Economic follow-up costs of inadequate education: a macroeconomic projection

According to the PISA studies, approximately 20 percent of all 15-year-olds in Germany are poorly educated "risk pupils". In a study of the Ifo Institute, commissioned by the Bertelsmann Foundation, the economic costs that result from this situation are calculated. The follow-up costs of inadequate education amount to approximately 2.8 trillion euros over the lifespan of children born today - more than total German GDP of 2.5 trillion euros. The tremendous scale of this projection underscores the urgency of reforming the German education system.