Germany's Left Party introduced a discussion concerning affirmative action. According to Stefan Zillich, quotas should be "a possibility" to help working-class children who do not do well in school gain access to gymnasium. Headmasters have objected, saying this type of policy would be "a disservice" to poor children, that they would not be able to keep up academically. The headmasters have also expressed concerns that children of working-class families would not feel welcome at gymnasia. Wolfgang Harnischfeger, headmaster of a well-known Berlin gymnasium, has stated,
It can be noticed in children as young as kindergarten students, that children take after their parents. They emulate their language, their way of dressing, their way of spending their free time. Kids from Neukölln would not feel good about themselves if they had to attend a type of school that mainly serves students from social classes different from their own. They will not be able to integrate. Every field day, every school party will show that".
He also said "this kind of policy would weaken the gymnasium" and that this would be dangerous because "German society could not afford to do without the excellence the gymnasium produces". Stefan Zillich answered this, saying that "German society cannot afford to have so few adults with a world-class education".