This article discusses the nature of vocational education and its relation to citizenship as put forward by Georg Kerschensteiner, Aloys Fischer and Eduard Spranger. The chief aim of the article is to respond sympathetically to views which many Anglophone readers may find unfamiliar, given the German context from which they arise. In particular,…

This is a conceptual paper that examines the origin and development of universities and their current role in global society. There has been an unprecedented and exponential growth of technology and artificial intelligence capabilities over the past ten years which is challenging current working practices and affecting all areas of society. The…

National university systems have traditionally been characterised by major differences in both internal structures and external conditions. However, the global rise of the knowledge economy has made external conditions of universities more similar across countries. This paper investigates to what extent this convergence has been mirrored…

Teacher shortages have intensified across several OECD countries, making this an urgent priority for education systems. Between 2015 and 2022, the share of students whose principals reported shortages rose from 29% to 46.7% on average across the OECD. Simultaneously, rapid technological advances, such as artificial intelligence (AI), and broader…

This article critiques the way the topic of meat and its consumption is addressed in geography education within the remit of education for sustainable development (ESD). We argue that current approaches perpetuate normative food discourse by: (a) framing participation in the food system solely in terms of consumption; (b) simplifying and…

This paper examines the relationship between the institutional environment and collegial exchange about teaching at German research universities. With the help of a nationwide survey that targeted full professors, which was conducted 2016-17, seven hypotheses were tested via regression analysis. Our findings show that professors significantly…

Within the discourse about the professionalisation of adult and continuing education, an extensive discussion about how adult and continuing education can become a profession has taken place. Based on 'classic professionalisation theories', which are guided by the concept of 'traditional professionals', this discussion was about the fulfilment of…

Germany is well known around the world for the strength of its economy, its industry and for the "German model" for higher engineering education based on developing technological skills at a very high level. In this article, we firstly describe the former and present model of engineering education in Germany in a context of the…

Apprenticeships are often considered the "gold standard" of workforce education. They are formal training programs during which successful applicants are paid while being trained on the job by experienced workers or mentors. Acquiring new skills in the workplace is accompanied by related training, typically provided by an educational…

Professionalisation in teaching has been the topic of extensive research in recent years, following in general two different approaches: the "competence-based approach" and the "critical reflection approach". With large-scale comparative studies such as PISA, TIMMS and PIRLS at the beginning of the 21st century, the former…

The last decades have seen the completion of an increasing number of qualitative comparative research projects on teaching. Challenges and benefits which might arise from a qualitative international comparative research design have been considered. However, very little has been published on challenges and benefits which may arise from using…

There is a worldwide debate about the need for male teachers as role-models especially for boys. This might motivate young men to start a teacher career expecting that their gender is the essential qualification. In a German project we interviewed upper secondary students regarding their study plans and found that most of them thought that…

Sound initial vocational education is an important precondition for subsequent episodes of vocational education or professional development. The presence of strong occupational identities and labour markets is argued to be a precondition for high-quality initial vocational education and training (IVET) and continuing vocational education and…

The standing of vocational education is salient for how it is perceived by those who sponsor, participate in and work within it and how its provisions are supported and administered. Yet, this standing continues to be intractably low, compared with other education sectors, more so in some countries than others. The consequences for this low…

This paper examines trends in school-to-work transitions of young men and women with lower and higher secondary education in West Germany between 1984 and 2005. This period was marked by an increase in young women's educational attainment and a continuous growth of the service sector. We assume that both developments have benefited women more than…