The paper deals with the development of the pedagogical training of teachers at higher secondary schools in Austria. ... For more than a century, the pedagogical and didactic training of teachers had simply been a by-product of the science and arts faculties. During that time, any practical training in schools became only available for teachers after they had graduated from university, in their so-called "Probejahr", a one-year "in-house" practice. However, in 1977, a fundamental reform of

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... mic teacher training courses at Austrian universities took place. A special pedagogical programme (including general principles of pedagogy, methodology, and an in-house practice at schools) was, for the first time, integrated into the academic teacher training courses and explicitly included in the respective Study Act. The old "Probejahr", or trial year, was replaced by the new "Unterrichtspraktikum", or teaching-practice year, in 1988. That laid the foundation for a modern academic teacher training at Austrian universities, which currently combines the practice and principle of teaching in the best possible way. (DIPF/orig.)