Funding organisation:
WGZ BANK and Aktive Bürgerschaft e.V.

Duration:
06/2011 - 04/2013)

Funding organisation:
Saxony-Anhalt Ministry of Social Affairs

Duration:
01/2009 - 10/2012

Funding organisation:
Ministry of Social Affairs of the State of Saxony-Anhalt

Project leader:
Prof Dr Thomas Olk (University of Halle)
Prof Dr Karsten Speck (University of Oldenburg)

Duration:
01/2009 - 10/2012

Research assistants:
Thomas Stimpel

Project description:
With a school dropout rate of 12% in 2004, Saxony-Anhalt had one of the highest rates of pupils in Germany who left school without completing lower secondary education. Boys and young people with a migration background are particularly affected. The state of Saxony-Anhalt has set itself the goal of reducing the school dropout rate to 8.6% by 2013 and the rate of grade repetition by 50%, as well as securing this reduction in the long term and sustainably with the help of preventative and interventive measures. In this context, the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Education and Cultural Affairs have developed the ESF programme "Preventing school failure and reducing early school leaving" in co-operation for the new EU structural fund period 2007/2013. With a volume of approx. 59 million euros, a complex package of measures is to be implemented to reduce the number of pupils who fail to meet the requirements of school. In the meantime, on 7 July 2008, the directive on the granting of subsidies for the ESF programme "Projects to prevent school failure and reduce early school leaving" was published in a joint circular by the MS and MK. The programme started on 01.01.2009 and will continue until 2013.

A formative and summative scientific monitoring of the ESF project is being carried out for the detailed design and management of this project, which relates to all three basic modules of the ESF programme. The focus is on an evaluation of the objectives and effects, their efficiency and an analysis of the quality of the programme. Concrete conditions for successful co-operation between the actors involved to achieve the programme's objectives beyond 2013 are to be identified. In addition, the aim is to secure the quality development process to be initiated for this programme by means of a scientific report.

Funding organisation:
Federal Ministry of Education and Research

Duration:
09/2010 - 05/2011

Project leader:
Prof Dr Karsten Speck (University of Oldenburg)
Prof Dr Thomas Olk (University of Potsdam)

Funding body:
Society for Consumer and Social Counselling

Duration:
07/2009 - 6/2011

Funded by:
Federal Ministry of Education and Research

Project leader:
Prof. Dr Wilfried Schubarth (University of Potsdam)
Prof. Dr Karsten Speck (University of Oldenburg)
Dr Andreas Seidel (University of Potsdam)

Research assistants :

Dipl.-Psych. Lea Sarrar (Woldt) 01/2009 - 10/2011
Dipl.-Psych. Merle Kleinfeld
Cooperation partner at the Centre for Teacher Training (ZfL):
Dipl.-Psych. Mirko Wendland

Student assistant:
Laura Bastian
Caroline Kamm
Saskia Niproschke
Lascha Sochadse

Project description:
The aim of the project is to contribute to the professionalisation of practical phases in non-university places of learning by systematically and comparatively examining the quality and effectiveness of practical concepts in different disciplines and drawing conclusions for the optimisation of vocational training. To this end, comparative studies will be carried out at four selected universities in the Potsdam/Berlin region. In detail, it is planned to 1) an analysis of practical concepts in different subject disciplines by means of a document analysis, 2) a multi-perspective, empirical-comparative survey of their organisational implementation and 3) the acquisition of knowledge about the acquisition of career-orientated skills by students and about conducive or obstructive conditions by means of longitudinal studies. The findings will be used to improve the curricular and formal-organisational design of the practical phases. The effects of the modified practical phases will in turn be empirically tested. The project thus investigates the connection between formal-organisational and curricular design aspects of the practical phases (including supervision, support and co-operation) and the acquisition of skills by the students. Based on the control knowledge gained, conclusions are to be drawn for the professionalisation of university teaching with regard to the practical phases. Close co-operation with the Brandenburg University Didactics Network is planned.

Funding provider:
Society for Consumer and Social Counselling Berlin

Project leader:
Holger Backhaus Maul (University of Halle)
Prof Dr Karsten Speck (University of Oldenburg)

Duration:
07/2009 - 06/2011

Research assistants:
Martin Kunze

Project description:
The scientific study focuses on professionalisation and organisational development in debt counselling. The starting point of the study are model projects of the non-profit organisation Gesellschaft für Verbraucher- und Sozialberatung mbH (Berlin). In two regions of Berlin, i.e. Neukölln-Nord and Lichtenberg-Fennpfuhl, these model counselling centres are to be used as examples to test how the increasing indebtedness and over-indebtedness of private households can be effectively and permanently countered with changed concepts, professional procedures and organisational precautions.
The research project examines the contextual conditions, the organisational and working methods and the potential impact of new approaches in debt counselling. Particular attention will be paid to the cooperation between private commercial companies providing basic services and non-profit social work organisations.

Funding organisation:
Federal Ministry of Education and Research

Duration:
11/2008-10/2011