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Die hohe Lehrstellennachfrage in den vergangenen anderthalb Jahrzehnten läßt sich mit demographischen Faktoren allein nicht erklären. Die parallele Entwicklung von Ausbildungsbeteiligung und Arbeitslosigkeit legt nahe, daß etwa die Hälfte der Nachfrageentwicklung auf ungünstige Arbeitsmarktbedingungen zurückzuführen ist. Die quantitative Bewältigung dieser Nachfrage vollzog sich über unterschiedliche Mechanismen, die in dem Beitrag untersucht werden. Die Resultate verdeutlichen in erster Linie die außerbetriebliche Elastizität der betrieblichen Berufsausbildung, deren Spitzenbelastung im Jahre 1984/85 um 44 Prozent über dem Niveau von 1974 lag. Im gesamten Zeitraum 1974 bis 1988 betrug die durchschnittliche "Überlast" 24 Prozent. Der durchschnittliche Zuwachs an Lehrstellen war bei Industrie und Handel (16 %) weniger ausgeprägt als im Handwerk und vollzog sich eher über die Erschließung gering besetzter Berufe. Das Handwerk verzeichnete demgegenüber eine doppelt so hohe Zunahme (32 %), die sich aber gleichmäßiger über die Ausbildungsberufe verteilte.

The federal states are launching new training models for nursery school teachers in order to counter the shortage of skilled staff in early years education. A practically integrated training programme, in which participants receive remuneration throughout, was created in Baden-Württemberg in 2012 to supplement school-based training. The article presents the results of a study which were acquired on the basis of new data from an online survey of persons completing training at five colleges of social education. The object of the investigation is whether additional target groups for early education have been reached and whether these remain in the occupational field.

This article describes the healthcare, education and social occupations on the basis of three characteristics which indicate the requirements, the societal esteem and the gratification of these training occupations. In order to allow a better classification, they are compared with occupational characteristics of dual training occupations.

The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has been monitoring the learning of adults since 1979. It has now continued this process with a study entitled “Continuing training behaviour in Germany in 2022”, which was published in March 2024. This article provides a summary of national trends on the basis of the selected indicators of continuing training rate and intensity and benefit of continuing training activities. It concludes by examining regional data from the additional survey for Saxony.

The extended final or journeyman examination was first piloted as an alternative examination model just over 20 years ago. This article investigates the question of what proportion of training occupations modernised over the past 20 years is using this model and also looks at how occupations featuring the extended final or journeyman examination are distributed across the individual areas of responsibility and occupational areas.

Cross occupational competences have long been seen as an opportunity to structure vocational education and training on a broader basis and in a more future-looking way. A plea for a core skills concept which would act as a starting point for educational debate and in which the main focus would be placed on the conflicting relationship between occupation-specific and cross occupational competences was published by Mertens in 1974 and still holds general sway. The article uses the following questions to shed light on this conflicting relationship. How can cross occupational competences be delineated from occupation-specific competences? Can occupation-specific competences be transferred beyond their direct action context, and how can they be imparted in initial and continuing training or be acquired at the company? The article states a number of key points relating to the debates and concludes by indicating the necessity of promoting cross occupational competences at the various VET learning venues.

Vocational education and training "made in Germany" is booming. Since 2007 iMOVE has been surveying 100 German initial and continuing vocational education and training providers about their current activities and future plans in foreign markets. Selected results of the iMOVE TrendBarometer are presented in the article.

Given the problems faced by many young people during the transition from school into initial vocational education and training (IVET), how to increase the accessibility of the IVET system is a matter for debate. In a round of the BIBB "Vocational Training Experts Monitor" survey at the end of 2010, around 500 experts commented on various reform proposals. Their ratings are presented in this article. These indicate that the only policy concepts likely to command a consensus in Germany are those which leave the existing rules on access to IVET intact. Reforms which restrict the autonomy of businesses' decision-making in the recruitment of apprentices therefore have little or no chance of implementation. In contrast, there is broad approval for innovations in the transition system and more intensive support measures for companies and young people.