Lawsuit in Rhineland-Palatinate: How much lesson cancellation is too much?

Former student complains How much missed lessons is too much? As of: October 30, 2026 • 8:56 a.m

A former student is suing the state of Rhineland-Palatinate because too many classes were canceled during his high school years. The Neustadt administrative court is now dealing with the case.

Elija Walk is now studying social and communication sciences. He applied for it with a high school average of 2.1. That was the result at the end of his school days. But actually a better grade point average was possible, he says. According to the family, more than 400 school hours were missed during his high school years at a high school in Landau.

This put him at a disadvantage compared to other students who had regular lessons. And with a better grade point average he would have had more opportunities. “With more lessons, I might have achieved better exam results,” he says. "Perhaps I would have chosen a different course of study then."

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Around a third of his classes at a high school in Landau were canceled in the upper grades, Walk says. In the advanced courses, which have a particularly strong influence on the Abitur grade, it was even higher. When the exams came, he and his classmates didn't learn as much material as their peers at other schools.

Walk lodged an objection and is now taking the matter to court with the aim of having his Abitur achievements re-evaluated. The key question that the Neustadt administrative court in Rhineland-Palatinate has to deal with is: Can the performance of students who miss a lot of lessons be evaluated the same as the performance of students for whom all lessons take place?

Walk says he was encouraged by the reactions to his efforts from former classmates and teachers - almost all of them positive. For him, it is not about denouncing teachers whose lessons are canceled - but rather questioning the system: How should lesson cancellations be compensated for - and how is equal opportunity in the Abitur ensured?

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Legally, Walk's lawsuit is directed against the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The country is represented in the courtroom by the so-called Supervision and Services Directorate (ADD). She is responsible for the entire school supervision in Rhineland-Palatinate and also for the administration of the staff, i.e. the teachers.

Walk says he is also fighting for future generations of students. However, the prerequisite for a successful lawsuit in administrative law is that the plaintiff claims that his or her own rights have been violated. Lawsuits solely “for the common good” have no chance of success. Walk's lawsuit is therefore aimed at a reevaluation of his Abitur exam results.

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He refers to the general principle of equality in the Basic Law. His lawyer Martin Malcherek, who is also politically active for the left, told SWR that Walk sees a violation of equal opportunities. This is because the exam situation was different for him than for other high school graduates due to the lack of preparation due to canceled classes.

“We want to check whether the performance of a student who has only actually been taught 60 out of 100 school hours does not have to be evaluated differently than that of a student who has received the entire legally required amount of instruction,” says Malcherek.

The lawsuit therefore moves in an area of ​​tension: According to the Basic Law and also the School Law of Rhineland-Palatinate, the school system is subject to state supervision. This includes, among other things, the organization of lessons. So the responsibility basically lies with the state. However, there is no obligation on the part of the state to guarantee complete instruction as provided for in the timetable. There is also no maximum number of maximum permissible lost hours specified in the law.

The key question is therefore whether the cancellation of classes in Landau was so extreme that it actually resulted in a violation of Walk's rights as a student. And then in a second step, what that specifically means for his Abitur grade.

Elija Walk was unsuccessful with his application in the expedited procedure; the administrative court is now hearing the main case in the first instance.

This topic in the program: tagesschau.de | Student vs. School | Oct 29, 2026 | 5:22 p.m