Preamble

The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Erziehungswissenschaft (DGfE) | the German Educational Research Association (GERA) is a scholarly association of researchers and experts engaged in analyses, research, development and university teaching in the area of education and Bildung. It aims to pro-mote the gaining of knowledge and expertise in these areas.

As a scholarly association, it serves as a forum for discussion and exchange with regard to educational research and its theoretical and methodological foundations. The historical development of educational research and the complexity of its field of study have led to the differentiation of various disciplinary branches. The DGfE takes such developments into account and supports comprehensive and networked initiatives on national as well as on international levels.

The common focus of these diverse disciplines is to analyse educational processes and practices, their basis and results, as well as the complex patterns and tensions in which education and educational research are embedded. This common disciplinary focus embraces scholarly analyses of individual biographies, educational interactions spanning various fields of socialisation, institutional and organisational structures as well as current and historical societal contexts.

The thematic range and variety is mirrored by the variation in historical, comparative, empirical and analytical methods and perspectives. These refer to methodological standards found in the arts and humanities as well as in the social and cultural sciences – all disciplines to which educational research is related. In addition to these theoretical and methodological claims, the DGfE advocates for compliance with the ethical principles of educational research, expertise and academic teaching. Thus, the DGfE regards itself as a space for scholarly and academic culture.

The DGfE is ready to provide expertise regarding research and education policy as well as educational and teaching professions. In addition, it takes the initiative in securing the structural conditions of educational research and university teaching and in representing the expertise, interests, and visions of its members.
The DGfE and its divisions and subdivisions consider the promotion of emerging researchers as especially important.

As a national association, the DGfE is part of a network of interdisciplinary and international educational research associations, groups and agencies, and also maintains a close relationship with organisations of educational practice.

Download the Preamble | 2013