Latin to Be Reduced in Austrian Schools as Media and AI Are Added
The Austrian government is preparing a comprehensive curriculum reform for the upper grades of academic secondary schools (AHS). Starting from the 2027/28 academic year, schools are expected to introduce a new subject titled “Media and Democracy” and expand computer science courses to include artificial intelligence.
As part of the reform, Latin instruction will be reduced to make room for the new subjects. Currently, students receive a total of 12 hours of Latin per week throughout upper secondary education; under the new plan, this will be reduced to eight hours. Similar reductions will also apply to academic secondary schools where students can choose between Latin and a modern foreign language, although the cuts are expected to be more limited in these institutions.
The proposed changes have sparked significant debate within the education community. The Austrian Association of Secondary School Teachers (AHS) reacted strongly against the reform. Speaking on behalf of the union, representative Herbert Weiß criticized the reduction of language instruction at a time of increasing globalization, describing the move as “an attack on the Gymnasium.” Weiß also argued that the curriculum reform process was already underway and approaching its final stages, and that introducing what he described as an insufficiently developed proposal at this point was inappropriate.
In contrast, representatives of the business sector expressed more supportive views. The Federation of Austrian Industries described the reform as “a first step toward a future-proof curriculum,” while the IT division of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber welcomed the inclusion of artificial intelligence in the curriculum as an important advancement for computer science education in Austrian schools.