This volume presents a report on recent developments and current policy objectives in vocational education and training in Germany. The study is based on a conceptual and analytical framework jointly elaborated by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development Secretariat and representatives of member countries. Part I is "The Historical Context of the Vocational Training System: Important Reforms and Debates on Vocational Training Policy since Enactment of the Vocational Training Act" (Lipsmeier). Part II, "Socio-Economic Structural Changes and Innovations in Vocational Training in Selected Economic Sectors," includes the example of the metalworking industry (Klein, Schlosser) and the example of the building trade (Johannson, Schuler). Part III, "The Responsiveness and Regulation of Training Capacity and Quality" (Koch, Reuling), reveals the importance of negotiation and cooperation between government (at federal and state levels), the social partners and research institutes in all aspects of the decision-making process from the elaboration of vocational training policy to the regulation of training capacity and quality. This complex method of cooperation, based on a historical tradition of codetermination, allowed vocational training to modernize its structures and processes to meet the challenges of the 1970s and the 1980s. The book concludes that the future of the dual system will depend on its continued attractiveness for young people and its ongoing capacity to adapt to changing conditions in the workplace. Contains 183 references. (KC)