How fair is our education system?

What is the pandemic doing to our children and teenagers? What can we do to help children, no matter what family background they come from? And how fair is our education system? These kind of questions adresses the economics cluster ECONtribute from Bonn and Cologne. You want to know the answers? Then listen to the 4th episode of “Exzellent erklärt” – the podcast of the German Clusters of Excellence.

Prof. Pia Pinger herself was surprised by the extent to which some children were left behind by the pandemic. For these, it is particularly difficult to reconnect – but even without a rampant disease, the opportunity for education in Germany is not the same for every child. Success at school is largely related to the parental home, and not only to whether parents earn a lot, but also to what academic background they have.

 

Prof. Matthias Sutter‘s most recent study also found that prosociality, i.e. positive social behavior, has become less prevalent among teenagers as a result of the pandemic. Especially among those teenagers who live in a household with a low socioeconomic status and in families where one member has contracted SARS-CoV2.

The cluster
The Cluster of Excellence “ECONtribute: Markets & Public Policy” is the only predominantly economics cluster of excellence in Germany, supported by the Universities of Bonn and Cologne. ECONtribute aims to advance the analysis of markets & public policy against the backdrop of fundamental societal and technological challenges such as digitalization, global financial crises, rising inequality and political polarization.

The podcast
57 Clusters of Excellence, 1 Podcast. “Exzellent erklärt” reports regularly from one of the research clusters funded under the Excellence Strategy of the German federal and state governments. The journey goes right across the country, and the topics are just as diverse as the locations: From A for African Studies to Q for Quantum Physics. Join us again for the next episode and immerse yourself in the exciting world of cutting-edge research!

How to listen
The podcast can be found on all major platforms (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Deezer,…), on the podcast website www.exzellent-erklaert.de or listen directly here: