computer lab with Apple devices, for example. But it's about listening to us, seeing what resources are available and finding a solution together.

What are the biggest problems in schools?
Besides digitalisation, it's definitely the lack of teachers. Some grammar schools are no longer able to offer certain specialised courses. Creating A and B weeks doesn't work in the long term either. The State Pupils' Council is also campaigning for the education ticket to remain valid across the borders of the network areas. Pupils in the Bautzen area, for example, have the problem that they need a second ticket to cross the border of the network area. Our aim is to make it possible to travel throughout Saxony with the education ticket. That also promotes independence.

What else would you like to change?
If I could, I would abolish head marks. A written assessment says much more about a person than a number. And education must become more practical. What use is it to me if I get 3.419 pieces of chocolate as the result of a task in my secondary school exam? Where do we learn how to do a tax return, how to invest our first money or how to actually delete a picture on the internet? It's not enough to know how to change the font size in Word.

Education policy is a matter for the federal states. What do you think of that?
There are certainly some advantages, but we are mainly experiencing disadvantages. For example, having to repeat a year when moving from state A to state B is rubbish. Of course, federalism stimulates competition between the federal states. But with 16 ministries of education, you could save a lot of administration.

How much time do all these honorary posts cost you?
It's hard to say. There are weeks when I prepare the congresses when I come home from work at 5 pm and sit there until 10 pm. There were times in the regional student council when I was travelling every weekend. Once my parents made an appointment with me via the contact address of the regional student council to tell me that I was working quite a lot. It was a full-time part-time job. But I contribute as much as I can. And I get a lot of energy from it, so the three or four extra hours a day don't bother me.

Is there still time for hobbies?
Sure, I go dancing on the side. And I love partying at the weekend. I also like climbing and hiking.

You also sit on the youth welfare committee in Chemnitz as an expert resident. Why is that?
The city student council always sends someone to the school and sports committee. I did that for two years. The Youth Welfare Committee also deals with youth issues. It's our job to get the youth perspective into it. I don't think it always has to be so complicated. We young people sometimes have good ideas on how to make things much simpler.

You're finishing your apprenticeship in the summer and won't be able to stand in the next election in November. Will you miss that?
A little bit. I've really learnt a lot in the nine and a half years. I used to dread giving presentations, I was very reserved. As a class or student representative, I was able to try out a lot and now have the self-confidence to say what I think.

What have you been able to realise during this time that you are proud of?
As a student council, we initiated the city council simulation game, which went down really well. We want to do it again after the coronavirus break. It was a cool event because the councillors really got involved. We're also working on organising the picnic again as a small party before the holidays. The Saxon student congress "Vision Schule" was also good. It was last held in 2020/21 with 70 people. There was such a sense of unity and energy in the room. That was a lot of fun.

Do pupils learn how democracy works through this kind of voluntary work?
Absolutely. We do learn how the city council, state parliament and federal parliament work in social studies. But you experience the realisation when a class elects its class representative. This is someone who stands up for my interests as a pupil. Then the class representative has to find majorities and form networks in order to move forward with the idea.

What would you like to see when Chemnitz is the Capital of Culture in 2025?
That young people have a say in what happens in the city. If the young population is heard, it will also be an incentive for them to stay in the city or at least come back after a few years elsewhere.