Courses for the Sommer Semester 2026

Current Issues in Educational Science B: Transition from Preschool to Elementary School - Seminar

This seminar examines current challenges associated with the transition from preschool to elementary school. Drawing on theoretical concepts regarding transitions and school readiness, the seminar discusses current school enrollment practices, cooperation between preschools and elementary schools, curricular continuity, and selected model projects. Another focus is on empirical research regarding school entry age, coping with the transition, and measures such as deferral of enrollment (“redshirting”). The seminar combines academic texts, current studies, and practical materials and encourages a critical evaluation of current transition practices.

Instructor: Katharina Kluczniok

Time: Thu, 8-10 AM, First session: 16.04.2026

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Co-decision-making and Co-thinking: Participation and Democracy Education in Early Childhood - Seminar

Children have a right to participate, yet there is often a significant gap between this legal entitlement and the reality of daily life in childcare centers and educational settings. This seminar explores the theoretical, legal, and empirical foundations of participation and democracy education in early childhood and in childcare centers: from the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child through concepts of participation and democracy education to methods (how participation succeeds), its limitations (where participation degenerates into a mere gesture), and the question of how and where children participate in decision-making, contribute their ideas, and are taken into account. In the final third of the seminar, (small) groups will develop a practical tool for active participation—such as an informational brochure for parents/guardians, a workshop for early childhood educators, or a daycare website on participation and/or democracy education in early childhood—and present it (the format and style are fully negotiable). Participation becomes a guiding principle: The seminar itself serves as a space for negotiation between students and the instructor and employs participatory teaching formats.

Instructor: Tabea Grad

Time: Tue, 2-4 PM, First session: 14.04.2026

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Biographical self-reflection: One's own educational history as a basis for pedagogical action - Seminar

In this block seminar, participants’ own educational biographies become the focus of intensive reflection. Over the course of four block sessions, we will explore together how personal experiences shape our current understanding of education and learning. The seminar centers on a critical analysis of one’s own educational history: What values, beliefs, and behaviors were modeled and instilled in you during your childhood and adolescence? How do these experiences shape your pedagogical thinking and practice? Through structured self-reflection, intensive group discussion, and creative methods, you will identify and analyze key experiences from your educational biography, thereby developing a deeper understanding of the roots of your pedagogical convictions. This seminar requires an unconditional willingness to engage in deep self-reflection and open discussion about it within the group. It is aimed at students who are willing to engage in an intensive personal and professional examination of their own life story in the context of education and learning.

Instructors: Nicole Voss, Julius Grund

Time: flexible, First session: 17.04.2026

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MA: Research and Development in Pedagogical Fields of Action - Advanced Seminar

The aim of the seminar is to gain an overview of the research infrastructure in early childhood education (e.g., research institutes), to analyze and evaluate selected empirical studies in the field of early childhood education and care, and to draw conclusions from these findings for the evaluation of further studies, for educational practice, and for education policy. In addition, the seminar will examine the relationship between scientific research, educational needs, and social conditions in the context of early childhood education and care. 

Instructor: Katharina Kluczniok

Time: Wed, 12-14 PM, First session: 15.04.2026