Most children and teenagers value correct spelling.
A survey commissioned by the tutoring provider Studienkreis and reported by the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” newspapers found that 85 % of respondents answered “important” or “very important” to the question “How important is it for you to write correctly according to the spelling rules?” Girls rated spelling as “not important” less often (8 %) than boys (19 %). Among middle‑school students, 48 % considered spelling “very important” while only 8 % thought it “not important”.
When asked why correct spelling matters, 84 % said “for good grades in school” and 45 % wanted to be taken seriously by others. Girls also linked proper spelling to higher self‑esteem (“so I feel good about myself” 39 %). In contrast, 10 % of boys described spelling as “annoying and unnecessary”. Middle‑schoolers more frequently associate error‑free writing with being taken seriously (56 %).
Regarding errors seen in others’ writing, 54 % of the children responded “yes, completely” or “yes, somewhat”. The older the respondents, the more annoyed they become by mistakes.
Most respondents believe that correct spelling will remain important despite auto‑correct, dictation, and AI tools. When asked whether spelling will stay relevant in the future, 79 % answered “yes, definitely” or “yes, somewhat”. This conviction is strongest among middle‑school students; girls are slightly more convinced than boys (82 % vs. 75 %).
The majority also thinks that proper spelling will improve their future career prospects. Ninety‑six percent answered “yes, definitely” or “yes, somewhat” to the question about better professional opportunities from correct spelling. For girls and students heading to grammar schools, the figure rises to 89 % and 90 % respectively. Younger children find the career connection less clear and are more likely to answer “I don’t know”.
The survey, commissioned by Studienkreis and carried out by the market‑research agency KB & B Family Facts, involved 1,011 children and teenagers aged 8 to 16 in December 2025.