19,000 Ideas for Less Bureaucracy in Austria's Schools

Education Minister Christoph Wiederkehr (NEOS) has promised schools debureaucratization. To achieve this, 80 percent of the circulars are to be eliminated by the ministry starting in the fall. In June, school principals, teachers, experts from pedagogical universities, and administrative staff were able to submit proposals on how to reduce bureaucracy to the essentials as part of an online idea initiative. According to the ministry, 19,000 ideas have been received.

Debureaucratization of Schools

Most of the proposals for debureaucratization came from the areas of "administrative workload and relief," with the most frequently mentioned concerns being "fewer duplicate entries," "clear responsibilities," and "support from administrative staff." "Statistics" was also a particularly common topic, especially the "standardization of data requirements," as well as a "central data platform." Many reports also concerned "digitalization," specifically an "electronic processing of processes, e.g., for travel expense accounting" and "uniform IT systems." There was also a frequent desire for "more freedom of design at the school level."

"Valuable proposals have been submitted on how and where leverage can be applied," said Wiederkehr. These will now be reviewed over the summer, and the implementation of the first measures is expected to begin in the fall, according to the Ministry of Education.

(APA/Red)

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