Saarland is the national leader when it comes to early French learning. Around 80 percent of all children in Germany who obtain the international language certificate DELF Prim come from Saarland.
At the Ministry of Education and Culture, 68 students from the primary schools Kirkel-Neuhäusel, Medelsheim, and Ormesheim received their DELF-Prim certificates today on behalf of more than 1,500 graduates.
State Secretary for Education Jessica Heide presented the certificates: "Those who learn French also discover the culture, the people, and the way of life of our neighboring country. Children in Saarland already gain these experiences in primary school. The outstanding students have demonstrated with great curiosity and enthusiasm what they can already understand, say, and write in French. The DELF certificate is a well-deserved recognition of this. At the same time, it represents what Saarland's France strategy stands for: promoting multilingualism, building cultural bridges, and making the close German-French connection tangible from an early age."
How successful the program is in Saarland is demonstrated by the current figures: In 2026, 1,548 primary school children from Saarland successfully obtained the DELF Prim certificate. This means that a large share of young DELF graduates in Germany come from Saarland.
DELF Prim offers primary school children the opportunity to demonstrate their first French skills in an international language exam and receive a globally recognized diploma. The focus is on the joy of learning languages and the experience of successfully using a foreign language. The competencies tested are listening, reading, writing, and speaking.
In Saarland, the program is implemented by the Institut d’Études Françaises Saarbrücken together with the Ministry of Education and Culture, the Institut Français Deutschland, and France Éducation international. Participation is free of charge for all children receiving French lessons from grade 1 onwards and ensures that all students, regardless of their social background, have the opportunity to obtain an internationally recognized language certificate.
