Changing attitudes

On a cold Thursday morning in March, Johannes Terwitte is in charge of ensuring schoolyard discipline at the Ernst-Schering school in Berlin's Wedding district.

The 25-year-old graduate of Oxford University and the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin was watching a bunch of youngsters enjoying a game of basketball in a break between morning classes.

Terwitte is one of 66 high-achieving college graduates who were sent to problem schools in September 2009 under a program run by Teach First Germany - a not-for-profit charity founded four years ago.

"This brings you to a new level. It's like a consulting job that requires 70- or 80-hour work weeks," he said.

'He's one of us'

During the break, a 14-year-old student of German-Turkish origin asks Terwitte politely if he can go to the school's office to check on his next classes. This kind of discipline and good manners wasn't always the norm at the Ernst-Schering school, where students have earned a reputation for violent behavior, absenteeism and under-achieving.

The school is situated in a section of Berlin dominated by poor immigrant families. Some 85 percent of the school's children are on free meals, and their parents are often dependent on social welfare.

In spite of his elite academic pedigree, Terwitte managed to win the respect of the school's students. Many have even grown fond of him in the seven months he's spent at the school.

"His music classes are really varied, and always a lot of fun," said Ahed, an 8th grade student. He also said that Terwitte was not just "focused on grades" and listens to the "student's needs."

"You can also always approach him with personal things," said Bethlehem, a student from Ethiopia. "He's one of us because he understands us," Ahed concluded.

But Terwitte is not only popular among the school's students. The teachers like him too, and don't regret their decision to apply for a Teach First fellow.

"He's building bridges between the students and the regular teachers," said Marion Buerck, a biology and chemistry teacher. Buerck called Teach First "a wonderful program that should definitely be enlarged."

'Perfect mixture of mind and heart'

Under the German Teach First program, fellows like Terwitte are given two-year contracts that earn them about 1,700 euros ($2,268) per month.

The first 66 fellows were sent to the schools in September 2009. They were selected from more than 700 graduates who had initially applied. "We are looking for the perfect mixture of mind and heart," said Kaija Landsberg, the founder of Teach First Germany.

A graduate of the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin, Landsberg wrote her Master's thesis on the problems of integration. During her studies she came across Teach First in Britain and Teach for America in the United States.

"Academic excellence is not enough," Landsberg said. "What we also need is a high degree of involvement in fields such as social work, cultural initiatives or sports. Applicants must prove they are willing to take leadership positions."

Struggling against the odds

Landsberg said most of the graduates that apply to Teach First were driven by the desire "to give something back to society" after they had received "the privilege of first-class education."

"What unites us all is the shared belief that more must be done in the education system to serve those who haven't been served so far," she said.

But Teach First has received a lot of criticism from the German Teacher's Trade Union, which accuses the program of aiming to "de-professionalize" the teaching profession. The union also questioned the "philanthropic motives" of the graduates.

"We are not lowering any bars," Landsberg says. "The fellows don't do the jobs of regular teachers. It's just a new way for them to discover the teaching profession, for which they would need additional qualifications anyway."

A different type of leader

But turning high-achieving college graduates into teachers isn't the focus of Teach First. Landsberg says the goal is to make the fellows take what they experienced in the schools "to the next level" of their careers.

"We really need people who have been on the ground and know what it's about, so they will be to change policies, change companies and change society," she said.

Terwitte said his new job at the Ernst-Schering school required "a degree of energy unparalleled in his previous life." He called his endeavor both "taxing and rewarding."

"Sometimes I catch myself thinking: gosh, am I taking more out of this than I'm able to give to the kids? Because in many ways I'm growing," he said, before adding, "Teach First fellows are pre-destined to carry on this work, wherever they go in their future lives."

Author: Uwe Hessler
Editor: Ben Knight