It's the attitude that counts

Class 2b of the Rosa Luxemburg primary school

Just one year at school and already a prizewinner: today's class 2b at Rosa-Luxemburg-Grundschule auf dem Brühl has been honoured with the Saxon Integration Prize: 26 children from ten nations, more than half of whom have a migrant background. In the Macher der Woche interview, class teacher Madlen Dost and school social worker Gunnar Kaufmann explain why this is above all an enrichment.

Congratulations on winning the Saxon Integration Award. For which project exactly were you honoured?
Gunnar Kaufmann: Thank you, but it wasn't for a specific project. It was for everyday life, for the interaction within the class.
Madlen Dost: The jury liked the way we guided the class through the pandemic. Obviously, what we did is not a matter of course. But it was only possible because everyone pulled together: Children, parents, school social workers and me as a teacher.

What do you do differently?
Dost: Actually, not that much. We accept the children as they are. We want them to become a team in which it doesn't matter who is good at something or what country they come from.
Kaufmann: In the classroom, diversity is seen as something great. Being different is seen as something beautiful. It's nothing to be afraid of. Everyone has something to say and everyone brings something different to the table. It's more of a process than a project.

But how exactly do you put this into practice?
Dost: For example, we learn how to greet each other in the other language. And I took the children to the youth hostel in the first week of school so that we could spend time together as a team. Another example: We cleared the rubbish from the border in front of the school and then the children put up signs. These kinds of activities bring us closer together.
Kaufmann: The aim is to create a respectful atmosphere. Once a week, we have a marble round where each child can say who in the class has done something good for them. He gives them a marble. It sounds unspectacular, but it's an important building block.
Dost: And in the summer, we organised a party to which the parents and all the siblings were invited. Everyone brought something to eat. You wouldn't believe how wonderful that was.
Kaufmann: The crux of the matter is that the parents are involved in this class. That is not a matter of course. Ms Dost goes to great lengths to support the parents, organising an interpreter for the parents' evenings, for example. He speaks several languages.
Dost: He's great because he not only translates our words, but also understands the Arabic culture. I also call some parents when I have sent out letters to parents and ask whether they have understood everything. We can communicate well, but with an interpreter it's something completely different.

The Saxon Integration Award recognises projects and initiatives that are particularly committed to the integration of migrants into society. One focus of the 2021 competition was integration under pandemic conditions. The jury selected three award winners from 59 proposals from clubs, associations, initiatives and companies, each of which received 3,000 euros. In addition to the class, the Job Centre and the Diakonische Beratungszentrum im Vogtland and Mosaik Leipzig e.V. were among the winners.

How did the lessons work in times of homeschooling?
Kaufmann: The children were at home for a very long time. First we tried to organise mobile devices and do everything online. When registering with Lernsax, the parents helped each other a lot. But it still didn't work for everyone. So we quickly switched to going out every Friday and putting the tasks for the following week in the letterboxes.
Dost: I didn't want to lose the children. When the line gets so long, how do you find your way back to the point? I wasn't ready to let go of the children.

How long were you always on the road? For weeks on end.
Dost: Maybe two or three hours. The parents supported us and so we were able to throw in the tasks for two or three children. And it went even further: some parents included another child in their homeschooling programme. That made me incredibly proud.

How would you describe class 2b?
Kaufmann (ponders for a long time): Very social.
Dost: That's exactly what I would have said. Sure, there are sometimes arguments.
Kaufmann: But the children are there for each other. They have fun helping the others. It's great to see how solidarity is practised. And they accept new children with an open mind.
Dost: It is very important to me that the children treat each other with respect and learn to resolve conflicts among themselves and, above all, socially. Our most important class rule: we treat each other kindly.
Kaufmann: I really enjoy being in 2b. There are seven other classes in the school, but in this class, a lot of what I have in mind is already exemplified. My work falls on fertile ground there. I would like to see this attitude, these attitudes from everyone involved, everywhere.

Why do you think this is not the case everywhere?
Dost: Of course, we are all bound by the curriculum. But that's not everything. You have freedom as a teacher and you can prioritise. That's exhausting, because you have to keep at it. However, you have to add that unfortunately not every school has a school social worker. But that would be so important. Large schools even need two, preferably a man and a woman.

What can school social work do?
Kaufmann: We are the interface between youth welfare and schools. Our work consists of three pillars. We support the teachers in socio-educational terms and can arrange help for parents. For the children, we are first and foremost a listening ear. They can come to us at any time - without being scolded or judged in any way.
Dost (laughs): Some children say Mr Gunnar.
Kaufmann: Yes, that's right. They can call me Mr Gunnar. Unfortunately, I often do the fire brigade job. I would prefer it if I could do more preventative work.
Dost : And that's where you realise how important good contact with parents is. Because the children naturally bring problems from home with them.
Kaufmann: That's right. A child who causes problems has problems.

Why is a good relationship with the parents so important?
Kaufmann: Everything you do needs fertile ground. If the parents don't go along with you or talk against your work at home, you can work as hard as you like.

What does integration mean to you?
Kaufmann: It's not a one-way street. If we try to impose what we like on others, it won't work. Everyone can learn from each other.
Dost: It means that you get closer. That something common can grow. I learn from the children every day.
Kaufmann: That you take each other seriously.
Dost: That you respect the other person and try to understand them. That you communicate openly. Communication between our parents works really well. There is a class chat where anyone can ask questions and everyone helps each other.

The two and their class were suggested by the parents. "We discussed it in the parent chat," reports parent spokesperson Sascha Hinkelmann. Despite corona and the many different nationalities in the class, the lessons worked really well, says Hinkelmann, who incidentally was one of the parents who took a second child to homeschool. "I was at home with my daughter anyway," he says. The fact that the class won "knocked everyone's socks off. We're all super proud. It's good for the school, it's good for the neighbourhood." Without the class teacher and the school social worker, things would not be going so well, Hinkelmann emphasises. "They do a great job. We're a cool class and also a cool group of parents. Of course there's the language barrier. But we help each other in an uncomplicated, straightforward way. Of course, the children also feel this respectful interaction between the parents. That's how integration should work."

What does it mean to you that the parents nominated you for the award?
Kaufmann: It's a very nice compliment for our work. We feel very appreciated that what we do is recognised and acknowledged in this way.
Dost: The fact that we were nominated for this alone. It's crazy that we should win.

Please complete the following sentence: For me, school is a place...
Dost: A place where the foundations for social interaction are laid.
Kaufmann: It should be a place where values are conveyed. Not just a knowledge factory.
Dost : A meeting place. So many different people meet here who would never meet in their free time - parents and children alike. It's a place where everyone can learn from each other.
Kaufmann: And it should be a safe place where children can go without fear.

What are your hopes for the Capital of Culture year 2025?
Dost: That every school will have a school social worker by then. And that the projects that are created around Chemnitz 2025 are sustainable. It does us no good if a café opens somewhere and then closes again after a year or two because the funding runs out. Things need time to grow in order to have a long-term effect.
Kaufmann: I see that in social work. My work is difficult to measure in numbers. It's about building relationships and conveying values. That takes time. If that works well, then children are less susceptible to undemocratic ways of thinking later on.
Dost: That's why there shouldn't just be this or that project. Something fundamental has to be sown, then it will bear fruit. We need patience for that. When a German child in primary school has a Syrian friend, for example, it does something to them. It changes their way of thinking and lays the foundation for an attitude. The child will almost certainly also stand up for it as an adult if, for example, they realise that a person from Syria is being insulted. Kindergarten and school are very good places to develop an attitude. Everything comes from that, that's the basis.