6 Reasons I’m Choosing to Raise My Kids in Germany 🇩🇪 Instead of Canada 🇨🇦
Curious about why I've chosen to raise my kids in Germany over Canada? I'm finally opening up about the reasons behind my decision and jumping into detail about the cultural experiences, education opportunities, and family-friendly policies that are offered here in Germany for my kiddos.
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00:57 - Cultural experiences
01:46 - Education
05:33 - Healthcare
07:53 - Work-life Balance
08:55 - Child-friendly Policies
10:31 - Independence & Safety
11:40 - Financial Benefits
16:19 - Outro Chats
I personally believe kids flourish wherever there is love, support, and where their parents are in a good and healthy place. Whether that's Germany or somewhere else, it doesn't matter.
I feel like not having stress that your kid would be involved in a school shooting is a HUGE plus though..... Also for the child opportunity and health. Education and healthcare in Germany is better than the US
Few days ago, I had something cracked out of my tooth. I called the dentist, got a appointment only one hour later, and after five minutes waiting, the dentist fixed it, and after less than 30 minutes I was out again, and from telephone call until I was home again, was less than 2,5h. Great! And because of statutory health insurance, it cost me notthing more.
Interesting comparison!
Very interesting comparison. My daughter has been to BC for school exchange for 6 months in 2021 and it was exciting with all the practical subjects. She loved beeing in Canada. Actually, she works on a farm in BC with icelandic horses on working holiday program. Hopefully, she will come back next year ,...
your pronunciation is very good indeed.
Deine deutsche Aussprache ist wirklich super, Kompliment!
Danke
It's interesting to hear a perspective of a Canadian, cuz I live in Germany now and had some thoughts about moving to Canada
I bet you are not white. She is white and milking her white privilege in Germany, where institutional discrimination is rabidly high.
My family and I lived in Germany. I had a good job. After that I decided moving to Canada. Now being 16 months in Canada, working all the time. I swear god I’m not happy neither my family. I’ve never regretted a decision in my entire life as moving to Canada. And if you’re interested into details I can help you.
@@F-16777 Canada is free wheeling neoliberalism, just like Germany. Germany gets higher rank in welfare driven ranking because it shoves lots of money up the rear end of the plebs like McDonalds workers or Taxi drivers, who are left on their own to social Darwinism in Anglo-Saxon countries.
please share more@@F-16777
@@F-16777I am very interested
Even though when i google it Canada come in one of the first places 😄 I think its more important that the Kids are happy wherever their living. When they feel that that their home
You said it perfectly! 🥰 That's what I was trying to say and somehow wasn't able to formulate the words properly 😂
You are lucky living in Düsseldorf regarding doctors.I live up north at the north sea shore .My Gp is around the corner but any good specialised doctor is further away.Public transport is another topic but not today.On the other hand I do not want to live in a big city anymore.About 12 years ago I used to work for a caterer supplying lunch to various schools.And the international curriculum is possibly due to the amount of international residents and that Düsseldorf happens to be the capital of North rhine westphalia.So more money around.
Heyy jenna, really nice video, I was wondering if I can help you by better video editing and also make highly engaging short. Let me know to have my portfolio or your edited sample video. Cheers, Rajvir Singh
Thank you for the great video. Have you an idea about the support to the kids with special needs in Germany? I mean is the support level better than in Canada?
I don’t have personal experience with this, but my mom was a special needs teacher in Canada and my sister in law is a special needs teacher in Germany, and it seems to me that Canada is a bit better in their creative and interactive ways to support children with disabilities. However, I have also heard good things about the German school system too.. it just seems to be a bit more behind than Canada.
Thanks you so much for your answer. From all my heart I wish for Canada all the best, so I wish for Canada to be the best in everything. Because Canada has really a beautiful people. Seems like all issues in Canada are caused by politics! What ever the reasons, it’s absolutely bad for the country’s future.
Hi, I would like to try to move to Canada, because of being immigrant in Germany, is a lot different (especially here in bavaria) to Canada. Thank you for your vlog.
Hi bro, please don’t do my mistake. I’m affected by the war in Ukraine too. So I settled with my family in Bavaria. And then moved to Canada. I swear god we’re not happy in Canada. It’s not good here. I do have a job and never stied without income. But the live style, the atmosphere, the infrastructure and much more all are bad. As you used to live in Europe you’ll never accept what’s going on here. And please try not to believe all that fake advertisements in internet about Canada!! Almost everything is a lie. Here as a worker you got no rights. You’re just a number.
@@F-16777 Canada and California are way better than Germany or anywhere in Europe. I lived in Europe but I prefer North America. To each his own. But please don't preach
spoken to my ex who move to Canada? 30 years for house loan? its too damn expensive. CANADA sucks@@tomtom8786
@@F-16777 1000% Truth
The OGS isn’t necessarily a "Düsseldorf area"-thing but ruled by the federal state (NRW), so might not match with each of the other 15 other states.
I grew up as a kid of two teachers in NRW, Wuppertal/Schwelm to be exact. My Dad worked as a maths and science teacher 8th to 13th grade at a ‚Gymnasium’ ie High school, whereas my mother taught English and PE at a Gesamtschule 5th-10th grade. For our region, since the more affluent families send their children to the High School (G), the kids that are being sent to the Gesamtschule, which is occupying students up to 4 o‘clock often are growing up in single mother households or come from less socially stable homes. So the concept of teaching in two difficulty grades, depending on the children‘s ease with the class will not benefit the smart kids, because the overall learning speed is much diminished. Secondly, the teachers lose sight how far behind their students are, because they can only compare inside their own school. My mother had a class when I grew up that was exactly my age, and she had them from 5th to 10th grade, and I was always telling her that what she did we had done a term earlier, if not more. She knew it, too….our English books were much more advanced. So as much as the concept of the Gesamtschule seems to be familiar for Canadians, I will tell you that you are selling your kids without learning difficulties short. If, however, you have a kid with developmental problems, or whose abilities are less on the academic side, it might be a good way not to frustrate them to the point of failure by sending them to a Gymnasium.
Hi Jenna! Thanks for those videos. I like the remark around excessive team work emphasis in Canada, very true 😅 I am a Canadian (a Ukrainian-Canadian to be exact) who is currently in Germany for personal and professional reasons. While I love the country and some of perks it has to offer, I am really struggling sometimes because of the language. How did you mentally adapt upon arrival to the fact that you are living in an environment where people speak another language which would take a really long time to learn? While people switch to English and I use English at work here, the fact that everyone around me uses a language I barely understand makes it daunting. Curious if you shared your experiences around that.
I need guidance
I was under the impression that all Canadians were entitled to free health care, regardless of where they live (maybe that is incorrect...🤔). Your children are Canadians too (unless you haven't applied for their citizenship). I know a Canadian who is married to a foreigner and they do not live in Canada. They have two small children, who have Canadian citizenship as well. Last time they came back to Canada for a visit, they took one of their children to the hospital here and didn't have to pay anything as the child has an OHIP (Ontario Health Insurance Plan) card.
Yes, we are 🙃 ... the reason we needed to pay is that I'm no longer considered a Canadian resident - this is different than holding a citizenship status. My son has Canadian citizenship but also does not hold a residency status, we don't have access to this free healthcare. I was stripped of my OHIP card when I moved to Germany unfortunately. However, I do totally understand that this would be the case! I'm not paying taxes in Canada and ultimately public health care in Canada is funded by the taxes that are paid by Canadians and permanent residents. The Canadian you know may have found a way to avoid letting the government know that they're living out of province OR if you're outside of Canada for more than 212 days within one year, you have an option to apply every year for new OHIP eligibility.. although if you're a permanent resident abroad, this really wouldn't make much sense. Different situations I guess 🙃
I want just to give a small remark. The free health care in Canada is a big like when it comes to the practice!! I moved from Germany, and still have in my mind how should be the free health care. It’s literally not the case in Canada.
Loved this video. But you forgot to mention the "Elterngeld Streichung" which unfortunately means a lot of women won't receive any Elterngeld. Thankfully we are having our first child before this goes into affect. We live in Munich (most expensive place to buy a home and live in Germany) so bit disappointed in Germany's decision. It will also discourage successful women from growing their family. We are still staying in Germany despite this, but was one of the many reasons we decided to leave North America.
Please never do my terrible mistake by moving from Germany. I used to live in Munich too. But, my family and I forgot what the happiness is since we landed in Canada. Sorry I’m not exaggerating but that’s the horrible truth. You don’t have even the idea what’s going on in Canada now.
Inclusive education is a name in Germany. It is not really applied, and dissabled kids are not welcome in regular or private in elementary schools. Also, you can not find a spot for your special kids in kita/kindergarten. You will be asked to isolate your kid in a separate school, most probably far away from your living location. None of them were a problem in Canada. Schools are fully inclusive and very easy to start your life all together with no worries about your kids' integration to the country.
Are you actually living in Germany by now? Or did you move back to Canada as you said in an earlier video?
I'm living in Germany 🙃 I didn't move back to Canada, I left for 3 months on maternity leave (I think that's the video you're referring to).
Um Jenna, I just looked it up on Statista: In 2022, Germany had 0.25 completed cases of homicide per 100,000 population. The murder rate five years earlier was still 0.41, which was the highest rate in the years shown here. If attempted cases of murder are also included, the murder rate was 0.8. In 2021, Canada recorded an average homicide rate of about 2.1 intentional homicides per 100,000 population. When it comes to rape, the statistics become very difficult, as countries handle this differently. But Germany certainly does worse there. Greetings 🤗
Huh, I wonder why there are more rape cases in Germany....I thought it would be similar.
Yes, this statistic about the murders also irritated me a bit. That couldn't be true, even if Canada isn't the USA ;-))
@@wallerwolf6930 well, with all the gang violence from the immigrant clans that are killing each other I was like….maybe? But it‘s good we are not there….yet!
Elterngeld does no longer exist for parents earning more than 150K joined taxable income. It might not necessarily a problem for you, but it is for some of us. It is outrageous that the people who bust their assess off studying and training to get high salaries, and pay the highest taxes are the ones excluded from parental allowance.
I hate to tell you that, but with 150k per year of taxable income, one partner earns at least 75k a year. Many families aren’t even close to that when you combine both normal incomes (before children). A family with 150k€/year is upper 10-20%. They may not be able to afford the third tropical vacation in that year then, but, they shouldn’t get into any financial problems (unless they stupidly buy unnecessary stuff for way too high prices all the time). And that’s coming from someone, who is living a rather comfortable life with a family.
@@jennyh4025 I hate to tell you, but the people who earn over 75K have devoted so many years of their life to their studies to achieve this and also deserve support. People have mortgages to pay! Would you be ok with your income being halved? Cause I would have to dip into my savings for that. To be left without any maternity pay, when you are in freaking pain after birthing a child, it outrageous. especially when you are the one who contributes double and triple the average. Also the fact that housewife’s who do not work outside the house get 300€ and hard working women who do work get nothing is plain sad. Tell me you hate the middle class without telling me.
@@BioBioLove 150k isn’t middle class, it’s upper-upper middle class to rich (depending on the definition). If you call that middle class, I have to assume, that you are somehow connected to a certain politician, who called himself middle class, whilst being rich. And a mortgage you can’t pay off without using your savings when one income is gone? Well, I‘d call that risky to stupid. But then again I love safety and security.
@@jennyh4025 I am not saying that cause of politicians, this is really not the point here. This is just not what I call rich. I have met rich people, and it is just different. I did look it up and you are correct middle class in Germany would be 100K. But this to me is nonsensical. It seems so little. A small house is 500K where we live, you need to save 20% of it, plus everything else. No couple I know could live on only one salary, I am in fact surprised you can. Kudos to you though cause that is fantastic. We tried to do this before my parental leave a few years ago, and it kind of worked but only cause of the Elterngeld I got. Rent is very expensive where we live and if we wanted rent to be a 30% proportion of the one salary we would have to live in 45m2 best case senario. But yes, we do have enough savings to cover everything for a year if need be. But our savings are for our future, to buy a house etc. When we pay top taxes, I expect to get something in return. When Elternzeit is considered work and a housewife/husband that doesn’t contribute to the economy earns money, why one earth I get nothing? Why do we leave career women alone in this? Are our kids less deserving? What if the mum is the breadwinner? Why does she not get some support to heal and recover and bond with her child? This is my problem. Germany is for the working class, everybody else, is just a cash cow. Sorry I am very pissed about this topic for the principle of it. In a country with falling birthrates, they give more reasons to highly educated and high career women, to not have kids. Great job.
@@BioBioLove where do you live? Munich? Because it’s quite possible in Cologne, if you don’t want to „keep up with the Jones“. And a small house (like 100 square meters with no additional work costs of at least 100-200k for renovations) for 500k would be a dream where I live. Women do get time to heal from childbirth (even forced, if they are employed). And why not give the less earning partner the possibility to bond for the majority of the time in the first year (regardless of the gender)?
wow, wow, as a German, not so well used in listening to english, you are very fast talking, as we say :"Ohne Punkt und Komma", so I have hard times to follow you, and yes, I understand you but I the sweat ist "standing in my shoes" so much concentrated I am. But, keep on coming, I will get used of your conversation, I hope.. 😁😍
Good job! 😊👍 Keep on listening, it will get easier!
It could be even worse, if being of Italian heritage so talking "mit Händen und Füßen" at the same time. Oh, wait…
Out of the frying pan .. into the fryer
Nr. 5 - I'm reminded of the video "Why We Won't Raise Our Kids in Suburbia" by Not Just Bikes. Guy does urban planning videosafter moving from Canada to the Netherlands, and that one covers child independence by urban planning and how trying to raise your kids Europe-style independent would lead to CPS taking them away in North America. Well, it covers why they raise their childen in the Netherlands, not in Canada, but potato, potato. Nr. 6 - as a teacher in germany, my mom took 5 years off after having my brother and me in teh 80s. Means she got a horrible pension now, though.
Parenting and teaching styles really do differ among countries, don't they? Although I think Canada and Germany both do a very good job 🥰 ... that's awful regarding your mom though! Teaching pensions in Canada should be higher too.. my moms isn't that great either.
Has anyone told you, that you adopted a very brought German accent?
Many expats complaint about racism towards their kids. Do you feel you would have a different opinion had you been of a different ethnical background?
Don't think it would make much of a difference. She's living in Düsseldorf and this area of Germany has a really high percentage of people with a non-European ethnical background. Nobody will be able to give you the exact numbers because ethnicity isn't recorded anywhere.
@mob8451 is right, Düsseldorf is very multicultural 🥰 which I'm super happy about! It gives my kids the opportunity to learn more about different cultures. However, I do admit that racism is absolutely less of an issue in Canada than in Germany. I've talked about this before in another video too... most people think I'm Turkish and when they find out I'm Canadian, they treat me MUCH better. When people call me out for being Turkish, I never correct them... because, well... what difference does it make?! I look the same, I behave the same. It's absolutely ridiculous.
Depends heavily on where you live. Living in Saxony, Hesse, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern or Bavaria is probably not a good idea. Other States have Areas you should avoid but you can also live in many Cities and states without much of a Problem. I think it’s like almost everywhere as more rural a city or village becomes and as less migrants live there the people usually become more racist. Generally. Obviously not always.
I just looked up the numbers and the murders per capita are way worse in Canada than in Germany. In Germany the rate per capita was between 0.83 and 0.95 over the course of the last ten years. In Canada the murder rates per capita over the last 5 years where 1.79, 1.83, 2.01, 2.08 and 2.25 respectively. Just for reference - in the USA the rate per capita averages around 6.5
My dear, you live in a huge German city. When my son was hospitalised in rural Bavaria, the hospital was SO shitty, I signed us out on my risk as soon as it was reasonable, to come back to the big city we live, next to the fantastic university hospital. You cannot believe what I am seeing there. Also it sounds like you have so much activities for your kids, these are not available where we live. Bottomline, my point is very large cities in Germany might be what you say. Small ones? Different story.
I would like to add: There are good and bad things for every hospital. Some complain about the food, the colors, the treatment (as subjective experiences) and so on. You may find exactly opposite opinions for the same hospital. But when it comes to the professional quality of doctors, you can still rely on them. They are continuously monitored.
@@klaus2t703 True. My concerns were less cosmetic and more beds crammed in room blocking the one and only exit in case of an emergency. Doctor/Nurses stretched so much that were nowhere to be found when parent cradling very sick kids where running in the ER trying to find help. No nurse manning the reception, so no one to ask for help. No it wasn’t the middle of the night it was 6pm. Yes the Kinderclinic was at their absolute max capacity and beyond. Also yes the food sucked, but that was the least of my worries.
@@BioBioLove - can’t believe that this happened to Bavaria "Dem Deutschen Vorzeigebundesland". What went wrong?
Wirst du, wieder zurück nach Kanada gehen?
Hehe, the Waldkindergarten we Germans totally ripped off the Danes, who did it first, IIRC. But it's great to see that it has become so much more popular throughout Germany. The statistics about crime rates, respectively the crime rates for different crimes, are both gathered as well as recorded differently so it is pretty difficult to accurately compare them. What does matter is how many people PERCEIVE crime rates. If you question the typical Bild reader (the ultimate trash press of Germany) you will get a fairly common answer of outrageous crimes happening CONSTANTLY in Germany. What is often overlooked is that these reported crimes are often either extremely exaggerated by the Springer Verlag, the publishing house of Bild, or that they are often completely made up. Yes, made up, just to generate sales. Springer will then release another paper, with some little corner in the last few pages where you will find a redaction in simple standard text lines redacting and correcting the 'erroneous' reporting of some story or another. The same applies to even more renowned news and media outlets. You can find slanted reports, phrased in specific terms to fit the 'correct' interpretation as decided by the publishers and their owners, depending on whether they are right, center, or left leaning. However, once you look at the data you can gain a much more varied insight into the matter. Which is that both Canada and Germany have VERY low crime rates, and that yes, Germany may have a 13 times higher rate than in Canada for one type of crime, but that this has to be analyzed on a spread across the whole country, or as applying to certain cities or areas, as well as socio-economic backgrounds. Especially when one crime rate in the one country is around 0.1 case per 100000, the other has 1.3 cases in 100000, whereas some other countries (even those ALSO considered safe) may have 1.6 or even higher rates per 100000. That does NOT mean that everything is roses and sunshine in one or the other country; it just means that both countries are VERY safe for kids and adults in general. It just means that certain crimes do need to be more focussed on; but the rates shouldn't be overblown beyond measure.
Just for the records, if specific areas of Germany are labeled as "more criminal" let’s have a look - "crimes" that are occurring at Frankfurt Airport from people who are arriving/departure will count into that statistic. So someone illegally "importing" a sausage (or other stuff) from abroad will push up Frankfurt's crime statistics - regardless that no one in Frankfurt will necessarily realize it.
How is Düsseldorf doing nowadays with the newly arriving pieces of gold ?
First🎉😂
🏆😉
Day care and Universities are not FREE. Someone else is paying for it, or you are paying for it in long run. Just because it is not paid upfront, does not mean it is free.
free doesn't mean free beer. for her audience from the other side of the pond it is a note that you don't need a college loan for your kids i assume. europeans watching this will know that most "free" things are prepaid with taxes.
0:24
German schools funded by taxmoney offering parallel education in migrant children's mother language, but only those which Germans consider "civilised" languages: Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Polish, Russian, and more recently Ukrainian. Well, ethnic group with highest income level and hence highest contributor to tax coffer are Chinese and Indians.
Are you sure? Not much Chinese I see around. Indians do have some tax deductions, Germany hoped to fill IT needs with them but they prefer USA and rarely come to Germany. Also, their level of education is not up to German standards. I bet Yugos are higher contributors. I think one in five doctors and medical technician is from ex Yugoslavia, IT is full of them, but Germany is losing its attractiveness quite fast for highly educated people
@@aurelije If you do not see Chinese and Asians then get used to seeing them. In power corridor. Germany is the last standing white fortress. Arabs and blacks will eat them from bottom, Asians from the top. White Yugos sadly don't count as diversity.
She mentions the word FREE: 19 times. It is not free. It is paid by single earners paying nearly 50% tax rates. Vast number of them are first generation skilled migrants, they are indirectly paying with racism, being second fiddle to Nordic Caucasian Canadian woman in housing and job market.
Wow I didn’t know that. So are you saying South Asians are getting discriminated against in Canada?
Yes, you’re right. It’s paid by the 50% from your income tax that. Well as a person worked in Germany and now Working in Canada. In Canada you pay near to 40% from your income and you get nothing back as a service. I’ll repeat it: NOTHING For this the lady is saying free, it’s from her own experience being a Canadian citizen.
@@whypanamanowYES, and not only the south Asian. If you want I can give you many examples.
@@F-16777Between two countries with high tax, the one which distributes NOTHING is better. The country which has higher wealth redistribution, is not just taking MY money, it is making me compete against MY money in free market. German housing subsidies for PLEBs funded MY money, makes me pay higher prices in free market. If I have no option but to pay high taxes, I would rather choose NOBODY benefitting from it, rather than FEW benefitting from it, but not ME.
@@F-16777 Germany is better than Canada is no argument at all. One can also argue that Canadians are much more polite and there are mandatory diversity rules. Corporate world is Germany is 100% homogeneous and there are rampant rental discriminaton, something that is not tolerated in Canada.
Wieso kannst du akzentfrei deutsch sprechen? 🤔 Haben deine Kinder die deutsch Staatsangehörigkeit?
Vielleicht Übung?
Ich lebe jetzt seit 10 Jahren in Deutschland und bin mit einem Deutschen verheiratet. Ja, meine Kinder haben die deutsche Staatsbürgerschaft! 🫶🥰
Ich habe Freunde aus den USA die seit fast 20 Jahren hier leben und man hört ihr rollendes "R" immer noch leicht heraus! 😊 ich ziehe meinen Hut vor deiner Fähigkeit eine neue Sprache zu lernen. Ich wünschte mein Englisch wäre nur ein Bruchteil so gut wie dein Deutsch! 🙏 🤗 @@lifeingermany_
No its not, germany sucks. And i am german. If u want a explanation, just write on this sentence a comment.
Lass mich mal ne These in Raum stellen: du hast die Schnauze voll von der "Linksgrün versifften" Regierung?
Go ahead lol
@@lararamirez5698 First thing, when a child looks how she can become punished by law because its under 14 before just to kill a other child. well done germany and the statistics for childs under 14 years murdering is explosing skyrocket. Second thing, the migration in Germany failed in all lines. No Go areas in most of the bigger towns like Berlin, Duisburg, Frankfurt etc. grow up and the Police cant do nothing because of the racism-hammer. third thing, grouprapeing in some locations of Berlin and other big cities become common. Most of the refugees are just economic-refugees. For a German its more dangerous in germany as in other european country. Fourth thing. Clans rising with Mafia structures and do what they want, stealing treasures from Museums destroy cultural good older than the holy roman empire. AND the most important thing, the germans ignored this. i can write a lot more but that would become political.
So here we go, Germans favorite hobby - complaining 24/7. Armselig.
time for you to move, right?