Professional Development of School Leaders in Digital Transformation of Schools and Impact on Students
1. Outcomes of Impact Studies on PD of School Leaders related to Digital Transformation of Schools
As stated by Tondeur et al. (2016), there is a wide agreement for a fact that PD of school leaders is essential to support changes to education especially in terms of applying more advanced technologies to improve the learning environment and the teaching standard. However, there is a need to contextualize an integration of technology such as ICT across varieties of school leaders and cultures. However, this very fact is also challenged by a population of leaders those who do not have the access to technology. This problem is generally called a “Digital Divide”. Specific cultures in some schools can also make it hard to integrate the content and pedagogical knowledge with ICT. The implementation of technology in education such as ICT will require leaders to undergo professional development. However, it is challenging to sustain PD with leaders those who are not well versed in technologies. They would be needed to be in regular touch with updates of ICT. However, they might not find this as their jobs due to their limited knowledge of content and technological pedagogical. A systematic and life-long PD of leaders is also a challenge in the path of integrating ICT with pedagogical content. It can be said that ICT enabled education will transform the teaching and learning standard. However, the biggest barrier to this fact to happen is leaders’ understanding of the benefits of using ICT. It all depends on how leaders behave with it like whether they are in regular inquiry for updates, or do they understand the importance of their life-long learning of technology (Tondeur et al. 2016).
As opined by Albion et al. (2015), there is a reciprocal relationship between research and practice of ICT across schools and School leaders. The implementation of ICT in schools does not happen in an organized way as compared to other industries. It additionally lacks a designed-approach without which there will be no certain goals and the action plan. Education centers are into constant drives towards using latest and innovative technologies. However, they are not sure of how to implement technologies such as ICT and to train leaders to be equipped with technological changes across schools in the world. An integration of teaching practice with ICT is challenged broadly from specific cultures in few schools and leaders’ understanding of the technology. Culturally, a few schools do not respond to ICT development as compared to many others. They want to be in a similar environment and follow the traditional model of teaching. They are not desirous for or intentionally do not want to be in regular touch with every new update of ICT. They are more convenient and comfortable with the existing mode of learning and pedagogical content. However, there are opportunities for TPD for leaders as they can share their work, experience, and outcomes through identified and selected list of online communities. There are so many online communities. These communities can help to understand ways to overcome the problem and learn new and exciting things (Albion et al. 2015).
2. Methodologies Used by Other Researchers for PD and Digital Transformation of Schools
Professional Development of School Leaders in Digital Transformation of Schools and Impact on Teachers
As stated above in the first topic, though modernized techniques of teaching have become a necessity, many leaders still do not aware of how to justify their existence in such an environment. A few methodologies as suggested by academic researchers can be followed to help leaders be acquainted with technological gadgets and support a change in the learning pattern. One of such methodologies is being identified, analyzed, and recommended by Botha and Herselman (2015), which is known as Design Science Research Methodology (DSRM). The authors have observed a case where DSRM was being applied to Professional Development of leaders (PD). As observed by authors, DSRM could effectively be used to implement PD in a complex environment. According to authors, DSRM could be used in class and schools to develop ways of understanding to unsupportive processes and structures and to work with the socio-technical system. It was further being noted by authors that DSRM can be applied to practice in six steps. These are (Botha and Herselman 2015):
- Problem Identification
- Motivation
- Objectives for a solution
- Design and Development
- Evaluation
- Communication
To conclude, authors suggest that this kind, of course, is difficult to be managed. It includes part of science and craft as well. The resulting design is not a robust course but a toolkit containing teacher’s technology hardware, technology skills and knowledge, pragmatic pedagogical, and the experience based on practice.
Wiley and Yoon (1995) opine that a professional development (PD) of leaders such as the one that is focused on academic curriculum and content and is integrated with standards-based reform can significantly improve student achievement and teaching practice. It means that if standard reforms are brought to practice, it will have an impact on students as well as teachers. Students would be able to be acquainted with the new learning format. On the other hand, teachers would be able to come out of their socio-cultural contexts to be able to understand and implement the new teaching standard, which is technically more advanced as compared to existing education system.
According to Asensio-Pérez et al. (2017), the Integrated Learning Design Environment (ILDE) can also be a handful in creating a technologically driven or the classroom of the 21st century. It is a web platform where technical experts of ICT, interested teachers, and other people from schools can co-exist in the form of a community and work towards creating a new and upgraded learning environment. This learning environment will be much better than what had existed for so many years. It means that teachers will have a new responsibility as they could now take part in designing the curriculum. However, it is not that easier and the process could be even more difficult than expected as a participatory culture among teachers would be difficult to be generated. The participatory nature in teachers can change at any point in time and would be really difficult to attain it back. Therefore, an ILDE integrated PD model has a strong barrier in the form of leaders’ comfort level with the traditional teaching model (Asensio-Pérez et al. 2017).
3. Professional Development of School Leaders in Digital Transformation of Schools and Impact on Students
Leadership, like for any other industries, has a critical role to play in the digital transformation of schools. Teachers usually have the maximum interaction with students and do impact their learning as well. It is, therefore, important for teachers to exhibit leadership skills in order to promote the creation of a new learning environment. It is to be noted as well that teachers along with principals, superintendents, and others those who support operations in schools are called the school leaders. However, on a broader aspect principals, and superintendents are called leaders as they will only approve the adoption of a digital study format. Without their cooperation, teachers who are also a part of school leaders, will not be able to do a much with it.
Methodologies Used by Other Researchers for PD and Digital Transformation of Schools
Professional development is important and required as well for leaders. It is because they are like a role model to employees especially to those who really want to gain professional skills. Considering the stated fact, it is fair enough to say that leaders should also be put to professional development (Day, Gu and Sammons 2016).
So far, this report was able to identify that professional development of leaders is not an easy job. It is rather full of challenges and barriers. Professional development of leaders could be facilitated in several ways such as by following stages as mentioned below (Beare, Caldwell and Millikan 2018):
Leadership Model: There is a need to adapt to a leadership model such as the “Distributed Leadership Models”, which has necessary elements to cater a professional development. The model should have in general three elements. The model should clearly state the role and responsibilities that leaders need to portray in the technological advancement of the education system in schools. It additionally needs to indicate the structure of the process through which leaders will be deployed to technological change in schools. The structure will also help leaders to develop professional skills. This would not just guide their participation in the change process but would also motivate office level staffs at different levels in schools and also students. The leadership model will also need to cover process and planning in the form of observation, feedback, and coaching. The model should also cover evaluations and inputs that will be required to be included in evaluations.
Create and strengthen leadership capacity: Some schools may do well if teachers are being helped to strengthen their leadership capacity. On the other hand, some schools will do well with more APs being recruited and trained in leadership skills. In both cases, results are expected to happen. For example, when the teacher to student ratio is below than the normal, there would be needs to recruit more teachers. On the other hand, in case of huge work pressure on principals, it is suggested to recruit more APs.
The role of focus leaders: A distributed leadership model is of extreme benefits in regards to improving the learning system and advancing towards the latest technologies. It is because the model encourages leaders to play different roles such as coaching, mentoring, feedback, and others. The best part of this model is that it helps to facilitate a number of works in a limited span of time.
Shared mission: For a technological advancement of the education system, it is important that teams are formed and they are aligned to one mission. The mission, in this case, is to become acquainted with advanced technologies, which are going to be a part of the education system in the future.
Empower leaders: There is a need to empower leaders with time and authority, so that, they could make decisions and set the deadline of the project as per their analysis of the situation.
4. Professional Development of School Leaders in Digital Transformation of Schools and Impact on Teachers
School leaders in the form of principals or head of the department can also contribute to the Digital Transformation of Schools. They additionally can also impact on teachers if leaders are trained in professional skills. The professional development of head of the department in schools can be helped to develop their role-play in the following ways (DiPaola and Tschannen-Moran 2014):
Change in ways of training and evaluation: Principals take care of evaluating teachers’ performance. If they are given a different format to train teachers and evaluate their performance, they can in some ways influence teachers’ participation in technological innovation in the education system. The new training format will have added points especially aimed at enhancing relevant knowledge to the technology. In addition, the new evaluation checklist will have activities that were not part of the traditional evaluation sheet. In order to do all so, school leaders such as the head of the department must be trained on skills and elements that will be utilized in training teachers and in evaluating their work-performance.
Principals need skills: Since the recommended training and evaluation process would be a new experience to school leaders, they should also know how to adjust to the changed responsibility. This can be done by training leaders also. School leaders must be made aware of techniques to be utilized while dealing with a new set of evaluation data. This is where problems may arise as an effective development of skills in leaders would also need their motivation towards the process. Until and unless leaders are not motivated towards their changed responsibilities, they would not be able to justify their participation in the change.
Working conditions: This perhaps has an impact on school leaders’ performance. The decision-making authority and an access to data systems are the factors, which affect the performance of school leaders. School leaders when are entitled to decision-making, they are motivated towards their roles and added responsibilities. Since the recommended training and evaluation format is an added responsibility on principals, they must have the decision-making authority to justify their leadership. Principals or the head of the departments can influence teachers’ performance if they have access to data systems and tools that are critical factors to effective feedbacks. Effective feedbacks will appropriately guide teachers towards the end goal.
Evaluations: Evaluations of principals and teachers should be aligned with each other. This would make things fairer between teachers and principals. For example, if teachers are blamed for the performance of students, the same will go to principals as well. It should not be the case that teachers are alone held responsible for an outcome. It means principals should also be evaluated on how they influence the performance of teachers. It also suggests that professional development is not just required to teachers only but to principals also.
References
Albion, P.R., Tondeur, J., Forkosh-Baruch, A. and Peeraer, J., 2015. Teachers’ professional development for ICT integration: Towards a reciprocal relationship between research and practice. Education and Information Technologies, 20(4), pp.655-673.
Asensio-Pérez, J.I., Dimitriadis, Y., Pozzi, F., Hernández-Leo, D., Prieto, L.P., Persico, D. and Villagrá-Sobrino, S.L., 2017. Towards teaching as design: exploring the interplay between full-lifecycle learning design tooling and teacher professional development. Computers & Education, 114, pp.92-116.
Beare, H., Caldwell, B.J. and Millikan, R.H., 2018. Creating an excellent school: Some new management techniques. Routledge.
Botha, A. and Herselman, M., 2015. A Teacher Tablet Toolkit to meet the challenges posed by 21st century rural teaching and learning environments. South African Journal of Education, 35(4).
Day, C., Gu, Q. and Sammons, P., 2016. The impact of leadership on student outcomes: How successful school leaders use transformational and instructional strategies to make a difference. Educational Administration Quarterly, 52(2), pp.221-258.
DiPaola, M. and Tschannen-Moran, M., 2014. Organizational citizenship behavior in schools and its relationship to school climate. Journal of School Leadership, 11(5), pp.424-447.
Tondeur, J., Forkosh-Baruch, A., Prestridge, S., Albion, P. and Edirisinghe, S., 2016. Responding to challenges in teacher professional development for ICT integration in education. Educational Technology and Society, 19(3), pp.110-120.
Wiley, D.E. and Yoon, B., 1995. Teacher reports on opportunity to learn: Analyses of the 1993 California Learning Assessment System (CLAS). Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 17(3), pp.355-370.
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