„Kleben bleiben?“ : Der Übergang von Hauptschüler / innen in eine berufliche Ausbildung : eine gemeinsame Analyse von „Praxisklassen“ in Bayern und „Berufsstarterklassen“ in Niedersachsen

Abstract

School schemes projects have recently been introduced in a couple of federal states, or Ländern, in Germany that aim to ease potential drop-outs' transition from school to vocational training. On the schemes, potential drop-outs take part in internships. These require participants to go to attend classes several days a week to cover a reduced curriculum. The article analyses the so-called ’career starting classes" (Berufsstarterklassen) in Lower Saxony and ’practice classes" (Praxisklassen) in Bavaria. These represent exemplary cases of this new approach to the transition from school to vocational training. Previous assessments have found them to be successes. On the basis of multi-level analyses, the possibility that the improved chances of participants of finding a place on apprenticeship schemes can be explained by the fact that they stick to the internship provider. As a result, participants in these schemes avoid market mechanisms that are likely to discriminate against lower qualified youngsters. The results indicate, firstly, that the projects do not negate the influences of the regional apprenticeship market situation and participants' educational characteristics; thus, the processes of displacement and discreditation remain important. Secondly, the comparison of both projects shows the high important signalling effect of completing secondary-school qualifications.