School entrance examinations: Alarming language and behavioral deficits!

School entrance examinations: Alarming language and behavioral deficits!

In Lower Saxony, school entrance examinations for future school children have begun, and the results are telling. These examinations are mandatory nationwide for children aged six and over, and they started in the Uelzen district on Tuesday. By May 2026, around 1,000 children will be on the list of the local health department, which is headed by local pediatrician Sigrid Kaczmarek. The aim of these measures is to check school readiness and to identify obstacles to learning and participation at an early stage.

A particularly important point is that children who have not had regular check-ups or who are new to Germany particularly benefit from these checks. According to [ndr.de]. These include, among other things, pronunciation disorders and difficulties in sentence formation. The majority of these children are already receiving speech therapy before they start school.

What is behind these deficits? The causes are diverse. Experts see a connection with the pandemic, changes in media usage and the social environment. The increase in behavioral problems – such as concentration problems and restlessness – among children is also worrying. Spiegel.de reports that an increasing proportion of children are exhibiting abnormal behavior, and studies show that excessive media consumption may be a contributing factor. Children who use digital media for more than two hours a day have a higher risk of behavioral problems. The German Society for Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine (DGKJ) recommends a maximum of 30 minutes of media use per day for children between the ages of three and six - and ideally under supervision.

In addition, almost ten percent of children in Lower Saxony are overweight, a proportion that has stabilized since the Corona times. It is particularly noticeable in urban areas that children show noticeable deficits in school entrance examinations. Language problems are increasing in the Diepholz district and the Hanover region; Experts also attribute this development to excessive media consumption.

Of course, this is a complex interplay of factors. Parents are required to keep an eye on their children's media consumption and also to support social contacts and language development. The school entrance examinations show that it is important to respond to the children's needs at an early stage and to offer them the support they need.

Further information and details about the school entrance examinations can be found at [ndr.de](https://www.ndr.de/nachrichten/niedersachsen/lueneburg_heide_unterelbe/schulaufnahmesprüfungen-mehr- deficiencies-in-language-and-behaviour,schule entrance examination-102.html) and [spiegel.de].