Launch of a new dual Master’s degree programme for the Teaching Degree for Primary Education

Dr Manja Schüle, Minister for Science; Gordon Hoffmann, Minister for Education; and the Vice-President for Academic Affairs at the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Prof. Dr Peer Schmidt, today welcomed the 39 students on the new dual Master’s programme for primary school teaching at the BTU Campus Senftenberg/Zły Komorow (Oberspreewald-Lausitz/Górne Błota-Łužyca) as part of a launch event.

Minister for Science Dr Manja Schüle said: “The first Master’s students were still at school themselves when the pandemic led to school closures. They know from their own experience what it means not to have lessons – and what a child needs when they fall behind. I am delighted that the dual Master’s students are now returning to school to share their experiences. I am convinced that they can do more than simply teach reading, writing and arithmetic. Teachers can nurture children’s innate desire to understand and ask questions. They can inspire children to develop self-confidence and courage. They can teach them how to resolve challenges and conflicts with confidence. And they can demonstrate how to work together rather than against one another. As a state, we offer the ideal conditions for this: a new campus, a high proportion of practical training and excellent schools in the region. And the fact that the BTU set up this degree programme in less than twelve months is something we in the state administration now refer to as ‘Senftenberg speed’ – and that is the highest praise one can give here.”

Education Minister Gordon Hoffmann: “Brandenburg needs committed and qualified teachers. With the new dual Master’s programme at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg, we have created a win-win situation. Students complete their pre-service training alongside their studies and can transition seamlessly into the teaching profession. Schools receive early support and may even be recruiting their colleagues of tomorrow. In this way, training becomes a concrete career prospect.”

Prof. Dr Peer Schmidt, Vice President for Academic Affairs at the BTU: “We take a very special approach to teacher training: today’s students will, in the course of their future careers as teachers, equip children with the skills and values that will enable them to actively shape the next turn of the century. But at the moment, we are all uncertain as to what the future will actually look like over such a long period, which areas of life will be fundamentally transformed by the use of AI, and in what ways they will change as a result. That is why we want, above all, to empower young people to develop their skills adaptively and thereby find solutions in agile transformation processes.”

The new dual Master’s programme for the Teaching Degree for Primary Education combines an academic and research-oriented education with systematically supported professional practice as part of the pre-service training programme undertaken alongside studies. The BTU provides course content covering subject-specific knowledge, subject didactics, primary school pedagogy and educational science. The Cottbus Pedagogical Centre of the Brandenburg State Institute for Schools and Teacher Training (LIBRA) supports the 24-month pre-service training programme, which is integrated into the degree course, through training coaching and accompanying specialist seminars. At the training schools, students gain practical experience of everyday school life, including through classroom observation and through both supervised and independent teaching. 

The primary school teacher training programme in Senftenberg was established by the BTU in less than a year, on the initiative of Minister for Science Manja Schüle and in consultation with the Centre for Teacher Training and Educational Research (ZeLB) at the University of Potsdam. The first 64 trainee teachers began their Bachelor’s degree in the winter semester of 2023/24, specialising in the subject combination of German and Mathematics for primary schools. The programme now offers 13 subject combinations, including Sorbian/Wendish. Around 360 young men and women are currently studying to become teachers in Senftenberg. The Ministry of Science is providing the BTU with around 3.8 million euros this year to develop the range of degree programmes. 
Further information: www.b-tu.de/lehramt-primarstufe-bed

Across the three campuses of the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, 185 professors teach more than 7,700 students across 70 study programmes. The state is funding the BTU with around 109 million euros this year.