Leadership Matters
Innovative Instructional Strategies to Redesign Educational Administration Preparation Programs: Digital Initiatives to Provide Equity and Meet the Needs of Diverse Emerging School Leaders View Digital Media
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Aura Wharton Beck, Chientzu Candace Chou
The purpose of this study focuses on innovative initiatives to redesign a school administrator preparation program at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, USA. The initiatives include the creation of Interactive learning objects (ILOs), differentiation of curricula, standardization of syllabi to address school administrator competencies, accessible course templates for the learning management system, and the HyFlex course delivery model for both in-person and Zoom instruction. We revised our program to meet the needs of diverse student populations better. Therefore, each course received an in-depth Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) curriculum audit from a university DEI fellow. We also hired two subject matter experts to work with all faculty to provide appropriate lessons and resources to address the needs of Catholic, public, and public charter schools in Minnesota, USA. The redesign team worked closely with instructional designers to implement the digital innovation. Specifically, ILOs refer to micro-learning modules in which students engage in a digital learning module to achieve specific learning outcomes. Embedding more interactive ways to engage students virtually helped strengthen the learning outcomes. We used a template in the learning management system (Canvas) to provide a consistent look for all online courses to increase the accessibility of course content for students. In this paper, we showcase all new features and reflect on the successes and challenges related to the program redesign.
Understanding Preservice Teachers’ Experiences on the Use of WhatsApp as a Learning Tool: A Case Study in South Africa
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Blanche Ndlovu, Thuthukile Jita
Research has been conducted on the effectiveness of using WhatsApp for teaching and learning; however, few scholars have addressed preservice teachers' experiences in early childhood education and in a developing country like South Africa. WhatsApp in teacher education has the potential to support preservice teachers during theory learning on campus and collaborative learning even during school-based work-integrated learning. The purpose of this qualitative case study is to explore preservice teachers' experiences of using WhatsApp as an instructional aid in a teacher education program. The study is grounded on connectivism which emphasizes the importance of people connecting with each other and quickly access information. Three research questions focused on participants' uses, benefits and challenges of integrating WhatsApp as a learning tool. A purposeful sampling method was used to select 8 final year preservice teachers who have been enrolled in the early childhood education program. The study used semi-structured interviews and classroom observations. Interviews were transcribed, and the data were coded to identify patterns and major themes. The results revealed that preservice teachers had a positive experience with the use of WhatsApp as an academic tool including the sharing of learning material and the use of WhatsApp as a communication tool as well as a collaboration tool. Participants also identified challenges to learning using WhatsApp such as the cost of data, connectivity and load-shedding. Therefore, the paper proposes the use of WhatsApp in teacher education programs to close the bridge between theory and practice.
Beyond the Rhetoric: School Leaders' Challenges with Digital Inclusivity
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Labby Ramrathan, Inbanathan Naicker, Daisy Pillay
Globally and indeed within South Africa, COVID-19 has accelerated the need to integrate digital technology into the teaching and learning processes within school education. Noting further that the most recent PIRLS study report indicates that approximately 81% of grade 4 learners cannot read with comprehension in South Africa. Furthermore, the state of schooling within South Africa compromises the provision of quality education. Yet, school leaders are encouraged to include and integrate digital technology into the teaching and learning processes in their respective schools. In this paper we present a summary of the challenges that school leaders present as barriers and opportunities to digital inclusivity into their schools in context of resource deprivation. We then argue that digital inclusivity in teaching and learning within resource-deprive schools are possible, using the capacities and capabilities of teachers who teach in such school contexts. We draw our data from both a review of literature on digital inclusivity within school education and from interviews (within a phenomenological study design) with a sample of school leaders who have experienced the use of digital technologies in their resource-deprived school contexts. Using Deluze's concept of assemblage and Barad's notion of new materialism and co-constitutive intra-action, we show the possibility of digital inclusivity in teaching and learning in schools that are resources deprived.
