The OECD countries have widely differing traditions regarding basic vocational training. This publication, prepared as part of the VOTEC project on "The Changing Role of Vocational and Technical Education and Training", is designed to help towards a better understanding of the internal logic and workings of these different systems.Education and training systems propose differentiated and interconnected pathways, each of which can be broken down into a series of programmes. But what are the factors that explain participation of young people in VOTEC and the way it has developed over time? A number of answers have been formulated and are examined here in the light of ten national reports
