European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 16, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                School lessons from abroad Stefan Urban practices Basic electrical connections during his apprenticeship at a Siemens Plant in Frankfurt  apprenticeship program Worth importing by Charles j. Hanley the associated press the smiling teen Ager in the Quot Home boy Quot sweatshirt and Wispy boy s Beard stepped Back from a Spaghetti web of wires to Chat with an american visitor in Frankfurt Germany. Quot i was Lucky to get this Quot he said of his apprenticeship with the Siemens electric company. Quot friends of mine did t make  but Stefan Urban s Luck really began 16 years ago when he was born German. While Many americans his age face Only uncertainty after High school Urban is taking a step Down a Clear path to a High skilled career president Clinton is encouraging political and a educational leaders to establish More apprenticeship programs in the United slates the Only major nation without genuine Quot school to work  in Germany the americans have a Modoc the oldest and Best such system in the world. Each year More than a half million Cerman teen agers enter three year apprenticeships that link paid on the Job training with part time classroom work. This Quot dual system Quot produces both a skilled work Force envied by other nations and a firm footing for Young germans at a potentially troubling crossroad in their lives. But even the envied have problems. And the problems of the dual system Point up the challenges of transplanting its ideas into american schools ,. One recent . Study concluded that Quot German. A apprenticeships work very Well and it urged americans also to pair up schools with workplaces. But , sponsored by the . Grant foundation said trying to copy the germans closely would prove unworkable unworkable in part because Germany s dual system rests on principles that would dismay an egalitarian american. A a a a a a a Quot a. A a a a As Early As age 10, Germany s future Blue Collar. Workers Are separated from University bound children. The Quot non University Quot pupils Are channelled into a a Haup Schule secondary school or into the somewhat More demanding Rea Schule. The College prep kids attend gymnasium the academic secondary school. Historically most German children went to Haup Schule a Basic Junior High. But today the More than 3 million students at this lower secondary level Are about evenly divided among the three types of schools. At 16, after 10 years of school College prep students begin a final three years of gymnasium study. For others it s time for an apprenticeship. Apprenticeships cover 380 occupations from Cashiers to electronics specialists from Hospital technicians to metalworkers. Companies decide How Many openings. Will be available in what areas and they pay a heavy Price a by one estimate $12 billion a year on Job training compared with $10 billion spent by Federal state and local governments on apprentices classroom time. At the Siemens training Center where screwdriver equipped Stefan Urban was learning Basic electrical connections the giant company spends $60,000 to $90,000 on each of 1,600 apprenticeships. Quot it s part of the social responsibility of every company Quot said the Center director Manfred Zimmer. Siemens apprentices spend 31/z Days a week in hands on training in the Center s workshops and 1 i Days in More theoretical studies across town in the labs and. Classrooms of a vocational school serving 2,500 students from dozens of electronics firms. A the school sleek in design utilitarian in function is run by the state of Hessen and the City of Frankfurt. The apprentices 12 weekly hours there include German language economics and ethics classes As Well As technical math physics technical drawing and other subjects tied to their career specialities. In their second and third years Siemens trainees help on outside electronic installation projects. Their apprentice pay rises from the equivalent of $580 a month to $690. After three years apprentices Are certified via Industry. Administered exams and take full time jobs a often but not necessarily with their training companies. Apprenticeships Are a familiar fixture of German National life. Quot germans Are proud of the dual system. They believe