Space-time approximation of parabolic systems with variable growth

We study a parabolic system with $p(t,x)$-structure under Dirichlet boundary conditions. In particular, we deduce the optimal convergence rate for the error of the gradient of a finite element based space-time approximation. The error is measured in the quasi norm and the result holds if the exponent $p(t,x)$ is $({\alpha }_t,{\alpha }_x)$-H"{o}lder continuous.