With a warm heart

• Preamble by Sabine Weißler
• Preamble by Michael Weiß
• What is behind all this?

Preamble by Sabine Weißler

Ladies and gentlemen,

Restaurant tables which are inconveniently located, usually near to the door or toilets, are referred to as “side tables”. In the home, these include those which do not form part of the actual seating arrangement. On festive occasions, children often sit at such dining tables, which are usually lower and placed to one side.

The following cartoon addressing “The financing of education systems in Europe” depicts a scene in a restaurant: At a table richly laden with food and drink are sat people who stand for “school”, “university” and “vocational education”. They are being served further dishes by the waiter carrying an overflowing serving tray. A short distance away from them are sat two people at a small low table with the sign “adult education” – without doubt a side table. Both are using their hands to try to signal to the waiter that they too would like to order something.

While I doubt that school and university facilities are as lavish as the picture suggests, it is undoubtedly true that adult education has to fight for visibility in educational policy discussions. In my professional life, I experience it time and again that adult education centres have to emphasise and express their importance when it comes to the provision of rooms, money and staff for example.

Overall, adult education in Germany makes up a huge education sector. According to the current Weiterbildungsmonitor (further education monitor), 1.3 million people – teaching, planning and advising – are employed in adult/further education (of which approx. one in six are at an adult education centre). In comparison, 380,000 people work in the automotive industry.
German adult education centres celebrate their 100-year anniversary in 2019. But for a long time government funding has fallen short of what is required to keep it alive: German adult education centres are currently financed by one-third in each case by state subsidies, participant fees and raised third-party funds.

The adult education centre has always made a contribution to making life more worth living. Therefore, we are committed to being a top-performing and modern adult education centre and will do the best with what our local opportunities offer when it comes to good rooms, good facilities and good staff.

Recent example: In the coming year, we will continue to expand and improve the digital equipment of our adult education centre. The fee surcharges paid by you also help us to develop the infrastructure and to provide contemporary teaching. Yet digital infrastructure alone does not help a lot when it comes to learning. That’s why we, as the first adult education centre in Berlin, have an employee who is devoted exclusively to digital learning as a media coach. On our homepage you will find an interview with her under “News”, in which she presents her role.

Because in Berlin’s Mitte district you should not have to sit at the side table when it comes to your education.

Enjoy your educational journey at the adult education centre!

Sabine Weißler

Preamble by Michael Weiß

Ladies and gentlemen,

Let’s bring the founding act of the Berlin adult education centre of 100 years ago onto the stage as a play:

Act 1, scene 1, auditorium of the University of Berlin, (very ceremonial setting)
The group of main speakers are together before the beginning and are in conversation with each other.*

Rector of the University of Berlin (in a sonorous voice): The close connection between the university and the adult education centre is demonstrated by the fact that the University of Berlin is providing its auditorium for this celebration.

Mayor of Berlin (interrupting): And we are fully involved. During times when the universities were open to just a handful of wealthy people, we stood on the sidelines as a city. But now that the doors are open to all, we need to lend a hand in building the adult education centre.

Trade Union Secretary (very forthright in tone): We also welcome the fact that an educational institution is now opening up for all, not out of gratitude, but because it fulfils a social obligation.

State Secretary of the Interior: Yes, that’s right. It is the will of the people to have adult education centres. That’s why adult education centres are not just included in a further education law, no, the support of the work of adult education centres is even integrated on a constitutional level in §148.

Managing Director of the adult education centre (at first quietly): Good, the tasks of adult education centres are clear, but the way is difficult to find, we must discover new paths in the educational landscape. This does not merely concern lectures like at university, but rather it is about collaborative learning, ideally in working communities. (in a strong voice) The goal is to turn individuals into people who observe, think and feel. For this we need teachers with educational understanding and a warm heart. (concerned) We have hardly any such university teachers today. (The university rector interrupts and gives the choir a signal).

Choral singing.

President of the Reich Ebert is led into the hall. The ceremony begins.

Even if there had been inaugurations for adult education centres previously, the year 1919 is considered as their founding year because of the mention of adult education centres in the Weimar Constitution. Adult education centres were being founded all over, which, often with considerable voluntary involvement, were run successfully through the Weimar crisis years until the temporary so-called enforced conformity or dissolution in national socialism.
Today, 100 years later, there are 905 adult education centres in Germany with 3,000 branch offices, 192,000 teachers and 9 million participants per year.

You can see: We are not alone.

And neither are you.

Welcome to our adult education centre!

Yours,
Michael Weiß

* the following quotes – occasionally adapted to contemporary German in the original text – are taken from the speeches of the above-mentioned at the inauguration ceremony of the Berlin adult education centre on 10.01.1920.

What is behind all this?

• Facts and figures in German