Ukrainian teachers start work at Berlin schools

Schülerinnen und Schüler einer neu eingerichteten Willkommensklasse.

In Berlin, the first Ukrainian teachers have started teaching in so-called welcome classes.

"We are in the process of hiring over 200 teachers, 30 have already signed their contracts," said State Secretary for Education Alexander Slotty on Wednesday (06 April 2022) during a visit to a welcome class at the Willi Graf High School in Berlin-Lichterfelde. Some of these 30 teachers already lived in Berlin before and have German and Ukrainian language skills, while others are refugees with good German skills, Slotty said.

4000 more school places for refugee children

Because the duration of the situation in Ukraine cannot be estimated, the Senate Department for Education has already created 4,000 additional school places for refugee children and young people from Ukraine, Slotty explained. In addition, teachers who have themselves fled Ukraine are to be hired without red tape. "After all, it is not a matter of course that everyone has their certificates in a folder with them," said the SPD politician.