Tokyo Gakugei University (東京学芸大学) or Gakudai (学大), for short, is a national university in Koganei, Tokyo. While its history may be traced to 1873, it was formally chartered as a university in 1949 through the merging of four teacher-training institutions. In 1966, the Graduate School of Tokyo Gakugei University was established, and since 1996 it has offered Doctoral degrees in the education field as part of a coalition of educational institutions that include Chiba University, Saitama University, and Yokohama National University. In recent years, Tokyo Gakugei University has developed programs to better accommodate professional school teachers, including evening and short-term courses. The university also houses a number of national research centres in education-related fields. In addition to its Koganei campus, it also maintains a number of attached public schools offering curricula in elementary, secondary, and special education at various locations in the greater Tokyo area. The university has a strong reputation in education-related fields, playing a national role in the development of educational policy and innovations in teacher education.