The German dual vocational training system is held in high regard not only in Europe but worldwide. Yet in its country of origin this form of vocational training and education battles with problems such as cancellation of many hours of lessons at the vocational schools and the general trend towards university education. The industry expressed its concern regarding this development during a symposium hosted at the Stuttgart town hall by the chambers of industry of commerce and the Ministry of Culture and Education of the Federal State of Baden-Württemberg.
"The trend towards higher degrees of school leaving certificates and academic honours threatens to marginalise vocational education and training", said Peter Kulitz, President of the Baden-Württemberg Association of Chambers of Industry and Commerce, during his speech on occasion of the symposium titled "Dual Vocational Education and Training - A Model with a Future?".
Kulitz quoted from an analysis by the chambers of industry and commerce, stating the countrywide shortage of 230,000 skilled workers. Of these, 193,000 non-academics are wanted. "All forecasts are based on the assumption that in future, the demand is in favour of skilled labour, business administrators and master craftsmen trained within the dual system rather than of academically trained staff."
Difficulties filling apprenticeship training positions
He stated that one of the reasons why enterprises "find it increasingly difficult to fill their apprenticeship training positions" is connected with the demographic development: Kulitz said that the number of young people is in decline while at the same time the demand for skilled labour increases. Another reason is that an increasing number of young people decide in favour of an academic education instead of choosing in-company vocational training: According to numbers provided by the German Federal Statistical Office for Baden-Württemberg, in the past year close to 78,000 first semester university students were balanced by only 72,000 young people starting a dual vocational training course combining in-company training and vocational school education.
Kulitz criticised the federal state government for sending university course ambassadors to secondary modern schools "and thereby attempting to lure away from the dual system even larger numbers of young people". He continued to say that the discontinuation of the primary school recommendation and accordingly the declining number of pupils attending technical secondary modern schools further "deprives the apprenticeship market of potential applicants, although many young people would benefit far better from the direct entry into in-company vocational education and training".
System cannot function without strong vocational schools
Kulitz termed the federal state government's school policy as "dangerous" because it weakens the dual system. Without the dual vocational education and training system "we would not be competitive", said Kulitz, "however, this system cannot function without strong vocational schools". Yet the vocational schools are not strong, emphasised Alfred Schäfer, Managing Headmaster of the Vocational Schools in Stuttgart: The vocational schools have too few teachers and too many lessons have to be cancelled.
The Baden-Württemberg Minister of Culture and Education, Gabriele Warminski-Leitheußer, likewise stated that the vocational schools were not even in a position to cover the mandatory elements of providing lessons. She said that in order to ameliorate this deficit, the federal government has allocated in its budget more funds for vocational education and training. Warminski-Leitheußer stressed that young people "ought not to be desperately prevented from striving for a university entrance qualification".
No cul-de-sac road
However, the secondary schools providing general education ought to provide increased levels of information as regards the dual system. "Every secondary school graduate with a university entrance qualification is welcome to enter into a dual vocational training course." Conversely, they could embark on an academic career after completing their apprenticeship. "Dual vocational education and training is no cul-de-sac road", said the minister.
The Swiss economist Rudolf Strahm termed the dual system a "mark of quality" for enterprises and the "most effective form of preventive social politics". He said that countries with a vocational training system feature the lowest percentages of unemployment amongst young people. For example, Finland: Even though the country has good schools, said Strahm, it has a youth unemployment rate of consistently more than 20 per cent, because Finland does not have a vocational education and training system.