In recent years, high schools and local communities have collaborated in many parts of Japan, and it has become clear that collaboration is useful for high school and community revitalization. However, no nationwide survey has been conducted to clarify the current status and issues of such collaborations. The purpose of this study was to conduct a nationwide survey of collaboration between public high schools and local communities using a questionnaire to identify current conditions and issues, and to make recommendations based on the results of the survey.
The major results of the survey are as follows.
1. Municipal offices work extensively with high schools and are considered their most important partners.
2. Collaboration among universities, prefectural governments, and high schools is not very active.
3. Collaboration appeared to be more advanced in rural areas than in urban and suburban areas.
4. Teachers' overload and curriculum overcrowding are considered problems in most high schools. In particular, teachers' overload is by far the most frequently cited problem.
5. It is considered difficult for high schools on islands and in rural areas to continue collaboration owing to personnel changes affecting the teachers.
Based on these results, the following recommendations are made:
1. Policies should encourage local governments to work in urban and suburban high schools.
2. Policies are required to promote collaboration among universities, prefectural governments, and high schools.
3. It is necessary to take measures to secure appropriate human resources, such as increasing the number of coordinators and teachers involved in collaboration, and improving the compensation of coordinators.
4. The curriculum should be organized from the viewpoint that regional cooperation is not in competition with academic subjects, but rather is necessary for the academic skills demanded by society in the future.
