anticipation, like “this is the magic moment,” she helps you
feel the significance of what you’re doing, which in turn
leads to confidence.^7 Some interns, she admits, have even
become better than she is at certain techniques. This is the
power of the process. A good apprenticeship isn’t about an
exchange of information; it’s about passing on the skill of
the master and multiplying it.
This small studio is just the beginning. Ellen’s real dream
is an “open atelier” where all kinds of people, not just
artists, can come and learn.^8 As I listened to the radio tell
her story, it was hard to not think education should look
more like this—paint splotches and messy smocks in a
cramped studio—and less like large lecture halls with
passive students parked in seats for ninety minutes at a time,
eyes glued to a slide presentation.
Can you imagine a world where school looked more like
an atelier and less like an auditorium? In some areas, that’s
not quite so unrealistic.
Germany has one of the lowest unemployment rates in
Western Europe. The reason for this is its “dual system,”
which involves young adults enrolling in vocational schools
that allow them to split their time between study and work.
In this system, a student might work a few days per week
with the business and then spend the rest of his time at
school. Unlike most internships, these students get paid a
percentage of a full-time worker’s wages, and 90 percent of
them complete their programs. About half of those people
continue working with the company after the apprenticeship