The political system of the German Democratic Republic (G.D.R.) was strictly centralised with the ruling communist party enjoying absolute power. Therefore, the "Wende" towards the principles of democratic pluralism had profound implications for every aspect of this society. Education in particular had served as a stabiliser of the communist system. It was distinguished by uniformity of structure, extreme selectivity in terms of content and an authoritarian approach to classroom instruction. Therefore, following the Wende, fundamental reform was considered essential. The purpose of this research is to provide an insight into the extent to which this reform has taken place. Chapter One consists o f an analysis o f the school system under the communist regime. Structural, curricular and didactic reforms legislated for since unification are outlined in Chapter Two. Chapter Three provides a more focussed account o f the historical development of education in eastern Germany from 1945 to the present, using political science as a case study. It presents the results of informal interviews with teachers and pupils (past and present), and of a postal survey of one hundred and seventy six second level teachers of political education in the former G.D.R.. These indicate that w hile curricular reform in this key subject has been implemented, teachers continue to favour an authoritarian approach to classroom instruction. Finally, factors influencing the nature o f educational reform in eastern Germany are considered in Chapter Four. These include both organisational factors within the school system and external social factors. Recommendations are made on the basis of conclusions drawn.