About the programme

The best possible education for all – a lifetime of learning

Good education right from the start – that is the foundation of a future-proof education system and a productive knowledge society. This is why the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is promoting empirical educational research.

Education opens up opportunities. It helps us to recognise and develop our individual abilities, so that we can achieve our professional goals and participate in social life. But how must education be designed today in order to secure our social prosperity and provide the best possible support for all people? These are the questions addressed by the BMBF’s Framework Programme for Empirical Educational Research. Using scientific facts, it helps to identify the strengths and weaknesses of our education system and to question current developments so that we can respond flexibly to new requirements.

What constitutes good education?
Educational equity, social diversity, digitalisation and quality in education – these are currently the key fields of action in focus within the framework programme. It consolidates most of the BMBF’s research funding in the field of education – with the aim of further improving our education system and ensuring Germany’s international competitiveness. This is because its success depends on having sound research as its basis. The research results from the funded projects provide the foundation we need for this. They are intended to support the key players in the education system – including education experts, administrators and policymakers – in further improving educational programmes – in all areas and stages of education, from day care to adult education.

Research for educational practice
For teachers and educators as well as educational institutions to really be able to apply this knowledge in everyday life, the transfer of research results into policy, educational practice and civil society is particularly important. Achieving transfer is therefore an important focus of the framework programme. In many of the projects, researchers and educational practitioners work together as equals to solve problems right from the very beginning. This already starts with the definition of research topics and lines of enquiry.

The objectives of the Framework Programme for Empirical Educational Research at a glance

•  Deepening knowledge and gaining insights in new fields
  Strengthening the knowledge base for education policy and practice – across all stages of education, on all relevant processes, and across the entire educational trajectory.
   
•  Encouraging cooperation between research and practice
  Bringing together stakeholders in educational practice, those responsible for education policy and administration, and civil society actors to identify relevant problem areas and work more closely together.
   
• Driving innovation to improve education in the long term
  Progress only succeeds when we embrace and test new ways of doing things. The research projects in the framework programme therefore look at how educational processes and the conditions surrounding them can be reconceived and improved – for all stakeholders involved.
   
• Expanding the infrastructure for excellent educational research

  Expanding productive educational research is an important goal in the framework programme. Of particular priority in this area is the promotion of emerging researchers and the sustainable development and expansion of the data infrastructure to enable better subsequent re-use of research data.