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THE COMMONWEALTH COUNCIL FOR EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT (CCEAM) CONFERENCE 2006
MESSAGE FROM THE CCEAM PRESIDENT
Dear colleagues and friends,
It gives us great pleasure and honour to welcome you in Cyprus for the Commonwealth Council for Educational Administration and Management (CCEAM) Conference 2006, which is being jointly organised by the Commonwealth Council for Educational Administration and Management (CCEAM), the Cyprus Educational Administration Society (CEAS), the University of Cyprus (UCY), the Open University of Cyprus (OUC) and in collaboration with the Centre for Research on Lifelong Learning (CRELL) of the European Commission. The conference theme is: “Recreating linkages between Theory and Praxis in Educational Leadership”.
We have selected this theme as the title of the CCEAM conference for 2006 after much thought on two basic maxims. The first was stated by Evangelist Johannes about 2000 years ago, namely: “Eν αρχή ην ο Λόγος”, i.e. at the beginning Reason (theory-logic) came into existence. The second was stated 200 years ago by Goethe, when he stated that: “At the beginning Praxis came into existence”.
Indeed, if Reason lives his whole life as a bachelor, in other words, he is not transformed into life, he will remain in the realm of Utopia. Therefore, he will be useless. The same holds true with Practice; if she lives her whole life as a spinster without the justification of Reason permeating her, she will stay there without blooming, without fruit, without any children. Therefore without any real meaning. Thus, sensemaking is non-existent. As scholars in the area of Educational Leadership, Management and Administration we cannot escape the temptation of bringing those two fundamental concepts into marriage. The benefits of such marriage might be beautiful and productive sons and daughters, such as:
- How can educational innovations be best implemented?
- In what ways can University-school linkages be created?
- How can we transform research programmes into every day school life?
- How can decentralisation become operative as a means for meaningful autonomy for schools?
As might be expected, the conference theme is broad enough and can reveal more aspects to be dealt with. Therefore, the vision of the organisers can be summarised as follows:
- To offer to participants from various countries the opportunity to meet and exchange information on issues of educational leadership, management, and administration
- To promote the participation in a dialogue that involves issues of educational growth
- To facilitate educational development and progress in the participating countries and
- To provide to participants opportunities for the development of close links with their colleagues from other countries.
In short, the CCEAM Conferences have always been regarded as one of the most important International and Commonwealth events in the area of Educational Administration, Management and Leadership. These conferences offer the main forum through which we celebrate our cultural pluralism and richness of the various scientific and practical approaches during the examination of our field in which we all endeavour with so much passion and academic rigor and at the same time with respect for each other’s positions. Education is the master key that unlocks human potential in every sphere of life. It is a force for good in the world, and a powerful tool for economic growth and social progress. It is a human right; not a privilege. That is why we are committed to broadening educational opportunities for all the citizens of the world and our conferences do just that. In our effort to create a more stable and secure world - a world free of discrimination and hatred, we must start by ensuring every child is raised and educated in a spirit of tolerance, understanding and respect for others. We are optimistic that with the keynote speeches, the papers, symposia and cultural activities included in this programme you will find ways and ideas to convert Theory into Praxis during these five days.
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