Of the more than 8,000 teachers who teach music in Hesse, a large number have not studied music to become a teacher.
This emerges from a response from the Ministry of Culture in Wiesbaden to a parliamentary request from the SPD parliamentary group.
4666 of the men and women are fully trained teachers, but have no musical training, explained a ministry spokesman.
With 4,000 teachers, the majority of this group is employed in elementary and special schools, where the class teacher principle applies.
“That means: The children should have a fixed reference person in the classroom and develop a bond”, explained the spokesman: “This means that the class teacher who teaches the main subjects German and mathematics / arithmetic according to their training then also Carry out music lessons. ”That was intended pedagogically.
According to the ministry, around 1,000 of the 8,000 music teachers do not have a teaching degree, but are qualified to teach music due to their professional background.
It is about music educators, musicologists, composers, singers, orchestra players or sound engineers.
Music is a shortage subject
"Of course we would like more student teachers to also cover the subject of music, because there is a need for it," said the ministry spokesman: "But we cannot force anyone and therefore try to make the best of the situation." In any case the children and adolescents received qualified music lessons at the schools.
The SPD education expert Christoph Degen criticized: “Music has long been one of the lacking subjects in Hesse alongside religion, sport, English, natural sciences and art.
In particular, but not only at primary schools. ”In Hesse there is a“ deficiency management ”- with cuts in the qualifications of teachers and thus a devaluation of the subject of music.
"Instead of addressing problems, the deficiency is glossed over," explained Degen.