Germany’s dual vocational training is considered a model of success –
but how can it be transferred to other countries? Professor Dr. Dieter
Euler answers this question in a new study “Roadmap to high-quality dual
VET” commissioned by the Bertelsmann Stiftung.
The German dual vocational education system is regarded as a success
around the world – but how can this German success story be transferred
to other countries? Professor Dieter Euler answers this question in his
recently published study: “Roadmap to high-quality dual VET” (Vocational
Education and Training), commissioned by the Bertelsmann Foundation. The
study is available in German, English, Spanish and French.
What is it about? Dual education systems have been extremely popular
internationally for years: Closely meshing vocational education and
practical experience in the workplace is seen as a recipe for success
for the qualification of skilled personnel. But such a system cannot
simply be transferred from one country to another, as the underlying
educational and socioeconomic environments differ greatly. With this in
mind, Dieter Euler does not propose a 1:1 transfer, but divides the dual
vocational education system into eleven components, each of which can be
considered seperately: How should a dual system be financed? How can
theory and experience at work be meaningfully combined? How will
assessments be made? The analysis shows what a transfer of individual
elements could look like, along with the options for substitution. It
also looks beyond the German system to take in the international
landscape: Other countries also have vocational education systems with
dual elements that could equally serve as examples.
Each of the eleven elements are further subdivided into four stages of
implementation – allowing for a highly nuanced approach. The resulting
overview is illustrated with a wide range of practical examples. This
matrix provides ideas for reform or can be used to analyse existing
reform processes in a structured way and from a historical and
content-related perspective. The author illustrates this by means of two
extensive case studies of reforms in vocational education in Albania and
Spain.
“Change is a journey, not a blueprint” – this quote aptly describes the
factors that need to be taken into account when implementing a dual
education system. Anyone wishing to reform an existing educational
system in the direction of a dual system must take into account the
existing framework and align the transfer to the educational, social and
economic objectives already in place. In other words: While dual
education in German-speaking countries may serve as an example, it is
not a blueprint. The present study is intended to stimulate a learning
process among political, administrative and academic decision-makers in
countries planning to embark on reforms – both from each other and with
each other.
Links and shortlinks to the four versions (in German, English, Spanish
and French):
· English: Roadmap
to High-Quality Dual Vocational Education and Training
(bertelsmann-stiftung.de); Shortlink: www.chance-ausbildung.de/dualVET/english
· Français: Pistes
pour une formation professionnelle dualisée (bertelsmann-stiftung.de);
Shortlink: www.chance-ausbildung.de/dualVET/francais
· Español: Hoja
de ruta para una Formación Profesional dual de calidad
(bertelsmann-stiftung.de); Shortlink: www.chance-ausbildung.de/dualVET/espanol
· Deutsch: Wege
in eine dualisierte Berufsbildung (bertelsmann-stiftung.de);
Shortlink: www.chance-ausbildung.de/dualVET/deutsch
Clemens Wieland / clemens.wieland@bertelsmann-stiftung.de / +49 5241 8181352
