Anglo-German perceptions of education [1989]

The recent developments in the British education system present a fascinating spectacle to observers from the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) which they follow with mixed feelings. They perceive the dismantling of elements seen as patterns of British liberality and democracy and which could be quoted effectively as excellent examples in Germany. They also notice with astonishment that this process of transformation is occasionally commented upon with reference to the allegedly excellent state of the education system in the FRG, which is regarded as exemplary. The observers sympathise with the infuriated reactions of their liberal colleagues in Great Britain and their protest against Thatcherism in education. Nevertheless, at the same time observers from the FRG cannot but regard this annoyance as a manifestation of an ‘insular’ limitation of their horizons – at least in respect of some items in the Thatcherite reform programme, the aims of which appear in various ways to represent a moderate and liberal version of what is taken as a usual feature in other democracies, and which are coped with properly. The positive references to Germany, however, cause irritation; for they are obviously selective, and their motives have to be examined in detail.