The author makes an analysis of the development and present-day state of the problem of elementary, fundamental, categorical and exemplary teaching and learning in the German Federal Republic, as it is presented in the books and periodicals that have appeared in recent years. The subject-matter that is called for there is that of an elementary and fundament' al character which contains all that & essential and basic with the quantity the subject-matter being reduced and no quality raised. Opinions regarding this question differ. The categorial principle and the exemplary principle are still under discussion, too. Categorial educate connects the objective aspect (the material content) with the subjective aspect (the self-development of man). The theory of exemplary teaching and learning is based on the possibility of selecting such material as to facilitate the understanding of the matter with a broader, exemplary attainment. What is being solved theoretically is the sense, the manner and the effectiveness of the exemplary process and the variety of its applications in individual subjects, the regard to the possibilities of transfer, the need for supplementing exemplary teaching by orientation teaching etc. In conclusion the author points out that the exemplary principle can also be applied in the socialist school.