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.

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