Past recipients of this award – funded by the “Bremen State Company Sports Association” and given for outstanding commitment to children – include some notable names, among them Steffi Graf, Paul Maar, and the children's program “Sendung mit der Maus.”
 

This year's Oscar went to Rent a Teacherman (also known by its German name, "Männer in die Grundschule," or "Men in Elementary Schools"), a joint project of the University of Bremen and the Bremen Department of Education that will celebrate its fifteenth anniversary next year.
 

Project director Dr. Christoph Fantini and several members of his team accepted the award on the festival's main stage this past Sunday. The judges recognized the project's success in placing specially trained male staff from the university into Bremen schools that have few or no male teachers.
The goal: giving children a chance to move past the stereotype that “caregiving isn't for men," while also showing them that learning and teaching in elementary school can be something men and boys pursue too. Research shows that children without regular contact with male teachers often internalize stereotypes – one common refrain: "Men are strong, women are smart."
 

According to Fantini, the share of male teachers in Bremen's elementary schools has risen slightly, from 10.9 to 12.4 percent. Meanwhile, the percentage of elementary schools with no male teachers at all has dropped sharply, from 26 to 9.7 percent. It's a promising trend – but the team behind Rent a Teacherman isn't ready to rest on it.
 

More Information:
 

https://www.maenner-in-die-grundschule.de/ (only available in German)