Agricultura 4: 3-32 (2006) Copyright 2006 By University of Maribor Teacher training at the level of agricultural schools - new challenges and new conception manfred BRäueR* Humboldt-University of Berlin, Faculty of Agriculture and Horticulture, Department of subject related Didactics, INTRODUCTION Changing demands on professional competence of teachers at agricultural vocational schools Demands on professional competence of farmers and gardeners are changing. Education and training have to react to this fact. As consequence aims, content, methods an conditions of education and training have to be adapted. Teachers have to understand this changing situation. They need a new approach for planning, preparation, realization and evaluation of subject related lessons. They need a new teaching competence as a “manager of learning processes”, who is able to plan and to arrange action oriented teaching-and learning arrangements and learning situations with the aim, to develop independence and self responsible learning of the trainees. In this connection methodical competence plays an important role as signifcant condition for life-long learning. Use of new media becomes more and more important point of teaching and learning process. Because demands on professional competence of teachers are changing, also the teacher training has to change as a consequence. The present system of teacher training cannot fulfl the new demands. Therefore in Germany a new system was established. New conception of teacher training as Bachelor- and Master courses of studies aims and characteristics of the new system The reform of the teacher training is a change of structure, content and organisation. The new system of teacher training consists of two steps: Bachelor course and Master course. Both steps have to be fnished to become a teacher at vocational school. The Bachelor phase takes 3 years, the Master phase 2 years. It is an integrated study course of a core subject (Agriculture or Horticulture), combined with a second subject (for example mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, languages and others) and educational sciences. Three practical training periods at school are part of the education. Typical is that the new system provides more time for studies of educational sciences, subject related didactics and practical training periods at school. Based on it there are better possibilities the teacher training to orient by the requirements of the teaching profession. *Correspondence to: Manfred Bräuer Humboldt-Universität Berlin, Landwirtschaftlich-Gärtnerische Fakultät, Arbeitsgruppe Fachdidaktik Land- Gartenbauwissenschaft, Luisenstr. 53, 10099 Berlin, Germany Tel.: ++49 (0) 30 2093 6572, Fax: ++49 (0) 30 2093 6571, email:manfred.braeuer@agrar.hu-berlin.de main aims of the new teacher training system are: to improve teaching competence of students to increase the quality of studies to improve connection between subject related science, educational science and subject related didactics to fnd better possibilities for managing and coordinating the studies to reduce time of studies to get more international compatibility The new teacher training system is structured in mo-duls, 30 moduls in the Bachelor phase, 6 moduls in the Master phase. the Bachelor phase During the six semesters of the Bachelor study a total of 80 study points may be earned. Typical for this phase is that the core subject (Agriculture or Horticulture) is dominant. The core subject contains 90 study points (included 2 points Bachelor thesis). The second subject contains 60 study points, educational sciences and subject related didactics contain 30 study points. Integrated in the Bachelor phase is a practical training period at school. the master phase The following picture shows the structure of the Bachelor course: 180 study points = 6 semesters During the four semesters of Master study 20 study points may be earned. Typical for this phase is that educational sciences and subject related didactics are dominant with 70 study points. The core subject contains only 5 study points and the second subject 20 study points. 3 TEACHER TRAINING AT THE LEVEL OF AGRICULTURAL SCHOOLS - NEW CHALLENGES AND NEW CONCEPTION The following picture shows the structure of the Master course: 120 study points = 4 semesters core subject =15 study points second subject=20 study points educational sciences and subject related didactics=70 studypoints Masterthesis=15 study points CONCLUSION The Bachelor course started in October 2004. In Octo-ber 2007 we start with the frst Master course for teachers. With this reform we fnish the very traditional way of teacher training in Germany. The new concept is an international compatible one. We are hopeful that the quality of education will improve and absolvents are more practical oriented. The new study system will be evaluated continuously with the aim to be accredited. In the middle of the Master phase is the development of students teaching competence. Therefore there are four moduls (= 23 study points) subject related didactics of the core subject and also four moduls and 23 study points for the subject related didactics of the second subject. In these moduls students mainly get the competence to plan, to prepare, to realize and to evaluate subject related lessons at vocati-onal school. They learn, how to manage modern teaching and learning arrangements, how to use new media, how to develop self responsible learning of pupils. There is a very closely relation between didactical lessons at university and subject related lessons at vocational school. Integrated in the Master study are two practical training periods at school. On the other side there is planned a common modul between subject related science and subject related didactics, where students deal with agriculture subject and prepare it for les-sons at vocational school. At the university they are adviced from both sides. The results of these projects are presented and discussed at vocational school. On this way possibilities of cooperation between subject related didactics, subject re-lated sciences and vocational school become better. The following table showes the structure of the second year of Master study Agriculture Semester Modules wintersemester Subject related science Subject related didactics Subject related didactics 5 study points educational science 3 study points 3 study points Master thesis 15 study points Common Module 5 study points 7 study points sommersemester Second subject 5 study points Second subject 5 study points Subject related didactics of the second subject 12 study points 32