Innovation in Education – Referat Ganztag

THE CHALLENGE

All-day schooling as a place of learning and living

All-day schooling, or “Gantztag” in German, has become an important part of school life: children are now spending more time at school than ever before – where learning, social development, leisure and support all intertwine. This has led to a shift in roles, responsibilities and expectations within the school system.

The central task of the Hamburg school authority was: How can all-day schooling be enhanced in terms of quality – beyond mere supervision, towards a living space that promotes learning, social skills and development?

In order to do justice to the task in such a complex and crucially important context, the project focuses primarily on a holistic, inclusive approach to intervention rather than on the development of individual measures.

These includes, among other things:

1. a mutual understanding of all-day schooling across professions
2. the translation of different perspectives (children, school, pedagogy, administration)
3. viable models that provide orientation without imposing standards
4. formats that enable shared development

APPROACH

Holistic development and collaborative change of perspective

The project Referat Ganztag therefore focuses on cultural and organisational development issues rather than on optimising the school curriculum.

Our qualitative research approach combined

1. Research with children and parents in a family system(primary and secondary schools)
2. Analysis of everyday routines, expectations and development needs for the all-day school
3. Compilation of findings into action-oriented, sustainable models
4. Moderated, co-creative formats for translation into practice

The following premises formed the foundation for the selected procedure:

The future of school as a place of learning is created through the interaction of different perspectives, whereby sustainable change can only arise and grow collaboratively. Children, as central key figures, provide important impetus for this, whereas hierarchical approaches and top-down interventions can be more of a hindrance.

IMPLEMENTATION

Methods

A total of two qualitative studies, differentiated according to phases of development, were carried out in order to understand and represent the full-day school as realistically as possible.

The pupils were divided into

• Primary school pupils
• Secondary school pupils

This study design made it possible to identify age-dependent needs, expectations and developmental logic and to systematically consider differences in the experience of the full-day school.

Core Principles – Different Perspectives 

Three core guidelines emerged from the studies, structuring the full-day school as a place of learning and living:

School as a social space

Full-day schooling can foster a sense of belonging, community, and social security, thereby creating a strong foundation for learning and enthusiasm for school.

School: a space for experience

Children and young people need spaces to try things out, discover and learn beyond the logic of the classroom. Discovering their self-efficacy can be achieved above all in all-day schooling through new spaces for experience and tasks.

School as a talent factory

All-day schooling opens up opportunities to reveal and promote individual interests, strengths and potential. Even beyond the boundaries of school.

These principles are founded on the stories, ideas and everyday experiences of the students. They are supported by examples, narratives and deliberately formulated in a way that can be easily adapted so that schools can continue to develop them beyond the scope of this project.

OUTCOME

From insight to impact: co-creatively translated

The key principles and areas of opportunity did not remain theoretical.

Moderated by STURM und DRANG, they were further developed in innovation workshops (hackathons) together with schools and translated into concrete strategies.

These workshops worked in a multi-professional manner with the following specialists, among others

• school administrators
• pedagogical all-day staff
• teachers
• as well as parent and student representatives

Workshop results

1. concrete development approaches for All-Day Schooling (e.g., rhythmization, increased self-efficacy through delegation of responsibility, structured freedom due to collaboration, etc.)
2. new forms of cooperation between professions
3. ·      collaborative, student-centered decisions instead of organizationally driven individual initiatives

Innovation workshop: Prototype

Around 40 schools have now benefited from these projects.

One key outcome of the project is the vivid image of the

“all-day learning and living environment,” created from the stories, ideas, and wishes of the students.

It translates the three guiding principles into visual language and school scenes—making complex content understandable for everyone involved.

Main features

• The hidden object picture, “Wimmelbild” in german, is actively used by schools
• It serves as a tool for discussion, reflection, and development
• It is expandable: children can add to, change, and comment on scenes by drawing

This creates a shared space for dialogue within the school. Between teachers, school administrators, all-day teams, and students.

The hidden object picture is a powerful dialogue tool in schools, especially because desirable futures are often difficult to put into words.

Impact at a systemic level

The project has shown how qualitative findings can be systematically translated into concrete measures, how the participation of a diverse group of stakeholders can be professionalized and structured, and how the full school day can be understood as a shared space for development.

This means that all-day schooling is not only organized but also designed together.