Thomas Perez, US-Secretary of Labor, announced a dramatic change of the US educational system in an interview with the "Wirtschaftswoche". The US government will follow the German Modell. What is your opinion for the reason and will they have success?
https://www.xing.com/news/industry-news/2016-01-22?cce=em4eb58f0a.%3ANt9I_io0r8TW0puJuR1JI#education
Any reasons cited for the advantage of the German model? Can the drawbacks of the present model be improved instead of making major changes. May be answers to the question can give proper direction.
There are remarkable differences between traditional research universities and universities of applied sciences. See the attache paper.
I will give it a try. In the so-called "German speaking countries" there exist Chambers of
Handycraft and Chambers of Commerce which have the responsibility for the Exams
after a period of training in school and at worksite. This also applies to some
universities.
I'm not sure whether this change has been applied to all states of the US or to all educational institutions, but as I am aware there is a boom of community colleges in the US, which according to the way they are administered reflect much the German dual education model.
The main reason for introducing this model could be the fact that mostly US educational institutions focus on preparing individuals for the work in as efficient manner as possible; this is their general approach. This efficiency is reflected in a fact that this model allows the labor market to get the employees who already have the required specific skills; this model guarantees to companies the recruitment of employees, the skills of which fit the requirements of certain tasks perfectly. And on the other hand students get practical onsite training in a real work environment, instead of only classroom training. So the benefit mostly is mutual for students, as well as the labor market. This means there's environment in which all parties involved get benefits, and the creation of such environment is usually one of the main goals of any government. This could be the reason for this model introduction. Hope the answer was helpful to some extent at least.. :)
Dear Michael,
As some of our colleagues, I am not able, nor expert enough to identify reasons for such a significant change, but I assume that the mentioned German model is considered as more successful, if we look to the general cultural level of inhabitants of United States. By all means, if Albanian politicians would agree to change our educational system I would prefer the German one, based on rigur and results. This just a personal opinion, not a detailed analysis.
The German model requires a high level of commitment by employers to provide apprenticeships to young people in their teenage years. Few employers in the United States will make such a commitment. The average age of an apprentice in the US is in the late twenties. From the ages of about 15 to 25, most young people are in exploration stage of their career. They are seeking the best fit between their interests and skillls and the requirements of the labor market. They make many job changes seeking the best fit. Employers in the US are aware of this behavior and are unwilling to make an investment in training young people who are unlikely to remain with the firms that trained them.
I tried to find Perez's comments in the original. Regrettably I was unable to do so. Perhaps what Perez was alluding to was the increased attention that STEM education is receiving. STEM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. Many school districts and education agencies are promoting STEM Education with particular attention to the notion of career exposure for students from their earliest days of school, as well as curricula that are driven by preparation for more technical or scientific careers. Ideas such as apprenticeships are proposed as an element of STEM programs. One particular booster of STEM initiatives is the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Their website may be helpful.
The US federal government has made several large grants to support STEM initiatives in schools. I remain curious about what Perez actually said about the adoption of a German Model of Education by the US. After going through an extended period of tighter federal control of schools, national content standards and accountability through testing, the recently passed Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is moving authority for school improvement back to the states. It is hard to conceive of an imminent adoption of the German Model by the US schools when such decisions in the US are almost entirely dependent on local control.
Philadelphia, PA
Dear Heine,
From what I can gather, its a matter of a new emphasis on apprenticeships regarding blue-collar education and employment. Hats off to the German success in this.
It is well known here that U.S. technical universities emphasizing apprenticeships in industry also do better in placing their students in employment.
H.G. Callaway
Lots of Americaen ,there can not write & read properly ,look like there undereducated
Thank you Michael for an other very interesting question.
The "famous" German Dual Model has 2 lanes:
1) since 100 years (I do not know exactly) we educate apprentices 3-4 days a week in a Company, where they are employed and 1-2 day a week they go to School (dual System)
2) since about 15 or more years (I do not know exactly) we have so called Dual Universities where the students study part time or even at evenings and Saturdays.
The Systems are in deed successful. But there is always room for improvements. One important aspect is, that in everage the schools do not tightly speek with the companies. The consequence is that the practical learning at Company ist not symmetrical with the learning stuff at schools. The same can be the fact at point 2. Some companies do a very good job but here I see a large potential for improvement!
I recommend new interested countries to avoid this possible discrepancy from the beginning.
Peter
By the way, the government of Georgia (the country) has also announced on its intent to introduce this model in the educational system of the country.. :)
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