Abstract

The aim of this international symposium, held on the 50th anniversary of the foundation of this Association, was to compare experiences in Germany, New Zealand, Korea, and Japan, and to derive pointers for the future for the development of School Organization studies in Japan. Guest Speakers and their presentations were as follows: Dr. Phil. Gerhard W. Schnaitman, the University of Education Weingarten in Germany (Conceptions, research results and practical experiences concerning school development and school program work in Germany). Dr. Cathy Wylie, New Zealand Council for Educational Research in New Zealand (Finding the most productive balance to bring the best out of self-managing schools). Ph. D. Dr. Ko Joen, Cheju National University in Korea (Trends and issues in policies on school autonomy in Korea). Ed. D. (honorary), Ph. D. (honorary) Tsutomu Horiuchi, Kyoto University of Education, and the president of this Association, (The trend of research and problems of organizational development of schools in Japan). The 4 participants discussed the development of school organization in their respective countries in terms of three points: (1) movements for the development of school autonomy in each country; (2) Issues being debated in schools, and the development of organizational management measures for the effectiveness of school education; (3) Regarding the above, studies on school management and how schools are being involved in this research. In concluding, the two chair persons noted the following two points: 1) Is asking schools what "self" means to them the same as asking schools to take more authority and responsibility? Is it necessary to re-examine the concepts of cooperation and partnership from this view point? 2) Since researchers are asked to be involved in the administrative sector these days, it was time that this Association should be asked to justify its existence by developing our own competence and accountability.