There are more and more families where both parents work outside the home, which makes balancing work and family life a real challenge. This is why parents often need childcare. For example, they entrust the care of their offspring to a nanny. It is clear that the role of the person who takes care of the child is of great importance. Often it almost becomes part of the family.

Childcare: the role of the nanny

When it comes to the issue of returning to work after the birth of a child, there are several options for child care. Many families choose to hire a nanny or a nannies. This person will take care of the little ones while the parents are not around. There is one main difference and advantage compared to other options, such as.B. a daycare center or a kindergarten: the care provided by a nanny is very personal.

For this very reason, the person who takes care of the children becomes a very important figure for them. Because it is she who shares everyday life with the children, listens to the little ones, calms them and gives them affection. She also cooks for them and takes care of any aches and pains they may have. Sometimes she will bathe the children and put them to bed when their parents are not yet there.

Therefore, the bond that children form with their nanny is very significant and it is also very good for them. Because the presence of healthy emotional ties strengthens the self-esteem of children. This, in turn, helps them grow into sociable and outgoing individuals. It also makes the periods of absence of the parents a lot easier.

How to choose a good nanny?

As you have seen, the person in charge of childcare plays a very significant role. Therefore, it is important that you think about the criteria you use to choose a nanny. What qualities should have the person who will occupy such an important place in the childhood of our offspring?

Many families hire the same person for two tasks: Namely, for childcare and housework. But this usually means that the person does not have any specific qualifications in childcare. Therefore, if possible, you should try to separate these two tasks. Choose a nanny with appropriate psychological, pedagogical, or early childhood training.

Because especially when it comes to very young children or those who need special care, the nanny should have sufficient knowledge. Ideally, she should be able to understand the developmental stages of the children so that she can guide them in the best possible way.

Parents and nannies should share values

Also, another factor is essential when it comes to choosing the right childcare: parents need to be sure that the nanny shares certain values as well as ideas about education with them. Or, at the very least, that she will respect and follow your desired parenting style and standards. Because this consistency is of very fundamental importance. Only in this way will your children feel safe and be happy.

Here you'll find some of the most important values that your nanny should ideally share with you:

The nanny should not be authoritarian

For example, it is important that the nanny is a person who is not overly authoritarian towards your children. In other words, not forcing certain things on them, but giving them the opportunity to participate in decisions and come to agreements.

Thus, the nanny should ensure that siblings, for example, have the freedom to agree to play with each other. Because by doing so, it also encourages children to act more confidently and develop a certain assertiveness.

Very important in childcare: empathy

Also, the nanny should be able to be there for your little ones on an emotional level and provide comfort when they need it. Because taking care of the little ones also means that the nanny is building a bond with them. It makes them feel heard, valued and loved.

Also, positive demeanor towards the children

In general, it is always better to address children in a positive way and tell them what to do rather than focusing on things they should not do. So for example, "Please put your toys in the box.". And not "don't leave your toys lying around here".

In addition, it also helps if these commands are accompanied by an explanation. Because this allows children to act out of conviction and not out of blind obedience. So, for example, you can say, "If the toy is on the floor, someone can accidentally step on it and then it can get broken."

Also important: self-control

An indispensable quality in dealing with children is calmness and patience. Thus, the childcare person should not lose her cool in the face of a tantrum from the child. It should give the little one the space it needs at that moment to express itself. In addition, she must of course be able to gently and respectfully reassure the child.

The best time to determine if the potential nanny shares your ideas about parenting is at the interview. While doing this, you should try to talk to her about different everyday situations to find out how she would react to them. Also, it is interesting to pay attention to how she talks about her previous jobs. Because a person with a true vocation will definitely talk about previous families with a lot of emotion and affection.

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There is no one theory of economization per se. Rather, economization is explained theoretically in several ways and analyzed with different emphases. What all approaches share is the view that it is a complex transformation process in which economic forms, instruments, and logics increasingly dominate in areas that are not primarily economic (value. The changes affect the macro level (fields, systems, discourses) and meso level (institutions) as well as the micro level of everyday practices and modes of subjectivation. However, the different theories differ considerably in their interpretation of the extent, the degree or. the scope of economizing transformations, which is related to the definition of ‘the economic’. For some, economization can only be measured by ‘hard’ indicators such as monetary profits or. For others, economization begins much earlier, for example, with output-oriented control in the school system, in which primarily measurable performance is evaluated by tests – similar to a system of key figures in companies, according to which success and savings potential are measured. The broad spectrum of economic forms, instruments and logics includes u.a. the primacy of efficiency and output orientation, marketization, competitive selection, the hierarchical separation of leadership (management, school board, university presidium) and operational level (employees, teachers, professors), enterprise and entrepreneurship as global guiding principles, etc. In the following, we will briefly introduce theoretical approaches that play an important role in the discussion on economization (Hohne 2012: 801-807).

System or. Differentiation theory defines economization as de-differentiation, d.h. as the dissolution of rationality boundaries and action logics between economy, politics, health, education etc., is interpreted differently in the various theories (Schimank and Volkmann 2008; Kronig 2007). It is based on the system’s own logics or rules (‘code’), according to which specific actions and communication take place in the system: For instance, according to the logic of mediating/acquiring when it comes to learning and didactic action in the field of education, while in the capitalist economy money-, exchange-, and market-based transactions according to features such as money payments, supply/demand, buy/sell, profit, minimum/maximum principle (min. costs + max. value added), etc. operates. The respective logics of the systems are not arbitrarily interchangeable because they would limit a) the social functions and b) the autonomy of the systems: A science that would be primarily economically oriented to monetary profits would no longer operate in a truth- or knowledge-oriented way – so the assumption. Pierre Bourdieu, for his part, speaks of fields in which actors act according to hybrid logics, from different positions and motives, and equipped with different resources (types of capital). Fields and actors also have their own, albeit relative, autonomy (‘nomos’ as it is called), which is always embedded in hierarchical structures and dependencies. According to this, scientists can both strive for truth and simultaneously pursue the goal of increasing reputation (= symbolic capital) and influence (= power) with it. Through economization in science, motives such as gaining reputation and power would come to the fore, implying a radicalized market-oriented competition among scientists.

In the perspective of governmentality studies, economization is conceptualized as the imposition of a new technology of government and discourses that are characterized by the subject being called upon to engage in a new and specific form of self-governance or. is invoked. Foucault emphasizes the difference between homo oeconomicus as a partner in exchange (according to classical liberal understanding) and the new neoliberal figure of homo oeconomicus as an “entrepreneur of himself (…) who is for himself his own capital, his own producer, his own income” (Foucault 2004: 314). The transfer of economic principles to the subject is not an external process of coercion and subjugation, but transforms the subjects’ relationship to self and other in a specific way insofar as it is based on different modes of self-production: Pedagogically as self-organized lifelong learning, psychologically as self-directed acquisition of competencies, and economically as self-entrepreneurship (Brockling/Krasmann/Lemke 2000).

Neoinstitutionalist approaches (Meyer/Rowan 2009, Meyer 2005) could show a worldwide diffusion of certain institutional structures and contents in educational systems (summarizing Adick 2009: 264). At its core is the global spread of a Western-dominated model of rationality characterized by specific notions of subject and action: a work-ethically disciplined, rational subject on the one hand, and the objectivity of scientific knowledge and ends-means rationality on the other. This guiding concept represents the homo-oeconomicus model in neoclassical economics, which is gaining transnational currency, especially with global actors such as the OECD. The worldwide standardization of titles, credentials and degrees (Meyer/Ramirez 2005: 229) is an important indication of an overarching uniform development of organizations, which can lead “in the long run to a homogenization of formal structures and practices within an organizational field” (Koch 2009: 119) – neoinstitutionalistically called isomorphism (Meyer/Rowan 2009). In the field of education, economization processes are based on isomorphic mechanisms, which educational policy e.g. through the creation of best practice examples (= mimesis) (Hohne/Schreck 2009: 224 ff.), via normative pressure in the form of the profiling requirement for schools (school programs) or enforced isomorphism qua legal regulations (educational standards, central comparative studies) are implemented.

Economization also functions as an umbrella term for a number of similar terms such as capitalization, commodification, commercialization, land grabbing, privatization, etc. (Hohne 2012: 799 f.). Richard Munch, for example, resorts to the concept of “capitalization” to refer to a targeted increase in the value of educational capital as well as the convertibility of different types of capital among themselves, in which education as cultural capital is primarily turned into a means of exchange (Munch 2010). Reinhold Sackmann, for his part, defines ‘commodification’, following Karl Polanyi, as an economic process “in which a service or an object becomes a commodity traded in a market economy or. an actor increasingly orients his actions to profit” (Sackmann 2004: 66). Ingrid Lohmann speaks of the “commercialization of education” and thus emphasizes that “market is the cipher for profound, worldwide transformation processes in the relations between economy, politics and culture”, in which non-democratically legitimized transnational “market institutions” such as OECD, WTO or World Bank increasingly influence educational policy decisions in a constitutive way (Lohmann 2010: 138 f.).

5.2 Possibilities and limits of criticisms of economization

Economization is usually spoken of by someone who wants to formulate a critique with it. While the use of the term economization is critically intended, especially as a critique of hyperthrophic and unreflected generalizations of economic instruments, methods and discourses, there are also reservations about this critical discourse of economization. As far as the critique of economization is concerned, there is also a polemical variant in addition to the scientific-reflexive discussion of the concept of economization. According to them, ‘economization’ is nothing more than a political term of struggle, which is just as theoretically irrelevant as the opposite assumption that economics would ‘hostilely take over’ the whole society. Elmar Tenorth, for example, accuses critics of economization of being “trapped in the old formulas” and “blind to the actual practice and possibilities of current educational reform” (Tenorth 2005). Towards the supposed ‘opponents of reform’ it is emphasized that it is “wrong” to use evaluation, accreditation, performance orientation, school profiles, etc. with economization: “Does all this mean ‘economization’, i.e. the introduction of a foreign principle into educational institutions??” He justifies his “no” by saying that control would be in the hands of the educational institutions themselves (Tenorth 2005). What remains unconsidered here is the fact that said autonomy is precisely a prerequisite for a more economic action of organizations in the ‘market of opportunities’ (cf. Item 4.4. to marketization through quasi-markets), because this pattern of legitimation is found in privatized clinics or water companies as well as in the case of (partly) autonomous schools. In addition to the global rejection of the concept of economization, there are also theoretically fruitful critical discussions of the economization discourse, in which u.a. criticizes that this argues too little empirically (Bellmann 2016). In contrast, there is now much empirical evidence on economizing changes from case studies for various pedagogical fields and educational policy actors (Peetz 2014, Schimank/Volkmann 2017, Bloem 2018, Hartong/Hermstein/Hohne 2018, Hohne/Striebing 2020, Buchter/Hohne 2021).

5.3 ‘The state’ as opponent/enemy of ‘the economy’? Narratives and Counter-Narratives in the Discourse of Economization

Beyond the aforementioned polemical variant of the ‘anti-economization’ position, the critical discourse of economization also contains a metaphorical-narrative potential that essentially involves a story of struggle, war, and conquest: Metaphors such as ‘colonization,’ ‘hostile takeover,’ ‘attack,’ ‘expansion,’ ‘land grab,’ or even the “terror of economics” (Forrester 1997) tell the story of a violent border crossing and occupation of a territory by a ‘foreign power’. In this context, the state is often assigned the role of a pacifying ‘patron saint’, whose monopoly on the use of force and balancing power between different social interests has been symbolized by the all-dominant ‘Leviathan’ since Thomas Hobbes’s book of the same name (1651).

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You can also do this: for example, put a suitable book under your pillow before you go to sleep or recite a saying before you go into the classroom.

Countering stage fright: self-motivation is the key to success

Anything that gives you strength and calms you down is good for an exam situation. You can also put a note with an encouraging saying in your pencil case. For example with the sentence: “i have prepared well and i am ready to show it!”

Or you put a photo of your favorite dog or the last vacation on the table. “Looking at a nice picture lifts your spirits and can help you out of your anxiety”, doctor kirchhoff explains.

Despite good exam results, many do not have an easy time on the job market after graduation: no job after graduation – parents have to pay for a second education?

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In 2017, the Swiss Music Association presented a "SwissMusicOnAir Award" for the first time. The award was given to the licensed private radio station with the highest proportion of Swiss music in its program: the subsidized local station in Bern, Radio BeO. (Image: Radio BeO)

Subsidized radio and TV stations in Switzerland and Liechtenstein tend to give more airplay to music from SUISA members than privately funded stations. In addition, most federally supported stations play many more different music titles than their counterparts focused on advertising revenues. In the interest of local music creation and cultural diversity, an abolition of the solidary levies for public service media should therefore be rejected.

On average, subsidized Swiss radio stations play a higher proportion of music by SUISA members than private stations without public funding. In addition, the number of different music titles in the programs of the federally supported stations is usually significantly higher than that of their mainly advertising-financed counterparts.

Thus, (co-)funding by the federal government contributes to Swiss music creation and diversity in broadcasting programs. That this conclusion is not made up out of thin air is evident from usage report data available to the collecting societies SUISA and Swissperform.

In order for a company to broadcast radio and/or television programs in Switzerland and Liechtenstein or to feed them into cable networks, a licence agreement with SUISA is necessary. Under this agreement, broadcasters are required to provide SUISA with precise information on the programming broadcast.

Broadcasting shares for music by members of SUISA

The information on the music broadcast must include, among other things, the titles of the musical works, the names of the composers and the performers as well as the broadcast duration. The detailed information enables a correct distribution of the royalties collected: The income is paid out to those authors and publishers whose works were played in the programs according to the broadcast reports.

In addition, the sum of the broadcast messages provides an overview of the entire music programming of a station. In particular, SUISA is able to evaluate the share of music played by its own members in a well-founded manner. As soon as at least one of the authors is a SUISA member, a piece of music is considered a SUISA work in the evaluation. A music title whose composers and lyricists are exclusively non-SUISA members shall be counted as part of the rest of the repertoire for the purposes of this share calculation, irrespective of the performers.

A look at the calculated broadcast shares from 2016 reveals a clear trend: Subsidized radios give more space to the music of SUISA members than privately funded stations. It should be noted here: SUISA repertoire is increasingly played not only in SRG programs, but also at local stations such as Radio BeO, Kanal K or Radio Stadtfilter. The latter also receive shares of the radio and TV fees. The associated program mandate shows its effect here.

In detail, the programming mandates for the national (SRG) and the regional (local broadcasters) public service are different. However, both are overridden by the principle in Article 93 of the Federal Constitution: "Radio and television contribute to education and cultural development, to the free formation of opinion and to entertainment. They take into account the specifics of the country and the needs of the cantons. They present events in a factual manner and adequately express the diversity of views."

Diversity in the music programming of Swiss radio stations

SRG's cultural mandate includes cultural reporting as well as education in the cultural field and cultural promotion. As part of this performance mandate, SRG agreed with music industry associations and institutions in the Charter of Swiss Music on benchmarks for promoting Swiss musical creativity in its radio programming. The positive influence of the public service mandate on programming diversity is evidenced by an analysis of radio broadcasts from 2015, based on an evaluation by Swissperform:

According to this survey, Swiss musicians were involved in almost every fourth piece of music played on SRG stations in 2015 (share of CH music: 23 %). The average proportion of Swiss music broadcast by advertising-financed private stations was only 12 percent.

The comparison of the number of different music titles illustrates another significant difference in the programs evaluated: The audience of SRG stations got to hear an average of 14,044 different recordings throughout the year. In the programs of the private radio stations, an average of 3143 recordings were played during twelve months, i.e. significantly fewer different music titles. To exaggerate: 9 different songs per day rotated on these private stations.

In the interest of Swiss music NO to No Billag

The popular initiative marketed under the deceptive name of "No Billag" aims to completely abolish radio and television taxes. The initiators are not targeting Billag, the collection agency. Instead, it should be stipulated in the Federal Constitution that the Confederation does not subsidize radio and television stations. At the same time, if the initiative is accepted, the previously mentioned principle that radio and television must contribute to cultural development and take into account the specifics of the country would be deleted from the Federal Constitution without replacement.

In a purely commercial radio and television landscape, broadcasters inevitably focus on their advertising revenues. The current facts about the broadcasting shares of Swiss music and the number of different music titles give an impression of the effect this economic orientation has on the program contents. In the interest of local music creation and cultural diversity, an abolition of the solidarity-based levies for service public media should therefore be firmly rejected.

Additional information:
Complete evaluations of the broadcast shares of SUISA works in both SRG radio broadcasts and in broadcasts of private radio stations from 2016 are published at: www.suisa.ch/hitparades

A collection of signatures is currently underway among Swiss cultural professionals for an appeal with which they will jointly position themselves against the No Billag initiative and advocate for a culturally diverse Switzerland. The appeal is coordinated by the Swiss Performers' Cooperative SIG and Swissperform and supported by numerous representatives from the cultural sector such as SUISA, music creators, the Music Council and many more. In January 2018, the cultural practitioners plan to go public with their joint appeal.

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Confucius was a Chinese philosopher who lived at a time when war and confusion ruled. However, he never gave up in his search for a way to overcome difficulties with knowledge. When he was 50 years old, he started traveling through China. On his travels he shares his thoughts, especially in the form of aphorisms. His influence was so great that he soon began filling entire auditoriums with listeners. Even politicians and influential men engaged with his thoughts and put them into practice.

If you want to be wise, learn to ask appropriately, to listen thoughtfully, to answer calmly, and to be quiet when you have nothing to say.

Confucius' ideas revolved around education as the source of virtue. He proposed three fundamental virtues: Goodness, which leads to joy and inner peace; Science, which dispels doubt; and Courage, which puts all kinds of fear to flight. Below we will share with you some of Confucius' quotes that are still relevant.

Confucius' ideas of a wise life

Much of Confucius' philosophy revolves around developing certain virtues and attaining wisdom for a more fulfilling life. In his thoughts you can recognize a tolerant person to whom reflection and moderate behavior are important. This is also reflected in the following ideas:

"A little money avoids problems; a lot of money attracts them."

"Everything has its own beauty, but not everyone can see it"."

"If the goal seems hard to reach, don't change course; look for a new way to get there."

"Going too far is not as bad as not going far enough."

"He who is master of his anger is master of his worst enemy."

"It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness."

"Music brings a certain pleasure without which human nature could not be sustained."

"Revenge perpetuates hatred."

"Vices come as passengers, visit as guests, and stay as masters."

"Never bet. If you know that you will defeat the other person, then you are a deceiver… and if you do not know, then you are a fool."

Coherence, the test of virtue

In Confucius' thought, there are many allusions to the importance of consistency between the way you think, feel, and act. He attributed a special importance to actions, because, in his opinion, they brought out the true validity of the words. He rejected artificial attitudes and emphasized simplicity.

"A superior man is humble when he speaks, but generous when he acts."

"Articulated speech and flattery very seldom go hand in hand with virtue."

"The most sublime kind of person is the one who acts before he speaks, and carries out what he preaches."

"To know justice and not act on it is cowardice."

"Just as water takes the form of its container, a wise man must adapt to circumstances."

"Give a man a fish and he will eat of it for a day. Teach him to fish and he will eat for the rest of his life."

"Wisdom strives to be slow in her speeches and exact in her actions."

"Only the wisest sages and the most foolish fools are incomprehensible."

Interact with others

In Confucius' philosophy, there are many reflections that relate to how relationships between people can work: Respect must be the basis of any society and generosity is a very high good that makes everyone who applies it happy. Confucius supported the idea of judging others in a kind and harmonious manner.

"He who strives to secure the well-being of another has already secured his own."

"Demand much of yourself and very little of others. So you save yourself a lot of discomfort."

"Nature makes men equal and causes them to approach one another. Education makes us different and makes us move away from each other."

"Human nature is good and evil is essentially unnatural."

'What the wise man wants, he seeks within himself'. What the common man wants, he seeks in others."

" The faults of a person always match the nature of his mind. Observe his faults and you will know his virtues."

"Youths and servants are the most difficult people to deal with. If you are casual with them, they become disrespectful; if you build up distance to them, they resent it."

"Do not reply to a word said angrily in the same tone of voice. It is the second, yours, that will otherwise guide you safely into battle."

Knowledge

Education and knowledge are essential components of Confucius' philosophy. This thinker truly believed that people are good by nature. But this human nature must be cultivated and molded so that it may be best expressed, he said. Let knowledge be a sure way to attain virtue, and virtue bring with it inner peace and happiness.

The following aphorisms reflect thoughts on this subject:

"He who knows how much is enough will always have a lot."

"A good leader always knows what is true. A bad leader knows what is easy to sell."

"A man who has made a mistake and does not correct it will make another, even greater mistake."

"He who has learned the truth in the morning can now die at sunset."

"The noblest type of person has an open mind that is free from prejudice. A less noble type of person possesses prejudice and lacks an open mind."

"There are three ways that lead to wisdom: Imitation, which is the easiest way; deliberation, which is the noblest way; and experience, which is the bitterest way."

"Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and stars."

Tell us which is your favorite thought from this ancient and yet so modern thinker!

The contents of Gedankenwelt are for informational and educational purposes only. They are not a substitute for professional diagnosis, advice or treatment. If you have concerns or questions, it is best to consult an expert you trust.

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Business people in the health care sector are "active in various inpatient, day-care and outpatient facilities in the health and social services sector. Their area of deployment includes hospitals, care facilities, the preventive care and rehabilitation sector, rescue services and "medical self-administration facilities," as the curriculum states. One of them will be Martin Schwarz, who will complete his two-year retraining in the summer of 2023. Until then, the 37-year-old family man, who already has an apprenticeship and a decade of professional experience in the catering industry, will have to go back to school and complete internships.

Why retrain as a healthcare management assistant??

"The desire to reorient myself professionally arose with the birth of my son and became inevitable through Corona," Martin Schwarz looks back. "I knew that I wanted to continue doing something with people and also apply my commercial knowledge, but not yet what exactly I wanted to do and was initially unemployed for a year. In March 2021, I had a very nice conversation with a friendly employee of the employment agency and the prospect of being able to become a health care salesperson. Once the specific wish was established, everything happened very quickly. After one or the other application and job interview, the contracts were signed within a week and I could start on 1. I will start my two-year retraining program in April 2021, which will be financed through an education voucher."

Why the Euro Akademie Chemnitz?

"While some education providers only wanted a course to start with a certain minimum number of participants, the Euro Akademie in turn planned with a maximum of eight participants*, so rather less than more. This small group concept, the individual and practice-oriented work has convinced me, and in addition there is here an own commercial training firm, which is integrated into the German training firm ring – a company simulation with interactive business relations. Fictitious products for office management and wellness are offered, sales statistics and inventory lists are kept, marketing plans, ABC and SWOT analyses are created, and managing personnel is also possible," Martin Schwarz gives an insight into selected departments and tasks.

"The highlight was the training firm fair in winter 2021, but unfortunately it could only take place digitally. Mr. Schwarz sells with a lot of commitment and heart and also has the virtual booth of the class or. The training company was very well prepared and organized," praises Patrick Bergmann, who is a lecturer and marketing manager at the Euro Akademie Chemnitz.

Internship in the neighboring medical center

"I did my first internship (four months) in the medical care center at the market hall, where I was fully scheduled from the start and was allowed to lend a hand, organizationally and physically. I worked at the registration desk and gave advice, entered patients into the system, managed master data, billed prescriptions and wrote invoices, got to know prevention courses and therapy offers and, in particular, planned some myself for aquafitness."

Martin Schwarz will complete his second internship in the accounting department of the Chemnitz Hospital, which he was given because of his conscientious way of working, since the MVZ is a subsidiary of the hospital.

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Bickenbach, Matthias; Maye, Harun: Metaphor Internet. Literary Education and Surfing. Berlin: Kulturverlag Kadmos, 2009.

The monograph by literary and media scholars Matthias Bickenbach and Harun Maye has a twofold aim: on the one hand, the study aims to show how the understanding and handling of the medium of the Internet is essentially determined by the metaphor of surfing. The authors trace their media metaphorical observations back to a long literary tradition of nautical metaphors that had always stood for a bold use of knowledge. On the other hand, the authors thus make an educational claim by declaring surfing to be the appropriate media style of the Internet age. Ignoring more current Internet metaphors, the plea for a playful approach to information thus leads to a universalization of the nautical metaphoric.

"To the ships, you philosophers!", Nietzsche called in his Merry Science (IV. book, no. 289), to challenge 'rational' thinking oriented to the metaphors of solid ground. With this very exclamation, the authors of the present volume quote Nietzsche as a guarantor of the risky navigation in the boundless space of the World Wide Web, which has always been presented in metaphors: as a "net, as "cyberspace, as the "data highway", as a "sea of data (cf. S. 60). In debates about the Internet, a conspicuous metaphorization of the medium was noticed early on, the two literary and media scholars concede, "but for the most part, contributions on this topic move within the metaphors they use without treating them as metaphors" (S. 25).
German media theory, in particular, has often tended to ignore the imagery of its own speech by referring to the technical. On the other hand, a reflected, metaphorologically trained perspective on the medium is necessary, according to the authors' insight, which is welcome in all quarters, and they thus advocate the thesis – which is not new, but important – that the acceptance and implementation of new media depends on "guiding images depends on: "Without metaphors there is no communication via media" (S. 27). The metaphors in which the media are described are therefore of decisive importance.

Surfing as an absolute metaphor

Matthias Bickenbach and Harun Maye now claim that the Internet is essentially determined by nautical metaphors, which already have a long literary and also science poetic tradition (cf. S. 11). Especially "surfing as a metaphor and operation of dealing with large amounts of data" (S. 20) stands for an "operational media style" (ibid.), which qualifies the metaphor as a cultural model in the information society: navigating in the "sea of data" and the "liquid dealing with data (cf. S. 17). On this basis, the authors now want to examine the cultural-historical and heuristic significance of nautical metaphor in order to justify its plausibility and appropriateness for an adequate handling of the medium Internet.
In addition, they undertake some very readable excursions in literary and media studies to Herder, Goethe, Poe, London, McLuhan, and the cyberpunk authors – as the pre- and post-digital metaphors. surfers of the information society.
The claim of the excursions, however, is connected with a series of problems that the reader of this book, which is as instructive as it is entertaining, is confronted with. For, despite many surprising observations and stimulating thoughts about surfing as a style of locomotion in "liquid media At the end, it is not plausible why, of all things, "navigation or. the "surfing" an "absolute metaphor" (S. 39) of the Internet should be; respectively – why still.

Universalistic Anachronism

The nautical metaphor was dominant especially in the Internet of the 1990s as it extended into the naming of the software. But the Internet has developed further and with it its metaphors – in which also a changed role of the user is manifested. Thus, a universalization of the nautical metaphor seems strangely anachronistic for a reader in 2010: Who still says today that he "surfs"?, When reading 'newsfeeds,' 'blogging,' 'gambling,' 'posting,' 'streaming,' or 'tweeting'? The concentration on a historical media formation and its specific metaphor would be completely unproblematic if the plausibility of the entire argumentation – which, significantly, is mainly based on the science fiction and Internet literature of the past century – did not depend on the thesis of the universality of the surf metaphor. By completely ignoring the current development of the Internet and its metaphors in their promising book on the metaphor Internet, the authors lose sight of the historicity of the medium.

Naturalization of the medium

At the same time, they use the metaphor to perpetuate their naturalized view of the Internet: They address it as something naturally given: the "sea of data" (S. 26), in which the user can move as an 'explorer' of new digital territory, as a 'fisherman' of data, or even as a 'surfer' who surrenders to the thrill of the medium alone. However, only programmers or hackers have influence on the number and size of the streams that fill the sea.
Today, the user is no longer in this situation: the so-called Web 2.0 basically allows every Internet user to become a source, a channel, or even a sewage treatment plant of any number of information streams. Corresponding to this is an altered metaphoric. The new metaphors of social networks and swarm intelligence tend to address users as customers, collaborators, social beings or capital: as subscribers, peers, friends or crowds. Significantly, in the notion of blogger, the nautical metaphoric that still underlies it is barely discernible: The weblog, which arose from the intersection of the World Wide Web and the logbook, has been shortened to the blog. Bloggers also see themselves as journalists or entertainers rather than sailors or surfers.
While the metaphors of Web 2.0 obviously refer to the interactions between users, they cannot be grasped by the metaphor of surfing at all, or at least not any more. The surfer is always alone on his board.

In the maelstrom of metaphor

The hypostasis of the surfing metaphor thus acts like a whirlpool that pulls the various metaphor stories into a common center, like a plunge into the maelstrom – which is also the subject of one of the most important chapters of the book (cf. S. 119 ff.). In it, the authors interpret Poe's short story of the same name as a media-theoretical paradigm. After an all-out attack on his previous interpreters, who in their interpretation "almost obsessively perpetuate the history of the rhetorical figure (S. 123) because they only ever asked what the malstrom was and not how to escape it, the authors explain with McLuhan: "Poe's hero is a surfer (S. 126). In this way, however, they also offer only another interpretation of what the malstrom is: the flood of information from the media. Against the background of this original interpretation, one wonders whether Bickenbach and Maye succumbed to the pull of the metaphor. For contrary to their initial intention to "treat the metaphors" as metaphors (S. 25), they now seem to take surfing entirely for the 'actual' expression of the thing itself.

Media Metaphorical Essentialism

When the authors claim at the beginning: "The new medium Internet takes up this [nautical] metaphor and uses it for its self-description (S. 11), the book's basic style of argumentation, which could be called media metaphorical essentialism, already emerges: It suspends the question of the 'subject' of metaphor choice and its reasons in favor of a universalization of metaphor. With an obituary on the already antiquarian metaphor of the "data highway the authors attest the surfing metaphor a historical victory over the restrictive alternative to the liberal "sea of data". In doing so, they en passant not only fade out all other metaphors of a socialized internet. They also lose sight of the different actors and functions of metaphors in their concrete historical contexts.

Metaphor stories without origins

Although the political function of the fossil metaphor "information superhighway" (S but not its presumed originator Al Gore and his rhetorical strategy; its infrastructural context of origin is omitted, as is the experiential origin of the surfing metaphor. Only in a footnote on page 157 does the reader receive a hint as to when and by whom it was presumably first applied to the Internet. Although it is obviously known to the authors, they unfortunately do not tell the story about it. Remarkably, the footnote is in the context of a quote in which 'actual' surfers contest the metaphor because they consider the comparison of risky sport with clicking around on web pages to be strained. Bickenbach and Maye, on the other hand, defend the metaphor by referring to the inescapable facticity of the nautical trope, which "always has been" (S. 158) to "intellectual and poetological realms," the authors (S. 160) had been transferred.

Metaphorology as Catachresis

The book's claim to "treat the metaphors of the Internet" as metaphors (S. 25), promises – especially with the recourse to Hans Blumenberg, whose metaphorology supports the thesis of the "absolute metaphor" (p. 25) philosophically – a methodologically as well as theoretically well-founded investigation. The type of metaphor that communication via new media necessarily demands in the absence of suitable terms is described by Bickenbach and Maye either, with reference to ancient rhetoric, as a "catachresis" (S. 27) or, with reference to Blumenberg, as an "absolute metaphor" (S) (S. 39). A reflection on the relationship between the two terms, which are by no means identical, would have been very desirable and helpful, since they are associated with different presuppositions. Blumenberg's philosophical departure from the Aristotelian theory of metaphor is not discussed by the authors, nor is his thesis that "absolute metaphors" are not "metaphors" are historical and exhaust themselves at some point. Unlike Blumenberg in his study Schiffbruch mit Zuschauer (Shipwreck with Spectators) (Frankfurt am Main 1979), which is occasionally cited by the authors, they rather suggest an unbroken continuity and validity of nautical metaphorics. Thus they try to bring together the various metaphors and their transformations into a coherent image. This indeed turns out to be a catachresis – in the sense of an image break: for instance in the shape of a 'fishing surfer'.

Conclusion

With their monograph on the metaphor Internet, Matthias Bickenbach and Harun Maye have, despite all the difficulties and irritations discussed here, made an original contribution to relevant research. Anyone researching the metaphoricity of media and the poetics of surfing will not be able to avoid this publication on literary education and surfing, which is as rich in material as it is in thought. As a metaphorical behavioral lesson about moving in information floods, the study argues for a sporting approach to information. Those who heed this recommendation while reading this scintillating book will be able to hold their own on their surfing waves.

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The museum and art scene is not neglected in Philadelphia – the metropolis is famous for its museums and convinces with unique cultural offers. There are also numerous religious artifacts among the exhibits.

The second-largest city on the U.S. East Coast is an art lover's paradise, as evidenced not only by the multitude of murals, statues and sculptures on every corner and one of the largest art collections in the U.S. Exhibitions of all kinds, from the historical to the technical to the scientific, never fail to delight visitors.

Art in the open air

But you don't necessarily have to visit a museum if you want to experience art: For decades, a law has required all municipal builders and businesses to spend a percentage of construction costs on public art. Over the years, this has resulted in an impressive series of works that can be freely viewed on streets, squares and buildings. The variety of works transforms the Philadelphia cityscape into a sculpture and mural gallery worth seeing.

Armed with an appropriate plan from the Association for Public Art, roadside explorations are extra fun. The majority of the artworks can be found along a corridor that runs from the Delaware River across Market Street to City Hall, from there turns onto the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, and then slowly gets lost in the gardens of Fairmount Park, behind the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Museum of The American Revolution

History at your fingertips
The Museum of the American Revolution takes visitors on a journey to America's founding era. The museum explains the history of the country in a vivid way, so you can e.g. visit the tent of General George Washington. more +

Philadelphia Museum of Art

The Philadelphia Museum of Art is one of the largest art museums in the United States. His collection includes more than 240.000 works of art spanning more than two millennia and, along with changing special exhibitions, attracts visitors from around the world. The museum is one of the most important cultural institutions in the country and a Philadelphia landmark. Masterpieces of painting, sculpture, decorative arts and architecture from Europe, Asia and the Americas can be viewed here.

The works on display here provide a glimpse into more than 2.000 years of outstanding creativity in human history. paintings, sculptures, architectural works and other masterpieces from Europe, Asia and the Americas are on view here. Religiously inspired works such as Desiderio da Settignano's Virgin and Child, the Seated Bodhisattva from the T'ang Dynasty, Frances Portal from the Abbey Church of Saint-Laurent and Edward Hick's Noah's Ark can also be admired here.

The Museum of Art became world famous for its grand staircase (the steps leading up to the museum), which Sylvester Stallone once stormed up as "Rocky" in the 1976 film of the same name.

The imposing neoclassical building regularly hosts events such as readings, concerts, film screenings and family events.

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts was founded as one of the first art academies in the United States. The museum's permanent collection specializes in the work of American artists, including works with a religious background such as Benjamin West's Christ Rejected and Death on the Pale Horse, Washington Allston's The Dead Man Restored to Life by Touching the Bones of Prophet Elisha, Daniel Huntington's Mercy's Dream and Christiana and Her Family Passing Through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, Charles Willson Peale's Noah and His Ark, and Henry O. Tanner's Nicodemus.

The Barnes Foundation

The largest private collection of early French Modernist and Post-Impressionist paintings from around the world opened in 2012 in a new museum on Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Over 600 works of art, including 180 Renoirs, antique furniture, ceramics, African sculptures and wrought-iron objects can be viewed here.

Located on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, The Barnes Foundation houses one of the world's most important collections of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and modern paintings, including paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Paul Cezanne, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Amedeo Modigliani and Vincent van Gogh. and also includes one of the finest private collections of paintings from the early French Modern and Post-Impressionist periods. Originally called Albert C. Barnes established the Barnes Foundation in 1922 as a school to help art gain not only greater recognition, but also an important role in education and learning. Highlights include masterpieces by such famous artists as Picasso, Matisse, Cezanne, Renoir and Modigliani. In 2012, the collection moved from a Philadelphia suburb to its current address on Benjamin Franklin Parkway, known as Museum Mile, in the heart of the city.

There is also an impressive collection of unique works of art from thousands of years of human history, including Greek, Egyptian and Roman antiquities. Also on display are pottery, textiles, and Native American jewelry; African sculpture; and European paintings and sculptures from the 13th century. to 20. Century and American paintings from the 19th century. and 20. Century to see.

Religiously inspired works are also found in the extensive collection, including Christian motifs by masters such as El Greco, Rubens, Delacroix, Veronese and other Spanish, Flemish, French and Italian artists. An interesting insight into the post-colonial period of America is offered by a collection of "santos", representations of saints from New Mexico. In addition, there are ritual objects from Africa, Buddhist sculptures from the T'ang Dynasty and sculptures of Egyptian deities. This impressive mix and abundance of religious motifs in such a masterful artistic rendering makes the Barnes Foundation a "must see" for visitors.

National Museum of American Jewish History

The only museum in the U.S. fully dedicated to preserving the history and culture of the Jewish people in America. Museum tells of the history, challenges and successes of American Jews. The striking glass building offers visitors state-of-the-art interactive exhibits.

Penn Museum

The Museum of Anthropology and Archaeology's work focuses on promoting understanding of the world's cultural heritage. The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology collection includes many objects with religious and spiritual significance, including works from ancient cultures and peoples from around the world.

The African American Museum in Philadelphia

The African American Museum focuses on the history, lifestyle and culture of African-Americans in Philadelphia and the U.S.

The museum is dedicated to the collection, preservation, and interpretation of African-American culture. Among the exhibits are numerous religious artifacts, including lithographs by artist Allan Rohan Crite, who drew inspiration for his work from Old Testament motifs, among others. Changing exhibits also frequently feature pieces on spiritual and religious themes.

In addition to the regular exhibits, young visitors can learn about how children of the same age lived in 18th-century Philadelphia in a specially designed "Children's Corner.". The people who lived here in the early twentieth century.

Franklin Institute

The Franklin Institute is Pennsylvania's most visited museum and one of the five most popular attractions in Philadelphia. Founded in honor of America's first scientist, Benjamin Franklin, the Academy's goal is to inspire visitors with science and technology through ever new and exciting approaches.

The Franklin Institute is one of the oldest and best research centers in the U.S. and still serves to convey enthusiasm and fun in (natural) science – in the spirit of the famous scholar and scientist Benjamin Franklin.

Here, science and technology come to life: In addition to a planetarium and live science shows, amateur scientists also have the chance to touch a real (plastinated) human brain – a super experience for young and old alike.

Twelve permanent exhibits, including "Your Brain", interesting facts about electricity and the earth, and much more, invite you to discover and explore. You can playfully explore a two-story heart, discover Benjamin Franklin's experiments with electricity, immerse yourself in the world of sports science in the SportZone, or wander through a pulsing neuron network.

The latest technologies such as 3D printers or virtual reality are used to convey the topics in a vivid and lively way and there is even an Escape Room, from which you can free yourself in a given time with logical thinking, the joy of puzzles and above all teamwork. Especially exciting and popular are the live science shows that are offered regularly.

Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University

In search of fossils: complicated scientific relationships are explained in a playful and vivid way at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University. If you'd like to dig for dinosaur bones or take a walk among butterflies, you'll find all of this and more here.

In the large dinosaur hall you can see a T-Rex. Butterflies, on the other hand, is colorful, fluttery and delicate – amid lush tropical gardens, visitors can get up close to some 20 to 40 different species of butterflies here.

Lest We Forget Museum of Slavery

The Lest We Forget Museum of Slavery is the only one of its kind in Philadelphia. The museum's mission is to highlight the injustice of slavery and the impact this significant issue still has on the country, society, and its ideals today. On display at the museum include rare artifacts and depressing exhibits such as authentic chains or branding irons that illustrate the suffering of slaves.

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Private or private schools? The run on education

After the summer vacation, first-graders everywhere are rushing to a wide variety of educational institutions – with expectations, concerns and wishes in their luggage. Some parents share the concerns of their children. Bullying in schoolyards, cancelled classes and dilapidated school buildings make parents' ears prick up. Starting school ends an odyssey for many fathers and mothers. Months, even years in advance, they attended "open days" at private school institutions to explore alternatives, checked out the public elementary school in their area that was responsible for them, considered switching to other public schools in the vicinity.
If one decides to hand over the institutional responsibility for the education of one's offspring to a private school, many parents begin to worry about school admission. Because not only the parents make a choice, also the schools.

Compulsory schooling has existed in Germany since 1919, which means that the state is responsible for education. Does this live up to it? Apparently, an increasing number of parents do not see it that way.

Private schools in Germany

Private schools versus private schools in Germany: often a difficult decision for parents © onnola under cc

There are two main types of private schools in Germany. The so-called "substitute schools" are bound to the state curricula. They offer state-recognized degrees. On the other hand, there are the so-called "supplementary schools", which are not bound to state curricula and thus are not allowed to offer state-recognized school-leaving qualifications. Graduates of this type of private school have the option of taking their school-leaving exams externally.

Erosion of public schools

The desire for an alternative to public schooling is sometimes so strong that in sparsely populated areas even private schools are completely replacing public ones – especially in the eastern German states. For example, state-run elementary schools, whose existence is always tied to a certain number of children, are having to close due to the demographic decline in student numbers. Alternatively, private elementary schools will then emerge. A vicious circle, since the existence of the open private school equally drains the number of students from the public schools in the surrounding area. Excessively long school routes as well as an undermining of the public school system are the result. Rightly so?! Especially when one considers the infrastructure of public schools, which has been neglected for decades.

In densely populated areas, the situation is no different. Here, a multitude of private and public schools compete for the best of the best. The so-called "creaming effect" threatens, because parents with a strong educational background put their offspring, most of whom are socially and cognitively well-prepared, into private schools from the outset. Rightly so?! That is also the question here. After all, why should parents release the dearest thing they have into the vastness of an ailing educational landscape?

Proportion of private schools

For the 2016/2017 school year, the percentage of general education private schools was 10.8 percent. Although there was a slight year-over-year decline of 0.2 percent in private school enrollment – which can probably be attributed to the more stringent criteria for the existence of private schools – the upward trend of private schools is unstoppable: In the last twenty years, the proportion of private schools in Germany has more than doubled.

Merging all the students of the once tripartite school system is just a reaction on the part of the federal government. In many areas, the Hauptschule, Realschule and Gymnasium are once again under one roof today. School types and school-leaving qualifications thus seem to be becoming more and more decoupled from each other again.

Another response of the federal government in relation to the increasing proportion of private schools in Germany is to increase the requirements for approving a private school. In the following article in this series, we will show that this measure cannot be the last word in wisdom.

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A home, a roof over one's head, a family or roommates, a mostly full refrigerator, internet – for most people this is part of normal life. But for many adolescents and young adults, the same is not true. The German Youth Institute estimates that 37.000 young people under the age of 28 are without a permanent home, circa 6.000 of them are not even of age.

What can politics do about it? The Greens and the Left have made proposals on this in motions in the Bundestag.

What is homelessness?

People are considered homeless if they do not have their own or rented, secure housing. Minors are required by law to have a permanent residence with parents, acquaintances or a guardian. So-called "care leavers" are young people who have spent part of their lives in youth welfare institutions, for example in residential homes, and need the support of child and youth welfare services for the transition to a life of their own.

Sometimes young people can also stay with friends for a few nights. This is also referred to as "sofa hopping", but it is not a permanent alternative for young people and leads to an increase in the number of homeless young people who are actually homeless.

How does one get into this situation?

The parliamentary groups also deal with the question of how this situation arises in their motions. In the motion of the parliamentary group Die Linke, abuse, family problems, experience of violence or lack of alternatives are named as reasons. A young person experiences a traumatic event and the former home no longer offers security. "Others leave child and youth welfare facilities in which they have been placed against their will. Or the facilities cannot adequately respond to the needs of young people, whether for staffing, financial or conceptual reasons," the motion reads.

The Greens also emphasize in their motion that the path to homelessness can have different reasons. Apart from problems in the parents house it is often also the educational level. Due to a lack of school-leaving qualifications, the young people cannot find a job – and thus also have a hard time finding a place to live. In addition, housing in large cities is becoming more and more expensive.

What are the proposals?

So how can this development be avoided? Both parliamentary groups have very similar demands. The first priority for them is a so-called basic child support system. Explanation: Currently, children receive unequal financial support through different systems, depending on the employment situation of their parents. The basic child welfare system is intended to bundle and standardize current benefits.

The motions state that guaranteed training and equal opportunities are also two important aspects in preventing homelessness. Youth welfare must be adapted more to the needs of young people, since the causes of homelessness are often very individual. Therefore, funds for so-called street work in the municipalities should be increased.

Both parliamentary groups rely on the housing-first principle . This means that homeless people should first be guaranteed their own living space and then the necessary support services should be provided.

The Greens and the Left also call for changes in the Social Code, which governs state support for young people. Thus, the age limit for receiving assistance, which is currently 21 as a rule, should be raised. Sanctions, which provide for the reduction of unemployment benefits in the event of violations of obligations, should be eliminated.

Talking more about it

The Green parliamentary group also stresses the need to increase public awareness of homeless youths. States and municipalities are to be funded in such a way that they can work out structural causes in the best possible way and "use them as the basis for a targeted national reform program" can bring. In the view of the group, this also includes better systematic recording of young people without shelter, further training of actors in youth welfare and the creation of specific offers for young people.

The Left Party cites the sum of around 10 billion euros that should be invested annually to promote new initiatives against homelessness. In addition, from their point of view, young people should be given the right of co-determination to "guarantee structures of representation of interests and co-determination," the motion says.

The parliamentary groups' motions have not yet been discussed in the plenary session of the Bundestag. They were referred to the committees for further discussion without debate. What experts said in a hearing of the family committee, you can read here and also watch the video.

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