Paper long abstract:

In many African countries there are official schooling and traditional education systems based on craft apprenticeship in workshops or training centers. While school is considered to be official and most of the time promoted by governments, craft apprenticeship is generally believed to be meant for people who cannot do well in the formal education system or those whose parents cannot afford to sponsor their education (cf. Adekola 2013: 403). Paradoxically, nowadays an important part of the unemployed youths has academic grades or have been to school for many years (cf. Gnanou 2017 :89).

To face this situation some youths, after Schooling or their studies at universities, decide to engage in craft apprenticeship. In African countries craft apprenticeship, which includes the work system is a preparation for the adulthood. It emphasized job orientation and moral values (cf. Adekola 2013: 398). In this paper I want to highlight two new trends in education system in African countries that are linked to each other. The first is the application of the "Ritualism concept" of Robert king Merton (cf. Merton 1938) to the way parents send children to school and the way of schooling of young people in secondary school and universities. The second is the analysis of decision-making process of in-school-youths and students who decide to return to craft apprenticeship. I will illustrate both aspects with empirical data from Benin, where some young men and women that after their university studies decided to engage in craft apprenticeship.

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