Promoting the quality and competencies of teachers has been a crucial issue in recent years in many countries. In Japan, this issue has been under discussion in the Central Council for Education especially in the last two years, and the Council summarized the views on this issue on 28th August 2012. The Council determined a new direction in teacher-training and placed emphasis on introducing a highly-developed Teacher's License system. This forum is arranged around these topics, but many preceding studies have already demonstrated some common features of the teaching profession. Based on these tendencies, first, this paper will clarify the complex areas involving the teaching profession. Secondly, after reviewing a number of preceding studies and comprehensive efforts of a number of academic societies, this paper will discuss key issues in personnel affairs, above all personnel revisions of teachers. Finally, this paper will point out that we should study teacher training, selection, and in-service training not in isolation but integrally. The main suggestions of this paper are as follows: 1. Discussions on the enhancement of the quality and competencies of teachers have many complex issues in wide-ranging areas, so it becomes very difficult to reflect the latest innovations in specific enforcements of policy. Therefore, we need to be clear about the issues of teacher training, selection and in-service training in future research. 2. Only the Japanese Educational Research Association and the Japanese Society for the Study on Teacher Education have taken a proactive stance on problems in teacher education over a long period. In particular, both have taken a considerable interest in teacher training, and have accumulated productive findings. However, there remains much to be examined, for example, theoretical analysis of recruitment examination, training of teachers, and the temporary transfer system and so on. 3. National Universities have played an important role of teacher training during the postwar era, but nowadays we can observe an increased dependence on private universities with teacher training courses. Therefore, we might potentially need to develop mutual collaboration in the teacher training system. 4. Structures of personnel revisions of teachers are quite different among prefectural and city governments. It is said that "personnel revision is the best training for individuals", but actual conditions have been changed widely. Personnel revision is one of effective strategy for the maintenance and enhancement of educational standards in Japan, so adequate and rapid formulation by prefectural boards of education is necessary to ensure the effect of personnel revisions. To promote the integration of teacher training, selection and in-service training, we should pay adequate attention to the diversity observed at each stage, and take all circumstance into consideration concerning provincial school teachers. In addition, many educational policies derive from the discussion in local assemblies; therefore, we should keep in mind whether a new policy is useful for improving the actual conditions of teachers or not.

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The purpose of this paper is to examine the current status and issues of school administrator selection. In order to improve the quality of education, the role of school administrators is very important. In addition, as the school management environment has changed and the role of the school administrator has become sophisticated, it is necessary to professionalize school administrators. Therefore, it is necessary to build a system for selecting and training school administrators. The current status of school administrator selection is as follows. First, the candidates are interviewed and their personal qualities are determined. During the selection process, the competences necessary to carry out the duties of school administrator are determined. Selection based on a systematic, planned training has not been made. The training time is short and the state of professional training for school administrator has not changed much in spite of having expanded a school administrator's role. In order to implement the systematic selection and training of school administrators, it is necessary to develop professional standards. In Japan, the development of professional standards for school administrators is its infancy. It is necessary to mature the professional standards for school administrators and the standards for training and selecting them. In addition, to make school administrators professional, it is necessary to establish the autonomy of the schools.

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The purpose of this paper is to analyze school systems from the point of view of the working circumstances for school staff, especially for the teachers. For the improvement of teachers' working conditions, it is necessary to clarify the characteristics of school education in Japan and some alternative choices related also to school administration should be suggested. Concretely they are described, explained, and proposed below. 1. working in school education and the health of the teacher One basic characteristic of the teaching and learning process in school education is that teaching does not correlate directly with learning. We should always acknowledge the difference and sometimes contrary relation between them. In addition to that, although learning activities cannot be observed empirically, yet the teaching staff is asked to somehow demonstrate the educational "effect" of their work. With this background, teachers should be aware that they are apt to develop some irrational belief in their work, and that might in turn cause them health problems, for example from the stress of prolonged overwork. 2. today's school risk that has not been clearly recognized Two points of school risk in Japan should be discussed. One is that the view of school has changed from that of the past several decades. Although outside of school the community, family, work, and life have drastically developed, the basic conditions of school have remained static. On the other hand, because of the lack of laws and regulations for schools, the definition of teacher's work is vague, which often brings long hours of overwork. As one example in Germany, it is total clear that "educational freedom" of each teacher is defined not only in act, but also in regulation in states. It means that each stakeholder in schooling has rights and responsibilities, and legislation has developed to a point that the balance among stakeholders is strained. 3. internal transfer system which regularly reassigns teachers between schools One explicit characteristic of personnel management in Japan is the regular transfer of staff between schools. This is a big burden on teachers and other school staff members. Every some years they must continually reconstruct the relationships between colleagues, the students, the parents, and the other residents of the school district. Besides simple lateral transfers, not a small number of cases arise where the transfer is between different types of schools.4. staffing and working in schools and school management School principals and vice-principals take their posts for only a few years, a much shorter time than that of teachers, on average. It is not easy for them to show school management plans and ideas to their subordinates and colleagues after only few days in the new post. Furthermore, a teacher's work is basically independent and autonomous. That asks teachers to manage their cognition and emotion in a very short time in the class. With this background teachers might make unexpected misjudgments or surfer from the framework that they have built up by themselves. 5. possible school design I propose two points by choice, one of them is to orient highly centralized school system or decentralized, independent management in each school. The other is not only to preach to the teachers, but also to improve the working circumstances objectively. From now on, an experimental attitude and experimental practices in school should be more highly regarded and more strongly promoted for better and effective working.

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Although the topic of this forum is about whether public staffing for teachers can guarantee professionalism, this paper examines the functions of the community school system and how they work to improve teachers' professionalism. In Japan, the system of "community" schools was introduced in 2004, by revision of the law regulating school boards. At that time, the bodies which operate schools acquired the legal power and right to demonstrate their opinions to persons with the power to appoint teachers. That was a great change. Yet, although there is little evidence that the new power of schools would have improved the professionalism of teachers, it doesn't mean that the community school system could not be effective. We must examine the effectiveness of the whole system of community school for improving professionalism of teachers and make clear whether this new approach to school governance could be successful. There are two problems in examining this new type of school governance. First, we cannot find a clear intention of either the government or the practitioners for improving the professionalism of teachers. Second, teachers resent being pressured by people who are out of schools. These days the concept of teacher professionalism is changing all over the world. Even in Japan, the Department for Education is coming to understand that teachers in modern times need such abilities as communication or personal relationships. They expect teachers to be able to receive the opinions of parents or people in communities and cope with them properly. There is some evidence that school operation by a partnership of schools and communities would be effective for the improvement of educational processes, not only for academic performance but also for raising the consciousness of teachers and the motivation of students. It could activate schooling. But if teachers are excluded from the decision-making, such systems would not operate well, however actively the parents or other people work for schools. In order to make the system work well, teachers must be involved the decision-making processes and keep their incentive high. Though many people are anxious that some parents would make unreasonable requests of schools or teachers, good relationships between teachers and parents remove such anxieties. Such a partnership of schools and parents avoids distrust and conflicts. Yet, there is one problem. Such close partnerships also would prevent the school governing bodies from being "critical friends" of the schools. "Critical" means that school governors have the responsibility to make critical opinions or severe requests to improve schools. They have to recognize such roles and responsibilities. They need training. In this way, they can be real partners and also "clients" of schooling. That would also be the key that would unlock the dilemma of community control and professionalism of teachers. Many people regard the problems of community control as those of layman control, but that's not right: community control is not the same as layman control. If parents or people end up being mere laymen', community control will fail. They need to acquire the knowledge, skills, and abilities of school governing. That is the creation of the new professionalism.

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In recent years, teachers have been faced with the challenge of diversity. Now more than ever it is necessary for them to enhance their multifaceted capabilities constantly: high levels of expertise, sociability, practical leadership, communication skills, and the ability to respond as a team. That is, to meet the demands of a new age, what is required is the overall improvement of the quality of faculty capacity throughout the teachers' entire careers. School leaders as well are strongly required to improve their leadership skills, and also to acquire the multi-faceted competencies needed to promote autonomous school management systems and to maintain and improve the quality of educational standards. For the purposes of using management skills, there is a tendency to increase the recruitment of civilians for the management of public schools. This is intended to procure human resources from outside of the traditional faculty personnel system, and is aimed at reforming school governance. Furthermore, a voluntary step-down system is introduced, from the viewpoint of ensuring the most suitable persons for school leaders. It is positioned as a part of a flexible approach to teaching personnel policy of every Board of Education. In recent years, with the diversification of the interests of students and parents, the faculty is being forced to provide life guidance for students and respond to the requests of parents, which are often very complex and the cause of overwork. Therefore, the working environment of the faculty is becoming increasingly busy, with their mental and physical health being forced into worsening condition. The percentage of faculty members who are on leave of absence from work because of mental illness is very high compared to other local government officials in general. The situation is very serious and can't be overlooked. Since 2004, the "Community School" as a new mechanism of school governance has been institutionalized. In this scheme, part of the board of education's authority is delegated to a "Local School Management Council" (hereafter referred to as "the Council"). The Council is deeply committed to the school management through the approval of the basic policies of the school management and the submissions of opinion on the appointment and faculty management. Through this involvement, the Council is responsible for certain personnel to teachers, and it is also a subject that considerably affects the maintenance and improvement of the level of education. The above is an important issue related to maintaining and improving the level of education, and it will be ensured through the "quality assurance" of personnel administration. In view of the above, the Editorial Board of the annual report of the Japan Educational Administration Society asked four members to write about the following four phases from the perspective of a professional focus. Those phases are i) issues of the advancement of quality and ability of teachers, ii) the current status and issues of the system for selecting school leaders, iii) the problem of occupational health environment, iv) the functions of the School Council to the teaching personnel.

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In 1948, the Board of Education Law was enacted in Japan under the occupation policies aimed at promoting democracy and decentralizing education by following the model of the United States. The Board of Education system has been revised several times since then, but there has been no noticeable change to the provision concerning the relationship between the boards of education and their superintendents. Legally, the boards are an executive organ and have extensive legal authority over local education, whereas the superintendents are an auxiliary (subordinate) organ and thus have limited authority. Consequently, the superintendents should take charge of all education affairs managed by the boards, subject to the boards' "direction and supervision." However, in practice, the boards have little influence over the policy process, which favors the superintendents. How to improve the internal control of the boards has been a crucial problem in Japan. This article discusses the legal relationship between the boards of education and the superintendents. While the law's wording technically allows the boards to direct and supervise their superintendents' activities, the Ministry of Education has restricted the boards' power through administrative interpretations of the law. According to these interpretations, the boards can only outline policies and should not directly affect the activities of the superintendents. This article analyzes the discrepancies between the legal and administrative interpretations, focusing on the bill for partial revision of the Board of Education Law that was submitted to the Diet in 1949 but was dropped later. The bill was primarily aimed at reframing the relationship of these two entities. The first section of this article discusses the preparation of the bill by the Ministry of Education. Internal government documents show that the ministry intended to weaken the boards' control over the superintendents and strengthen the superintendents' authority by revising the term "direction and supervision" to "general supervision." This section also clarifies the bill's background and the difference between "direction and supervision" and "general supervision." The second section examines the Diet's deliberations in 1949 and 1950. In 1949, members of the opposition parties pointed out what they viewed as the main problem of the proposed revisions: weakening of the boards' control. The bill failed to pass during that session. It was resubmitted the next year and passed with no revision concerning "direction and supervision." Therefore, the attempt to reframe the relationship between the boards and superintendents was not fully accomplished through the legislative process. However, the administrative interpretations issued since 1952 can be identified as being more similar to the "general supervision" idea than the "direction and supervision" concept in a strict sense. Through these interpretations, the Ministry of Education has restricted the boards' control. In conclusion, the discrepancy between the law and the ministry's administrative interpretations makes the boards' responsibility less clear. Theoretical and empirical research is required to clarify how and to what extent the boards should control superintendents.

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This paper uses a case study to clarify the financial effects of school consolidation policies conducted by municipalities. The case examined in this article is the school consolidation policy implemented by Municipality A of Prefecture X in the Kanto region at the end of FY 2007. 'School consolidation' is generally defined as 'the practice of combining two or more schools'. However, this definition seems to exclude the issue of public policy. In fact, when a local government consolidates schools, it is accompanied by other policies. Therefore, in this study, the term 'school consolidation policy' is used to describe a concept including the series of policies associated with school consolidation. In an aging society with fewer children, if we aim to maintain the present scale of schools, school consolidation is indispensable. In particular, national and local governments are mired in financial problems, and school consolidation is particularly attractive to them if it can help them cut expenditures. The Fiscal System Council (FSC) proposed the implementation of school consolidation policy for economical or educational reasons, and some municipalities continue to debate the issue from a similar perspective. However, little is known about actual financial effects of implementing school consolidation policies. For example, the FSC proposals argue that running costs could be reduced by about 30% through school consolidation. On the other hand, Honda (2011) points out that school consolidation does not always result in reduced educational budgets. It is important, therefore, to examine in detail the actual financial effects of school consolidation policies. This paper aims to do so by analyzing public finance statistics for the school consolidation policy implemented in Municipality A. The financial effects of school consolidation policy are divided into four categories: 'expenditure decrease effects', 'revenue increase effects', 'expenditure increase effects' and 'revenue decrease effects'. The first two categories have positive values, and the second two negative values. Their overall impact is referred to as 'financial effects'. Four findings were made. First, school consolidation resulted in reduced operating expenses. In other words, school consolidation achieved economies of scale. Second, school consolidation policy required huge financial resources at the policy making and implementation stages. However, national and local governments provided part of the necessary fiscal resources for policy implementation. Third, after these stages, since FY 2008, the municipal government needed the expense that was necessary for the observance of a contract of the promise. Municipal government must disburse, by their revenue sources, the cost required by implementation of agreed policies. This becomes new operating expenses (unavoidable cost). Fourth, the financial effect of the school consolidation policy took a negative figure. This suggests the possibility that municipalities with poor financial resources can't carry out a school consolidation policy, or if they do, it may not be primarily for educational purposes. Then, what is the financial significance of the school consolidation policy? Inferring from these results, it facilitates the smooth reallocation of resources to the current educational needs (educational expenses liquidation-reallocation effect hypothesis). However, it must be taken into consideration that these are limited effects. Certainly 'expenditure decrease effects' reduce the cost of per school and per pupil. However, if the birthrate continues to decrease, those relative costs would rise again to their previous levels. In addition, each municipality decides the reallocation of financial resources for educational budget politically. To get the necessary budget for

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