Home | Our sponsor | Contact and Applications

PI: Ulrich Trautwein

The work in the Center for Educational Science and Psychology at the University of Tübingen focuses on the individual, social and institutional determinants of learning processes. Some of the key research questions include: Does the performance of students with similar ability levels develop differently across different school forms? How can reading achievement, interest and self-concept of students be enhanced? Do A-level results differ between the (federal) states of Germany? Do they predict academic success in higher education and occupational domains? How can contextual effects on adolescent and young adult development be modeled effectively with statistical methods? In what ways are the personalities of young people shaped by their experience at school and university?

The center takes an evidence-based, integrated approach to research with a focus on international exchange and call for empirical evaluations of the quality of educational processes and policies. To achieve this, the center utilizes the most reliable and valid statistical methods in educational research and presents the findings to the international community through leading educational and psychological conferences and journals. Furthermore, the aim is to extend the commitment to the international research community via collaboration and partnership, utilizing a cross-disciplinary approach. Thus the center seeks to work with researchers and colleagues in psychology and educational sciences as well as in mathematics, linguistics, statistics, economics and sports science in Germany and abroad. Given that empirical research is critical to educational systems world-wide, collaboration is of central importance for the work of the center.

The center hosts two Graduate Schools, the Graduate School on Empirical Educational Science and the Cooperative Graduate School on Effective Teaching and Learning (together with the University of Teacher Education Ludwigsburg).

The Center for Educational Science and Psychology is currently involved in a number of collaborative research projects with leading academics from around the world:

• Ongoing cooperation exists with the Research Group on Empirical Research (Director: Prof. Dr. Jürgen Baumert) with the Max Planck Institute of Human Development in Berlin. Current collaborative projects include the TRAIN and TOSCA studies initiated at the Max-Planck-Institute.
• The most recent collaborative program is the TOSCA Sachsen study, which evaluates a school reform intervention in upper (university) track schools in Saxony.
• The Institute also heads up the fifth stage of NEPS dealing with educational transitions from upper secondary school to higher education, occupational training, or the labor market.
• In cooperation with Prof. Bernhard Schmitz at the Technical University of Darmstadt, we are conducting a study which comprises the Development and Empirical Test of a Teacher Training Program to Promote the Self-regulatory Competence and Mathematical Competence of Students of the Lowest School Track in Germany (Hauptschule).
• In cooperation with the German Institute for International Educational Research, Frankfurt, we are responsible for the scientific monitoring of the Hector children academies (financially supported by Hector Foundation II).
• The project Witnesses of History in History Lessons will be looking into the effectiveness of integrating interviews with individuals present during key moments in history into school history lessons.