| dc.description.abstract | In recent years, the trend of baby bust in Taiwan has influenced schools’ management and development. As a result, many elementary and junior high schools in remote areas face the crisis of cutting down and merging. The educational choices are deprived, and a tendency of multiple weaknesses is the result. However, schools in remote areas have richer natural resources than city schools. They have the advantage of developing into featured schools. Because of this, this research used the northern featured schools in Taiwan as the cases for studying. We chose two Hakka featured schools and three non-Hakka featured schools, and began in-depth interviews with them. On the other hand, elementary and junior high schools in remote areas have been promoting and transitioning into featured schools. Thus, we studied their methods and results, as well as understanding the practical application of cross sector collaboration. We hope to provide elementary and junior high schools in remote areas with a direction of renewal development and awaken the educational authorities’ attention.
This research discovered that the cross sector collaboration models of Hakka and non-Hakka featured schools could be divided into four facets. (1)Environment: They paid attention to the external environmental factors of the featured schools, including the influences of the baby bust trend and the regulation policies. The internal economic factors were meant to mutually complement resources. Other non-economic factors were there because of past successful experience of Yu-Gwang Elementary School and the aggressive promotion of the NPO and the media. (2)Process: The concept and goals of featured schools were to maintain the family’s basic functions and transform to community learning and cultural centers. Management policies were meant to efficiently use the local culture and natural resources to develop featured courses. The leadership ability and team work management models of the leaders were indispensable keys for success. The obstacles encountered included different concepts between members, and the lack of manpower, funds and other resources. (3)Organization: “The program for featured schools” was mainly promoted by the government and schools. It mainly contained two projects: the “Program for featured schools” promoted by Bureau of Education of Taipei County, and the “Plan of campus space activation and development of featured schools” by Ministry of Education for public elementary and junior high schools. The NPO promoted the cross sector collaboration between featured schools, and the Eden united with Global Views Monthly Magazine to fundraise some money for schools in remote areas. Hence, resources were sent to assist schools in remote areas to activate and renew their campuses. (4)Results: Each campus developed its featured courses with unique styles. Besides creating educational value, featured courses can also increase administrative efficiency and teaching quality so that schools and communities can be more closely connected.
Furthermore, we also compared the management strategies of Hakka and non-Hakka Schools. Ben-Gang Elementary School, which was one of the Hakka featured schools, used Hakka culture as the school’s direction of course planning. They hoped that the local culture could be preserved and strongly promoted, as well as community courses, astronomy courses and Hakka culture courses. At the same time, they aggressively sought cooperation partners and united the local community’s resources into the infrastructure of the Ben-Gang community. Liandong Elementary School, which was one of the non-Hakka featured schools, united with nearby schools to promote international tours and studies through strategic alliances. Besides devotedly developing the school’s local and featured courses, there was a hope to further attract foreign students to come for tours or studies, thus creating an irreplaceable existing value for small schools. Specifically, the effects of promoting the featured schools and the cross sector collaboration included: the increase of all the resources, the return of the number of students, transforming of schools into community and cultural center, and creating supplementary value and existing value for the schools.
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