relationSHIP: Learning needs relationship

When people talk about education, they often think first of curricula, learning content and teaching methods. Alongside these, I am preoccupied by a question that easily recedes into the background in everyday life: How do we meet one another as human beings? With the courses and congress recordings by Andreas Reinke, I would like to draw attention to ideas that start exactly there.

Relationship begins with ourselves

Mainstream schools and alternative educational institutions differ in their concepts. In my experience, however, a different educational model does not automatically mean that we also change our familiar patterns of relating.

How do adults deal with their own boundaries, insecurities and expectations? How do we react to conflict? And are we able to listen to young people without judging them too quickly?

Andreas Reinke places such questions at the centre of his work. The former teacher and founder of relationSHIP focuses on relationship skills and on how adults can take responsibility for the quality of how we live together. This also turns the focus to one’s own sense of self-worth and the way we treat ourselves.

As a starting point, I recommend his video “My self-worth as a person and teacher”.

Free ideas for school and family

In his farewell newsletter, on which this article is based, Andreas Reinke announces that he is withdrawing from the online world. At the same time, by his own account, he is making his previous courses and online congress packages available free of charge and without registration. The links may expressly be shared.

A heartfelt thank you for this generous offer! The materials are aimed at teachers, parents and other people working in education who wish to shape their interactions more consciously.

Courses

• Course for teachers: Seven modules with around 35 videos, some with presentations. Topics include equal dignity, responsibility, conflict, self-care and parents’ evenings.
• Parents’ course: Seven modules with six videos each, covering, among other things, dealing with school, bullying and media, as well as integrity and cooperation.

Congress recordings

• “Ziemlich beste Lehrer*innen” (“Quite the best teachers”): Over 30 interviews from the school context, including with Margret Rasfeld and Matthias Voelchert.
• “Die neuen Schulen” (“The new schools”): Over 30 conversations about education and living together at school, including with Stefan Ruppaner, Gerald Hüther and Erwin Wagenhofer.
• “Die neuen Eltern” (“The new parents”): Almost 50 interviews, including with Jan-Uwe Rogge, Katja Saalfrank and Inke Hummel.

Read, listen and keep thinking

• E-book “Die neuen Eltern – gleichwürdig und stark” (“The new parents – equal in dignity and strong”): as a PDF.
• Audiobook “Die neuen Eltern – gleichwürdig und stark”: the audiobook version.
• Idea database: further videos on a variety of topics.

The details on scope and content come from Andreas Reinke’s newsletter. For orientation: designations such as M3U2 stand for “Module 3, Unit 2”. Depending on the display, the videos are not automatically shown in this order.

An invitation to a more conscious way of living together

For me, the value of this collection lies in directing attention to the level of relationship: how we perceive ourselves and meet others deserves as much attention as what we want to teach.

It does not have to be a whole course right away. Perhaps the engagement begins with a video, a question or a conversation in your own environment.

According to his newsletter, Andreas Reinke remains available for further training, consultations and parents’ evenings. Questions about the offerings or technical problems can be sent to buero@andreasreinke.com.

Sources

• Andreas Reinke: farewell newsletter with release and overview of links, included in the article manuscript; undated.
• “Die neuen Schulen” – background on Andreas Reinke and relationSHIP, organiser’s website, accessed 14 October 2026.

Cover image: 14995841 / Pixabay