No degree without continuity – this is said to be one of the strengths of the educational system in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg. Whenever the performance capability of the school system was subject to debate in the past years, the respective education ministers drew attention to the vocational schools.
And indeed: Vocational schools allow pupils who were not given a recommendation to attend grammar school after fourth grade to also acquire a university entrance qualification. Of 20,645 graduates with a university of applied sciences qualification in 2010, 20,332 attended a vocational school, and 14,353 of 48,362 university entrance qualification graduates attended a vocational grammar school.
This number would be significantly higher, if the vocational grammar schools had had available sufficient vacancies. For many years, up to a third of applicants had to be rejected even though they fulfilled the requirements.
In the past two years, additional classes were instituted, another 50 classes and 18 new learning sites are scheduled for the new school year. But even so, the vacancies will not meet the demand, fears Alfred Schäfer, Headmaster of the Johannes Gutenberg School and Managing Headmaster of the vocational schools in Stuttgart.
A new introduction in the next year will be the six-year vocational grammar schools with a focus on technology and nutrition, social studies and health. Education Minister Gabriele Warminski-Leitheußer recently gave her approval for 15 learning sites.
The vocational school system expects fewer applicants than in the past for the two-year full-time vocational school, where secondary modern school graduates can obtain their General Certificate of Secondary Education. The reason for this is that as of the coming year, pupils can for the first time obtain their GCSE degrees also at the newly instituted technical secondary modern schools. More than 500 secondary modern schools were transformed into secondary modern technical schools in 2010 and 2011 and now offer a tenth grade.
As yet, it cannot be estimated how many ninth graders will therefore remain at their school instead of changing over to a full-time vocational school. At the secondary modern technical school, they are finished one year earlier. However, this is not without its drawbacks. Those wishing to subsequently attend a vocational college or a vocational grammar school are advised to attend the two-year full-time vocational school, as it provides better preparation.
In the medium term, the new comprehensive schools will also impact on the vocational school system, as they offer a Certificate of Secondary Education (CSE), a General Certificate of Education (GCSE) and a university entrance qualification. At least the large comprehensive schools will be able to institute their own sixth form. However, none of the 34 schools newly opening after the summer break has the required size.
One of the core institutions of the vocational education system is the vocational school. Apprentices learn not only in the business environment. Once to two times a week, they attend a vocational school where general subjects as well as specialist theory and practice form the curriculum.