Relaunch in September

Teacher assessment app “Lernsieg” about to make a comeback

The currently defunct teacher assessment app "Lernsieg" has a new owner and is set to go online again for the start of school in September. This was announced by founder Benjamin Hadrigan and the new majority owner and managing director Katharina Lang in a press release. The app became known primarily due to its years-long legal dispute with teachers suing against it.

A database of around 90,000 teachers and the corresponding schools was created for the app, which was launched in 2019. After registering via their cell phone number, pupils were able to rate their teachers from AHS lower secondary school or Neue Mittelschule (NMS) with one to five stars in categories such as teaching, fairness, preparation or punctuality. Rankings were then compiled from this.

Teachers fought against this approach, in some cases with the support of trade unions. In the end, however, both the Federal Administrative Court and the Supreme Court (OGH) ruled in favor of the app. On the one hand, it did not violate the General Data Protection Regulation, and on the other, it was covered by freedom of expression.

"Constant battle"
Hadrigan himself is withdrawing from the operational business, but still holds shares in the company. He referred to the numerous complaints from teachers. "In the first year alone, we had to spend around 500,000 euros on lawyers, it was a constant uphill battle. These lawsuits combined with hate messages from teachers almost destroyed my existence." Thanks to the investment of a Swiss consortium, the company is protected against further lawsuits with around 1.8 million euros over the next five years, according to the press release.

Lang, currently also active in the matchmaking sector with "bussibaby", wants to talk to the union in the run-up to the relaunch - but has not yet responded to their requests, she said.

More countries to follow
The core functions of the app are to remain the same with the evaluation of teachers and schools - in the short term, "Lernsieg" is to be re-established in Austria, while Lang is aiming to roll it out to other European countries in the long term. New functions are also to be integrated so that pupils can also use the app in everyday school life.