Germany has three “tiers” of secondary education, of which only finishing the highest will qualify you for university admission. The rationale is that not everybody benefits from learning latin or higher mathematics, when instead a focus on more trade-related skills might benefit you much more in your further career. For late-bloomers, which might suffer under this system, it is still possible to progress from Hauptschule to Realschule and finally Gymnasium and university, without significant financial means necessary (besides cost of living).

Also, the average attendance for Hauptschule is <10% [1]. Wouldn’t you agree that at least 10% of kids would benefit from having an education experience more tailored to their needs instead of building resentment for education by being forced to sit through terribly boring lessons with the nerds knowing the answer for everything?

[1]: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schulsystem_in_Deutschland#Sch...

> For late-bloomers, which might suffer under this system, it is still possible to progress from Hauptschule to Realschule and finally Gymnasium and university

Do you know how many people in Hauptschule make it to university?

> Also, the average attendance for Hauptschule is <10% [1].

I must acknowledge I thought it was 25%, it must've changed in recent years.

> Wouldn’t you agree that at least 10% ...

Thank you for the question. I buy the thesis of the Case against education by which university is a waste of time for most people, nevertheless it's hard for me to stigmatize a percentage of the population by not allowing them to waste their time there as well with their former ten year old smarter classmates.

Everyone can go to FOS or the BOS to get further educated.

I went to Realschule, made a 3 year apprenticeship as a software engineer and went for 2 further years to bos.

I'm now able to study.

In Germany no way would have i have been allowed to go to college. As it was I went to a California State University. Student fees and books cost me about $12k total. Given that there isn't any reason US colleges can't be free other than Wall Street demanding a cut.

>In Germany no way would have i have been allowed to go to college.

Why do you think that? Genuinely curious.

In fact Uğur Şahin CEO of BioNTech and co-inventor of the Pfizer-BioNTech mRNA vaccine was recommended by his teacher to attend a hauptschule. If his German neighbor hadn't intervened and stood up for him he may have never attended university let alone get a doctorate.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uğur_Şahin

Sounds like the system worked in that case? As in it adjusted to new information that it was missing. This is not the case in the US.

> Imagine a Germany in which the rest of your life isn't determined at age ten

What you imply here is entierly untrue. I know lots of people that made their Abitur after having been to the Haupt- or Realschule first. That is not to say that the school system doesn't have its problems -- it clearly has -- but you are painting a picture that is not rooted in reality.