German Education: A Primer

Day 3: Vocational Visit and Bremen Sightseeing

May 31, 2012

This was my first vocational day, and boy did I learn a lot. I had the opportunity to meet with the CEO and master teacher at the Ausbildung Fortbildung Personal (AFP) in Bomlitz, which is essentially a technical vocational school. It is also partnered with a Dow-Wolf Chemical facility which produces methylcellulose. I knew about the importance and success of dual training, or vocational, programs in Germany, but this visit really let me see how exactly these programs work.

First, here is a little background in the German education system: Pupils go to school from Kindergarten through grade 5. A new law was recently passed requiring there be a place for young students age 1-3 to go for school, but many do not yet because there is no space and no money to do so. Once the pupils reach grade 5, they have 3 options. The top 30% go to gymnasium (think college-track) through year 12 or 13. Most of these students will graduate and take a year off for travel or work and then go to university. The next group of students go to the middle school, which is through year 10 (think vocation-track). These students can go to university if they wish (and if they have the grades) but they first must complete the rest of their courses in gymnasium before advancing. The remaining group of students are lower level students who complete through year 8. And, there is even a fourth group which is even lower (which I believe to be their version of special education, though it wasn't 100% clear). Students are naturally funneled into these groups based on their performance in years K-5, but other factors can also influence where they go (such as parental wishes and--I would guess--money).

Now, some insight into the vocational training program at AFP: Many students who fall into the second group, or middle school, typically need to complete some sort of vocational training to be hired in the workforce. In order to remove this burden from the employers, many vocational schools such as AFP have been opened. In this case, companies pay AFP to train the students to be ready for the job. For example, Dow Chemical might say to AFP they need 6 lab technicians. They would pay them tuition plus a stipend for those students. AFP would post an announcement about the positions and students would apply to come to AFP for the job. If accepted, they receive 3-3.5 years of training along with their monthly stipend. At the conclusion of the 3-3.5 year period, which includes extra lessons in English language, math courses, and "soft skills," the student takes a final exam (think exit exam) where the company comes on site to see how the student performs in that vocation. Once they pass the exam, they are certified as that profession and can go apply for jobs within that field (and many get hired on at the companies which requested the training in the first place). AFP trains mostly technical/chemical trades such as electrical engineering, manufacturing, welding, lab technicians, lab assistants, etc.

What I didn't know about their vocational program: I thought their vocational program was extremely unique, which it is, but I found out that it is even more of a necessity than I imagined. German education is very slow to modernize which leads to or need for vocational training. A pupil in grade K-10 might never have a lab or practical experience in their regular schooling. Most science is strictly discussed theoretically. The practical component is considered part of the vocational training. In America, we embed this component within our courses, offering labs throughout science courses from K-12. On the one hand, our incorporation of labs within our courses reduces the need for vocational training. On the other hand, by focusing the practical skills in a vocation setting where the student learns more real application for the context of the labs (because they are actually working in industry while training), they have better success at both retention of skills and at finding a job. It seems to me there should be some point in the middle of the two models that would be most successful.

 

The rest of the day: The rest of the day was spent in Bremen, which is a beautiful city. It rained all day, but I still enjoyed wandering around the markets and admiring the large cathedral there. It is also famous from the children's fable of the Bremen town musicians. After Bremen, we had dinner at a brewery and then it was back to the host family home to pack and get ready to move onto another city and more adventures the next day!

-Sara