Treffer: Vocational Education as an Innovation in the Republic of China--Computerization of School Administration.

Computerized school administration has become one of the most crucial innovations in vocational education in Taiwan in the Republic of China. As these educators begin to design or purchase computerized information systems for their own schools, they must first define their specific information needs. Next, they should pay attention to interrelationships among all the data subsystems in their information systems so as to avoid data redundancy. Care should be taken so that the system is designed in a way that will generate information in a format that meets pertinent regulations and rules. All persons who will use the system, including data processing personnel, faculty members, clerks, and department heads, must work jointly to set up the system, and appropriate training for the end users of the system must be designed and provided. The information system itself should be divided into the following subsystems: personnel, learning resources, student services, facilities and equipment, finance, and instruction. Finally, efforts should be made to (1) help school personnel adjust to the change in organizational climate that will undoubtedly arise after the computerized system is introduced and (2) develop and maintain procedures to provide information security and protect individuals' and organizations' rights to privacy. (MN)