The TOSCAneo study is a representative longitudinal study commissioned by the Ministry of Education of Baden-Württemberg, focusing on the upper secondary level in schools, particularly examining the new structure of vocational high schools (Berufliche Gymnasien). The project primarily concentrates on (1) students' learning background at the beginning of the entry-level class, (2) student retention within this entry-level class, and (3) longitudinal tracking of learning progress. A representative sample of students from vocational high schools with different profiles is being studied. As comparison groups, students from general high schools (allgemeinbildende Gymnasien) and comprehensive schools (Gemeinschaftsschulen) with upper secondary levels are also included. Additionally, surveys are conducted with parents, teachers, and school principals to provide a solid basis for evaluating the effectiveness of upper secondary education in vocational high schools.

At the first data collection point, a total of 136 schools participated, including 97 vocational high schools, 29 general high schools, and 10 comprehensive schools. At the beginning and end of the entry phase (grade 11, or grade 10 for general high schools), domain-specific competencies of the students were assessed in the areas of mathematics, science, as well as German and English. For these assessments, tasks from the Institute for Educational Quality Improvement (IQB) were used, with the exception of the English section. For the key domain of mathematics, tasks were newly developed or adapted by cooperation partners Walther Paravicini (University of Tübingen) and Guido Pinkernell (University of Education Heidelberg). The development of the survey instruments was supported by another cooperation partner, Nicolas Hübner (University of Tübingen). Surveys were conducted at the beginning (students and their parents), halfway through the school year (students or school leavers, school principals, and teachers), and at the end of the entry phase (students). Another data collection is planned for the final year of school.