본 연구는 '공교육의 위기와 사교육의 팽창'이라는 한국의 교육 현실 속에서 사교육을 대표하는 학원을 하나의 사회 조직으로 인정하고 그 특성을 체제론적 관점에서 분석한 것이다. 학원 조직을 환경(environment), 투입(input), 전환(conversion), 그리고 산출(output)차원으로 나누어 학원의 구성원인 학원장과 학원 강사들, 학원 수강생인 학생, 학부모들의 인식을 바탕으로 그 특성을 파악하였다. 그 결과 학원은 환경과 영향을 주고받는 개방 체제로서 교육 시장의 환경 변화와 교육 수요자들의 요구에 민감하게 반응하며 여러 가지 투입 요소들을 그 목적에 맞게 전환시켜 그 특성과 가치를 창출하고 있었다. 학원에 대한 객관적 연구를 바탕으로 학교와 학원의 특징과 역할을 이해함으로써 각 조직의 부족한 부분을 보완하고 적용할 수 있는 기회를 제공할 것이다.

The purposes of this study are to understand effectively the structure and the function of private-tutoring institutes(hakwone) organization by examining analytically private school as a social system, and to overcome prejudice and misconception about private-tutoring institutes. It intended to contribute to the future development of Korean education by finding out how to create more effective and competitive public schools based on complementary cooperation between private-tutoring institute and public school. Using survey and interview data of private-tutoring institute directors, instructors, students, and parents who send their children to private-tutoring institute, I explore how they perceive the structure and the function of private-tutoring institute(hakwon) organization in terms of environments, in-put, conversion, and out-put process. Private-tutoring institute as a social system is affected by the environmental change and customers' educational needs, and very sensitive to them. In every process, it places emphasis on effectiveness and competitiveness for education, especially academic achievement in school. For example, it tries to have competitive facilities, excellent staff of instructors, good relations between members and so on. The lecture is the most important part of private-tutoring institute and more competitive than school classes, mainly because of small class size, ability grouping, full student guidance for learning, regular tests and feedback, and the good atmosphere in the lecture. Most participants think private-tutoring institutes are effective on academic achievement but not on the human education. However, students and parents are satisfied with private-tutoring institutes because what they want to get from private-tutoring Institutes is academic achievement. Parents are also satisfied with tighter management of students and unclosed administration to customers.