This year's issue of the newsletter "Family at KIT" informs about events and news with the topic of compatibility of family, studies and job at KIT. The PDF file can be downloaded under "Issue 01-2022".

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A Day in the Sign of the Generations - Invitation Kick-Off Event on October 14, 2023

"Grandparents' Day" in Baden-Württemberg highlights the indispensable role of grandparents in the everyday lives of many families, emphasizes the special intimacy between grandparents and grandchildren, and discusses how to appreciate and support this commitment. The event will take place on October 14, 2023 at Ettlingen Castle. For more information, please see the event invitation.

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Federal Cabinet adopts action plan for socially disadvantaged children and young people to grow up with equal opportunities

The German Cabinet has adopted the National Action Plan "New Opportunities for Children in Germany", which aims to provide disadvantaged children and young people with access to high-quality care, education, health, nutrition and housing by 2030. Germany is thus implementing the recommendation on the European Guarantee for Children. More information on the measures taken by federal, state and local governments and civil society organizations in the brochure.

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Invitation to the Round Table "Studying with a Child at KIT"

The concerns and wishes of you, the students with child(ren), are very important to us, which is why various actors regularly meet at the round table "Studying with a child at KIT". We would like to get in touch with you and find out what concerns you, what you would like support with or which events and offers interest you. If you would like to take part, please contact Sarah Wenz, Head of the Equal Opportunities Office, by e-mail at sarah.wenz@kit.edu. We look forward to your participation!

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Student survey: On the situation of parenting students

Almost 188,000 students in Germany have provided information on their economic and social situation. The resulting study shows that eight percent of the students are parents. More than half of them study part-time, and they are also more likely to be employed and work significantly more than fellow students without children. You can find more information on the study here.

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Key points on child protection published
 

The end of child benefit is to be achieved in 2025 – and the introduction of basic child protection instead. The Federal Ministry for Family Affairs has now published the key points of how basic security should look in concrete terms. More information can be found on the website of the Baden-Württemberg Family Council.

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Key points for the reform of maintenance law

On 25 August 2023, the Federal Minister of Justice presented a key issues paper on the reform of maintenance law, which concerns „Kindesunterhalt“ and „Betreuungsunterhalt“. The aim is to promote partnership-based care for minor children and to make maintenance law fairer and less susceptible to disputes. The paper is available here.

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10 years of daycare legal entitlement - no reason to celebrate!

Since 1 August 2013, children from the age of one have a legal right to a childcare place in day-care centres. On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the legal entitlement, daycare professional associations have taken stock. Their demands can be found here, as well as the statement of the „GEW“ and the „Paritätische Gesamtverband“.

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Podcast „Kinderzeit“ about cliché-free daycare

How do role clichés come about? What impact do they have on children and how can we overcome them? The current episode of the „Kinderzeit“ podcast is about cliché-free pedagogy in daycare and primary school. Click here to listen to the podcast.

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Mental Load – Women bear the burden

In addition to the division of childcare, housework and caring for relatives, the mental load is a central dimension of partnership or gender-specific inequality. The new WSI report shows that women bear the predominant burden. You can read the report here.

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In order to promote the fair distribution of paid labour and care work, the federal government is planning a paid leave for second parents after the birth. The members of the alliance „Sorgearbeit fair teilen“ welcome the proposal and call for its swift implementation. Further information can be found on the website of the State Family Council.

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Ministry: Discussions on basic child security are ongoing

The Federal Ministry for Family Affairs denies reports that initially only two billion euros will be available annually for the planned basic child security from 2025. The talks on basic child security, led by Chancellor Scholz, are ongoing. The measure aims to improve financial support for low-income families by bundling various existing benefits. More information on the website of the State Family Council of Baden-Württemberg.

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2nd state-wide symposium on poverty and participation October 5, 2023; 10am-5pm

In Germany, especially in Baden-Württemberg, poverty exists despite wealth. In order to enable targeted poverty reduction, the country is expanding poverty reporting with five modules. An annual symposium on poverty and participation will be introduced to present reports, incorporate expertise and provide impetus. The first symposium will take place on October 5th.

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Reopening of the parent-child learning room | KIT library

The "parent-child learning room" on the 3rd floor of the KIT library is open again - access is regulated by "reservation" (the key to the room can be borrowed from the information desk (from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.)).
More information at https://www.bibliothek.kit.edu/english/parent-child-room.php.

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Marginal time care: The well-being of children

The technical article "Children as actors in marginal time care" provides information about the well-being of children and also refers to the results of the research project "Well-being of children in flexibilized day care" of the Rosenheim University of Applied Sciences, see "Children as actors in marginal time care".

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Recommendations for children's use of media

The Reading Foundation provides three services for parents and professionals on how to deal with analog and digital media: "lesenmit.app", "Vorleseideen für die Kita und zu Hause", and "#medienvielfalt". Learn more about the services under "Early Opportunities".

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Parent survey: Digital education

Digital education is a challenge and often connected with many questions. The University Hospital Tübingen conducts a survey of parents and invites them to participate. The survey can be found at: https://s2survey.net/medienkompetenz-ukt/.

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Neuroscience: Brain activity of children disturbed by a lot of screen time

For some parents, it may be a relief when the little ones watch videos or else on their smartphone. However, this screen time can negatively affect brain activity in the long term.
Researchers from Singapore have conducted a long-term study to investigate how the use of TV or smartphones affects young children. You can find an article on Deutschlandfunk Nova.

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Cuts to the federal budget affect families

The cuts to the social budget for 2024 decided by the federal government affect many family support services. For instance, the 'Kindergrundsicherung' planned for 2025 is to be cut by more than 80%. Furthermore, from 2024, no more funds will be earmarked for 'Familienerholung'. An overview of the planned cuts can be found here.

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How family-friendly are German companies?

According to the Unternehmensmonitor 2023, family-friendliness is more important than ever. For around 86 percent of companies, family-friendly measures are important and the compatibility of family and career has become a central element of the strategy to secure skilled workers. The full report can be found here.

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Gender pay gap - Statistics 2022

The pay gap between women and men in Baden-Württemberg was at 23 % in 2022. Click here to find out more about the personal, operational and structural factors which are responsible for this gender pay gap.

A folding changing table is now available in the disabled toilet in the basement of the KIT South Library. The key to the toilet is issued via the information desk on the ground floor. More information at Ein weiterer Schritt zu mehr Familienfreundlichkeit in der KIT-Bibliothek (only in german).

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Children's fitness barometer 2023: Corona kink is emerging
 

In cooperation with Prof. Dr. Klaus Bös and the research team from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), the Baden-Württemberg Children's Gymnastics Foundation has published the Fitness Barometer 2023, which examines the fitness of children in the region on the basis of anonymous test data from the "Gym Bag Gang". The results show that the children in Baden-Württemberg, despite above-average fitness, record a further decline in the overall fitness value compared to the national average. More information can be found here.

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OECD: Integration Study Settling In 2023
 

The integration study "Settling In 2023" by the OECD and the EU Commission analyzes the progress and challenges of the integration of immigrants and their descendants in OECD and EU countries, with a focus on the labor market, education, living conditions and social integration.

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Free lunchboxes for students with children

All students with children can pick up a free lunchbox at the Equal Opportunitiies Office by appointment. Find more information here. 

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"Kinderbüro ON AIR" | Dates summer 2023

The format "Kinderbüro ON AIR" of the Children's Office of the City of Karlsruhe starts into a new season. In regular online events, competent speakers guide you through topics related to raising children, family life and youth protection. The offer is free of charge. Further information and notes on registration and the programme can be found on the website of the Children's Office Karlsruhe.

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Study: What does family-friendly mean? Ideas and expectations of (potential) parents

The SINUS Institute carried out a study on behalf of the German government, which for the first time surveyed what the population understands by family-friendly and what is needed to make Germany a more family-friendly country. More information and a link to the study can be found on the website of the Baden-Württemberg Family Council. 

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Discussion on details of Kindergrundsicherung (basic child security)

Regarding the specific realisation of the „Kindergrundsicherung“ planned for 2025, there are still some unanswered questions: The assessment basis of the minimum amount, the amount of the children's housing cost flat rate and access to the digital processing procedure are still being discussed. Further information can be found on the website of the State Family Council.

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Gender stereotypes and their financial consequences

Is it a problem if men earn more than women? Is it bad if women spend more time on care work than men? How do gender stereotypes affect income, care work or pension payments? These are the questions the initiative „Klischeefrei“ explores in this article.

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Current issue "Kindertagesbetreuung Kompakt" of the BMFSFJ

92% of children from the age of 3 to school entry attended a daycare center in 2022, making this figure higher than ever. However, the demand continues to exceed the available childcare places. This is shown in the current issue of "Kindertagesbetreuung Kompakt" of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs (BMFSFJ). You can download it here.