Progress in Digital Media Literacy in Teacher Education – but No Nationwide Standard Yet
- An increasing number of universities are embedding digital media literacy as a mandatory component of teacher education programs.
- However, the topic is still not required for all teacher‑training students everywhere — and AI competencies remain mostly limited to isolated and primarily optional formats.
- This is shown by data from the Monitor Lehrkräftebildung for the 2024/25 winter semester.
Gütersloh, February 12, 2026 – Digital and AI‑supported applications are becoming a matter of course in everyday life and the workplace. Teachers play a key role in enabling students to participate in the digital world competently, critically, and safely. A new data update from the Monitor Lehrkräftebildung (Monitor Teacher Training) shows the extent to which these topics are already mandatory in teacher‑training programs.
Media Literacy More Frequently Mandatory — but Still Not for All Teacher‑Training Students
The integration of “media literacy in a digital world” as a compulsory part of teacher education has progressed significantly. Still, at roughly one‑third of universities, the topic remains non‑mandatory for all teacher‑training students. The gap is particularly evident in programs preparing teachers for upper‑secondary schools (Gymnasien): In the 2024/25 winter semester, 34 percent of universities had no mandatory requirement for all students in this track. “There has been progress, but the results are far from satisfactory,” says Andrea Frank. “For students to have the chance to systematically develop media literacy, today’s and tomorrow’s teachers must be required to acquire these competencies themselves,” emphasizes the Deputy Secretary General of the Stifterverband.
Embedding Content in Educational Sciences and Subject Didactics Is Crucial
According to experts from the Monitor Lehrkräftebildung, sustainable competency development cannot be achieved if digital content appears only sporadically or on a voluntary basis. What is crucial is simultaneous curricular integration in educational sciences and subject didactics. In the 2024/25 winter semester, this was the case at 43 percent of universities — meaning that more than half have still not implemented such integration in these key areas of teacher education.
AI Competencies Mandatory in Only One Federal State
For the first time, the data update also captured framework conditions for acquiring AI competencies in teacher‑training programs. As of the 2024/25 winter semester, only one federal state — Rhineland‑Palatinate — had established artificial intelligence as a cross‑cutting theme in teacher education. At universities, too, approaches remain mostly isolated: Only about one‑quarter of institutions offered optional courses in which AI was a central focus.
“The data show that we are still at the very beginning when it comes to AI competencies in teacher education. The topic urgently needs to be scaled up — through clear state‑level guidelines and, above all, through commitment from universities,” says Frank Ziegele. “If both levels work together, a hesitant start can turn into real progress,” adds the managing director of the CHE Centre for Higher Education.
Additional data and graphics can be found under the “Digitalization” focus area on the Monitor Lehrkräftebildung website. The results are based on self‑reporting from 67 of 71 teacher‑training universities and all 16 federal states in an online survey (October 2024 to January 2025).
About the Monitor Lehrkräftebildung
The Monitor Lehrkräftebildung has been the only online portal since 2012 to provide a nationwide overview of the structures of the first phase of teacher education in Germany — the teacher‑training degree programs. Data are collected at regular intervals across all 16 federal states as well as at universities involved in teacher education and are presented through thematic focus areas. This information offers decision‑makers in administration, policy, and higher education a solid evidence base for shaping the field and further developing teacher‑training programs.
The Monitor Lehrkräftebildung is a joint project of the Bertelsmann Stiftung, CHE Centre for Higher Education, the Robert Bosch Stiftung, and the Stifterverband.