Overview
- Brandenburg will shift language assessments from the final preschool year to the year before that, with pilots underway and full implementation targeted by August 1, 2027.
- The state cites that about 20 percent of children show significant language difficulties at school entry, and the plan won support from SPD, BSW and CDU, with the AfD abstaining.
- Karin Prien is pressing for nationwide, mandatory language tests starting at age four to identify delays earlier and involve parents, pediatricians and Kitas in follow‑up support.
- Prien advises no screen time for children under three and highlights frequent shared reading as a proven practice, echoing KMK findings linking early reading to stronger vocabulary.
- Delivery remains constrained by a shortfall of roughly 125,000 early‑childhood educators, high early‑career attrition reported by the IAB and uneven staffing, alongside broader declines in reading, writing and math noted in the 2025 Bildungsmonitor.