Survey: Students are more annoyed by poor Wi-Fi than a lack of teachers

According to affected students, the technical equipment in schools in Germany leaves much to be desired, despite billions of dollars invested through the "Digital Pact for Schools." In a representative survey commissioned by the digital association Bitkom, 87 percent of young people surveyed between the ages of 14 and 19 cited poor or nonexistent Wi-Fi as the most pressing problem at their school—well ahead of the teacher shortage at 59 percent.

Students also complain about " poor technical equipment ." More than half of respondents (56 percent) cited this as one of the most pressing problems at their school.

In 2018, the then Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Social Democrat (SPD) federal government launched a five-billion-euro funding program called the "Digital Pact for Schools." However, the federal states were slow to access the funds. The pact will continue to support digitalization concepts in schools until the end of 2023. The total amount currently stands at approximately 6.5 billion euros. The funds can be disbursed until 2024. Whether the program will be continued as "Digital Pact for Schools 2.0" has not yet been determined, although the coalition agreement of the "Ampel" government promised a new edition with a term until 2030.

In the current Bitkom survey, a large majority of students (74 percent) said they were more motivated by the use of digital educational media such as learning platforms. However, 42 percent criticized their teachers for not knowing how to effectively use digital educational media in their lessons. Presenting the study, Bitkom President Ralf Wintergerst said the survey shows that the digitalization of education is not just about infrastructure and devices. "Digital teaching and learning content, as well as digitally qualified teachers, are also very important to students."

© dpa-infocom, dpa:230810-99-791883/2