Abstract

Background/purpose – We live in the age of digital transformation, and our lives are fundamentally shaped by the influence of digital technologies. This transformation is calling for profound changes in the education of new generations, and forcing schools to realize structural and pedagogical transformation so as to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary for life in the 21st century. Under these circumstances, digital leadership has become significant in sustaining digitally-driven school improvement. Digital leadership, used as an umbrella term to refer to technology-referenced leadership models such as e-leadership, technology leadership, virtual leadership, or leadership 4.0, aim at integrating digital technologies into the functioning and improvement of organizations and leveraging their sustainability in the digital era. This study aims to discuss the potential contribution of digital leadership to sustainable school improvement efforts in the digital era, and suggests implications for future studies.

Materials/methods – This is a conceptual paper which briefly defines digital leadership, school improvement, and the relationship between these two variables. Based on this analysis, it also points out some aspects to be addressed by future studies.

Practical implications – In this paper, we argue that digital leadership has much to offer to enhance school improvement in accordance with the requirements of this age. We also analyze the digital leadership and school improvement literature to identify potential gaps in research and suggest implications for the future investigation of digital leadership with a particular focus on school improvement.

Conclusion – An overview of digital leadership and school improvement literature suggest that future research should particularly address digital leadership from a distributed and social justice perspective, and provide further evidence on the mechanisms and means of enacting effective digital leadership in enabling schools to respond properly to their fast-changing digital environment.

Keywords: Digital leadership, school improvement, principal, leadership, school effectiveness.

Abstract

Keywords: Critical thinking dispositions, higher education, undergraduate students, sociodemographic effect, study field.

Abstract

Keywords: Transformational leadership, teacher self-efficacy, national culture, meta-analysis.

Abstract

Background/purpose – The purpose of this study was to explore three null hypotheses regarding the association between Greek preschool teachers’ professional features with their knowledge and views of the official standards of early writing teaching which emphasize real communicative purposes.

Materials/methods – 494 teachers participated in an Internet-based survey and their answers to a 21-item digital questionnaire were analyzed through descriptive (calculation of frequencies) and inferential statistics (chi-squared tests).

Results – Two of the three null hypotheses cannot be supported and two statistically significant associations emerged: (a) teachers’ education level was associated with a comprehensive knowledge and use of the official standards, and (b) teachers with lower level academic qualifications and teaching experience of more than 10 years seem to reproduce a “phonics” approach.

Conclusion – It is argued that the introduction of curricula per se cannot alter teachers’ implementation of the phonics method, which is contrary to the official curriculum standards. It is suggested that redesigning writing practices to make them more compatible with the official standards should be a long-term and reciprocal project among teachers and policymakers.

Keywords: Early writing, emergent literacy, phonics method, in-service training.

Abstract

Background/purpose – Little attention is placed upon the lesser-known form of academic curriculum–that is, the hidden curriculum–and most especially in the Philippine context. This study explored the positive and negative lessons from hidden curricula in the higher education context, with a Philippine state university as the research setting.

Materials/methods – This study was formed as a qualitative case study, with data obtained using online focused interviews and focus group discussions with college students. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis.

Results – For the positive lessons, college students implicitly showed evidence of being compassionate. They also acquired behaviors and attitudes considered healthy to the development of their personality. With many participants reportedly helping each other, they also appeared to learn collaborative working. For the negative lessons, college teachers were noted to trigger academic discord, and reportedly lacked empathy towards their students’ circumstances. Toxic behavior, collective cheating, and high-pressure work environment were also observed.

Conclusion – Where groups of people study, such as in the university setting, hidden curricula will always exist, as in the social environment always manifests a certain hidden curriculum. Hidden curricula can offer both positive and negative lessons which, observed or not, can impact upon students as well as other stakeholders. Furthermore, the development of hidden curricula can be an iterative phenomenon by first influencing the collective, and the collective then influencing the hidden curricula, ad infinitum.

Keywords: Hidden curriculum, college students, implicit learning, academic procrastination, collective cheating, personal development.

Abstract

Background/purpose – The concept of “blended learning” was adopted into Russian education from other countries. However, under the new conditions, the authors’ original idea of combining different forms of learning has been transformed into a mixture of online and offline learning. This study aims to analyze the factors that led to the transformation of this concept in Russian research papers and the practice of teaching in Russian universities. The observation method was necessary to describe how the term is applied and to draw conclusions about how it is understood by teachers. 

Keywords: Blended learning, hybrid learning, distant learning, face-to-face learning, Russian universities.

Abstract

Background/purpose – This study investigates how the teaching intervention and familiarity with the search topic enhance Greek students’ behavior while solving information problems.

Materials/methods – Seven university students solved three information problems on the same search topic during an academic semester. Between the first and second information problems, a didactic intervention was implemented aimed at familiarizing the participant undergraduates with the information problem-solving process based on the Big 6 model of Eisenberg & Berkowitz (1990) and the use of essential online search tools. Qualitative data were collected via observation and the think-aloud protocol.

Results – The findings indicated that following the didactic intervention and familiarity with the search topic, the participants were able to realize a greater variety of actions in order to locate the required information.

Conclusion – The study’s findings deepen the comprehension of how students’ information behaviors evolve, and indicate suitable interventions that could help to support students in performing more effective Internet searches.

Keywords: Information problem, search engine, higher education, Big6 model, teaching intervention.