I wonder what he older math-education in german schools is like, probably also more hard-core. After elementary school, germany has a three tracks Gymnasium, Re

I wonder what he older math-education in german schools is like, probably also more hard-core. After elementary school, germany has a three tracks Gymnasium, Realschule und Hauptschule. A Gymnasium prepares one for university and is still well regarded and its final tests, the Abitur, still carries a prestige. Looking back (I attended a Gymnasium), I think the quality of the education was quite high, especially in my english lessons and the social subjects. If the goal of the school was to produce good citizens capable of actively participating in a democracy and forming their own opinion, then it did it very well. Especially later, we had quite a few interesting, adult discussions with engaged teachers about various topics in history, society, art etc. So I think that the quality of my gymnasium was quite high and it really showed in subjects where capable teachers alone can make quite the difference. But the gymnasiums should also prepare those capable for university, be more rigorous, and I think there's the problem. The division doesn't work anymore. Everybody wants their children to go to the gymnasium, because everybody has to study at the university. Even when they have no interest whatsoever in science and just want to work as a coder. Also, attending a Gymnasium can't be prestigious if everybody is doing it. I remember quite a few children struggling but getting pushed through by their parents because a Realschule is simply not an option. I was also struggling, but more because I just didn't care and there weren't really any consequences. I still passed each class. But a more rigorous math education would, I think, result in a lot of the children failing the gymnasium and a lot of angry parents who see the future of their children and their parental success in turmoil. So the Gymnasium really turned into a one-size-fits-all kind of education and I strongly suspect that especially in math (or physics) that leads to the lowest common denominator. So now I wonder what the math education was like when only few could attend the gymnasium, i suspect way more rigorous. Is it similar in other countries? By the way, it's totally different at the university level. The german university doesn't feel responsible for your personal success, you have to earn it. If you fail, you fail and the standard can be quite high. I also don't really see a lowering of standards in the "core" degrees, for the first big math exams I prepared myself by practicing with old ones going back into the 80s/90s. They were as difficult as the new ones. A lot of students failing out of the subjects they have chosen (can be as much as 2/3rds) just choose easier majors, for example a business-computer science combination because they have less math classes. A lot of the students that started studying with me ended up switching majors because of the more rigorous computer-science and math-classes (I think roughly 50%).