Rütli School

The Rütli School was a Hauptschule in Neukölln, Germany, one of Berlin's poorest neighbourhoods. The school made news in 2006 when teachers wrote a letter to the senate office demanding the school be closed down, as they were no longer able to deal with violent youngsters. The letter was made public and sparked a debate about the German school system, school violence and the integration of immigrant youngsters. In 2009, it was renamed the 1. Gemeinschaftsschule and converted to a type of Gesamtschule.

The Rütli school was founded in 1909. During World War I, the school building served as a barracks. In 1920, it started serving as a school again. In 1921 there were 1400 students at the school.

In the 1920s the Rütli school was known for its progressive education. While most German schools were single-sex institutions at that time, the Rütli school was co-educational. Students participated in workshops and field-trips.

The Rütli School gave rise to a circle of resistance fighters in Nazi Germany, the most famous of which was Hanno Günther. The Rütli School was closed down by the Nazis and served as a military hospital. It was reopened in 1945.

The "Campus Rütli" was founded in 2009, fusing together the Rütli School, the neighbouring Realschule and a primary school. A new nursery, a youth club, sports and leisure facilities, workshops and an advice centre were added.

In 2005/2006 the Rütli School served 267 students. Eighty-three percent of its students were of a non-German background; eighty percent were Muslim.

In the school year 2009/2010, the Rütli School was integrated into a new school, the 1. Gemeinschaftsschule, along with several classes from a nearby elementary school and a Realschule. Ninety percent of the students today are of a non-German background. The school is in a period of reform which includes the introduction of new school programs, building of new facilities, and renovation of classrooms.

The school has three gyms, a school kitchen, four PC rooms, an arts-studio, a chemistry lab, a physics lab, a wood and metal shop, and a music room. A museum informs visitors about the school's past.

The Rütli school was a Hauptschule. In 2010-11 Hauptschulen were abolished in Berlin, and were merged with Realschulen and Gesamtschulen to form a new type of comprehensive school called Stadtteilschule in Hamburg and Sekundarschule in Berlin (see: Education in Berlin).

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