5 min. Support for a disadvantaged child in Germany

Educational equity for all!

Mentoring for greater equality of opportunity

Sometimes it doesn't take much to take a new path. Just someone who is there to listen. We make sure that disadvantaged young people have such a "someone" by their side. Because origins should not determine the future! Like with Bogdan, who was a bit of a problem case at school. With a bit of luck he might have got an apprenticeship, but he wasn't really keen on it. That changed when he got a ROCK YOUR LIFE! mentor. Student Katharina helps Bogdan with everyday problems as well as with school work. But above all she gives him one thing: a future perspective. She encourages him to deal with his talents and researches possible apprenticeship opportunities with him. Bogdan now wants to get his high school diploma because his goal is to become a civil engineer. A dream that he would never have pursued without the support of his mentor. Future prospects don't just come naturally, but you can create them together!

need

Individual support is crucial for the success of disadvantaged children and young people in school and at work.

activity

Volunteer students accompany children and young people one-on-one as they start their independent lives.

Measurable performance

Number of minutes in which disadvantaged children and young people are supported.

Result

It is expected that 90 additional young people will graduate from school and successfully start their professional lives.

Systemically relevant impact

Successful life and work biographies, improved social integration, increased educational equality.

background

Even in industrialized countries like Germany, family background still has a decisive impact on children's life chances. According to calculations by the OECD (2018), it can take up to six generations for the offspring of a low-income family to reach the national average income. This situation is problematic in several ways: (1) It is unfair because it arises through no fault of one's own by birth. You cannot choose the circumstances into which you are born. ROCK YOUR LIFE! works to ensure that all people have the same opportunities regardless of their origins. (2) The situation is also problematic because interrupted school and training careers mean a waste of individual talents and collective creativity. Disadvantaged young people rarely get the chance to develop their strengths and actively contribute to a good society. As a result, everyone misses out on something. (3) Finally, the existing conditions are also economically disadvantageous. Companies across the country are desperately looking for trainees and skilled workers, while young people from disadvantaged families often end up in the transition system and often remain in need of support for a long time afterwards.

The good deed

With your good deed today, you are giving children and young people from disadvantaged families 5 minutes of support on their way into the future. ROCK YOUR LIFE! provides the children and young people with mentors and accompanies the process with seminars, events and further training. The mentors support the children and young people in developing self-confidence and self-efficacy, help with problems and develop future plans with the young people that match their strengths and talents. Through the support, the potential of the children and young people is discovered and promoted. Not only the children and young people themselves benefit from this, but also we as a society. The effectiveness of the ROCK YOUR LIFE! mentoring program is continuously evaluated and was recently scientifically proven by the ifo Institute: The children and young people in our program improve their school grades, increase their social skills and later find their way better in the job market. We create win-win-win with meaning: for the individual, for social interaction, for society as a whole.

AboutGermany

Berlin

Capital city

83 240 525

Population

45,723.6

Gross domestic product per capita per year

Rank 6 of 189

Human Development Index (Human Development Index)

In Germany, too, there is still inequality of opportunity based on origin. The learning and life chances of children from families with little education are worse by birth. This does not have to be the case.

About the organization and further information