Day 17

One day of educational support for a child in Neukölln

Youth poverty -

break the vicious circle of dependence on social benefits

"Today is over yesterday." This was the observation of a 12-year-old child from the Rollbergviertel who missed an appointment the day before. What is an appointment anyway? Why should I arrive on time? How do I communicate appropriately? Many children and young people in the socially disadvantaged Rollbergviertel in Berlin-Neukölln lack these basic skills. Voluntary mentors show them opportunities and perspectives and accompany them on their journey for years. The main goal is to open a door to education and the world of work for the children and young people and to strengthen them so that they can consciously break out of the vicious circle of a lack of education, unemployment and dependence on social benefits and, in the worst case, crime.

need

Alleviating child poverty

activity

Children and young people from the Rollbergviertel receive weekly educational support and supervision from a mentor

Measurable performance

Number of children cared for

Result

Number of children whose academic performance improves

Systemically relevant impact

The young people find vocational training places. The vicious circle of lack of training in socially disadvantaged areas is broken.

background

In the middle of the German capital lies the Rollberg district, which ranks last among 417 planning areas in the Berlin social structure atlas. 70% of the population here lives on transfer payments. The main problem in the Rollberg district is not poverty, but primarily a lack of education in all population groups. The children lack role models who lead a life structured by work. The families here are often unable to support their children. They lack language skills, can hardly express themselves verbally, and hardly write at all - regardless of whether the families are with or without a migration background. Many families also have problems such as alcohol abuse or domestic violence. Other families interpret the commandments and prohibitions in Islam narrowly and the world rarely extends beyond the extended family.

The good deed

Today's good deed will provide a child in the Rollbergkiez with a day of educational support. The concept of the "Rollberg Student Support Network" is tailored to the needs of disadvantaged children. It is a mixture of tutoring and sponsorship projects and focuses on education and social skills. Volunteer mentors try to use their commitment to build up what the children's families cannot provide. They look after one or two children each, with whom they meet at least once a week - and over a longer period of time, often even years. Very regularly and always with the same children. But the mentors are more than that: They are people the children can trust and provide access to education, culture and the world of work - they are their "middle-class contact" to the world outside the neighborhood and the chance for a self-determined future.