Rethinking school support

Pooling – New ways for more participation and inclusion

With the "Pooling" project , children with special needs will receive even better support in their daily school life. Instead of individual, one-on-one support, a team of school support workers will provide flexible, needs-based support to several children – during learning, recess, or special activities.

This new model replaces the previous system, which reached its organizational and pedagogical limits. Pooling creates greater reliability, flexibility, and planning security.

Advantages of pooling

• More participation for children through flexible support

• Better cooperation within the school support team

• Efficient use of resources and relief for schools

• Reliable help for parents – even in case of illness or staff changes

Two model experiments

Pooling is being tested in two variants:

• Performance triangle: Support is granted individually but used flexibly within the team

• Infrastructure model: Schools receive a budget and use it to independently provide support for several children

The experiences from both models will be evaluated over four years.

Our school as a pilot school

The Sonnenstraße Family Elementary School Center is one of four elementary schools testing the infrastructure model .

"Pooling makes organization easier for us and enables tailored support. This means more participation for the children and more planning security for the teachers."

In the long term, the pooling model will be expanded to other schools – an important step towards greater inclusion and equal opportunities.

Sarah Gusovius (Office for Youth and Social Affairs), Martin Gerblich (School Support - Class Pool), Hanna Weinert (School Support - Class Pool), Kornelius Knettel (Principal)