Technical Education

Abstract

The expression technical education will be used in this paper for all institutions which are in some way linked to the training and education of young people or adults for activity in commercial or industrial life. This includes all schools of that character. In addition we have to include all those institutions which are supported by business firms in order to provide for the training of apprentices and the professional education of employees and workers. Furthermore, all activities of Chambers of Commerce for the vocational training of youth should be mentioned. To illustrate the importance of the educational work of these Chambers, let us, for example, consider the Paris Chamber of Commerce. This Chamber maintains a highly developed system of commercial schools which have a considerable influence on the structure of commercial training in France. The main task of these Chambers, however, is to create general standards for technical education and to survey its operation. Also of great interest are the institutions supported by employers’ associations, trade unions and other special unions in various branches of certain business activities. They consist not only of courses and lectures, but also, in some countries, of technical schools. In the Federal Republic of Germany, for example, the Deutsche Angestelltengewerkschaft maintains a far-reaching and highly qualified commercial school system, whilst the Fachschulen for the different branches of retail trade are supported by the associations of retailers.