Draft:German Educational Research Association

German Educational Research Association (GERA) (official German: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft (DGfE)) is an association of educational scientists active in research and teaching in Germany. The association was founded in 1964 and is based in Berlin.

History
The founding of the DGfE was preceded by a number of "Pedagogical Conferences" initiated by Julius J. Oppenheimer, the head of the "Division of Cultural Affairs, Higher Education" at the High Commissioner for Germany (HICOG). The first of these conferences took place in Bad Wildungen on May 29/30, 1952; others followed, first annually, then, after the founding of the DGfE, in loose order until 1967. These conferences were intended to deal with school and teacher education issues, but soon the focus was on the institutionalization of German educational science. The founding of the professional association is thus closely related to the establishment of the Zeitschrift für Pädagogik in 1955. The decision to found a German Society for Educational Science at the Hamburg conference in 1963 was followed by the constituent meeting on April 28, 1964 in Frankfurt am Main. The founding board consisted of Otto Friedrich Bollnow (chair), Josef Dolch, Andreas Flitner, Wilhelm Hansen, Erika Hoffmann, Heinrich Roth and Hans Stock. Since its founding, the Executive Board has been elected every two years in accordance with the statutes. The first working meeting followed on April 30, 1964, at which the statutes were adopted. From the beginning, self-registration was not possible; two guarantors were required for the admission of a new member - a principle to which the DGfE still adheres at present (2023). The internal organization of the company in commissions was already decided at that time; however, some of these commissions started their work with a delay.

In the second half of the 1960s, the DGfE, in conjunction with the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs as well as the West German Rectors' Conference, was concerned with the establishment of the diploma program in education. In June 1968, the "Core Study Recommendation" was adopted and announced. Since 1995 the DGfE was rivald by the new educational research association GEBF in favor of a more quantitive approach on research.

Goals and membership
The aim of this scientific society is to promote science and research and to develop education in the field of scientific pedagogy. This is realized through various activities, in particular: the organization of professional congresses (every two years), conferences, seminars and lectures, the promotion of interdisciplinary communication within the overall field of educational science, the publication and promotion of professional publications, the stimulation of research projects, the commenting on public recommendations and scientific statements on questions of educational policy and educational practice, to inform the public about the state and development of educational science, to clarify questions of training and examination of the educational professions, to promote young scientists, to promote women working in educational science, to promote international understanding through cooperation with other national institutions and to cooperate in international institutions (statutes of the DGfE ).

The German Society for Educational Science has about 4014 regular members and 54 honorary members for "special services to the German Society for Educational Science" (German: "besondere[r] Verdienste um die Deutsche Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft"). The nomination of Theodor Wilhelm as honorary member at the DGfE congress in 1984 failed because of his teachings and Party-Membership in Nazi Germany. Among other things, he had publicly called for the persecution of Hungarian Jews in particular in 1944.

Chair and Board of Directors

 * Honorary chairman for life was Wolfgang Klafki until he passed away on August 24, 2016.

Publications
The journal Erziehungswissenschaft is the Bulletin of the DGfE. An online version of the journal is accessible via the DGfE web presence.

Literature

 * Behm, Britta (2014): 50 Jahre „Deutsche Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft“ (DGfE). Gedanken zu Jubiläum und Forschungslücken. Beitrag zum Programmheft des 24. DGfE-Kongresses „Traditionen und Zukünfte – 50 Jahre DGfE“ vom 9. bis 12. März 2014 in Berlin. Erziehungswissenschaft, H. 48. . S. 11–23.
 * Berg, Christa/Herrlitz, Hans-Georg/Horn, Klaus-Peter (2014): Kleine Geschichte der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft. Eine Fachgesellschaft zwischen Wissenschaft und Politik. Wiesbaden: Springer VS.
 * Deutsche Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft (DGfE) (1965): Satzung. In: Zeitschrift für Pädagogik 11, H. 3, S. 266–269.
 * Scheuerl, Hans (1987): Zur Gründungsgeschichte der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft. Vorgeschichte – Konstituierung – Anfangsjahre. In: Zeitschrift für Pädagogik 33, H. 2, 267–287.
 * Tröhler, Daniel (2014): Tradition oder Zukunft? 50 Jahre Deutsche Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft aus bildungshistorischer Sicht. In: Zeitschrift für Pädagogik 60, H. 1, S. 9–31.