This chapter has discussed principals’ and teachers’ perceptions of how better broadband connectivity has affected teaching and learning. Most participants report positive and often significant effects, both in the survey data and case- study interview reflections. There is some evidence that principals felt these effects to be more significant than teachers did, and having had upgraded broadband connectivity for a longer period was associated with stronger perceived effects among principals (but not teachers). This suggests that benefits may take time to manifest fully (as suggested by theory and previous research). However the time since the earliest schools in the sample received broadband is still rather short compared to the annual academic cycle, so it is not possible to say much about the temporal dimension. Finally, many participants mentioned barriers to further use of ICT, and these perceived barriers seem to vary among and between the principals and teachers interviewed.
Chapter 5
School Leadership, Culture and Technical Support
5.1 INTRODUCTION
School culture has been found to influence a range of processes within schools, including teaching and learning (DuFour and Mattos, 2013). School culture is influenced by the interaction of various factors including the attitudes and beliefs of school leadership, the cultural norms of the school, and the relationships between staff and students. Each of these factors may present barriers to change or a bridge to sustainable implementation of school improvement.
School leadership and a whole-school approach to developing ICT strategies have been identified as crucial in the effective integration of ICT in schools. This is influenced by a range of personal and contextual variables including teacher skills and ICT infrastructure. The aim of this chapter is to explore the perceptions of school principals and ICT co-ordinators regarding ICT integration in Irish second- level schools. The chapter draws on post-installation survey data of school principals as well as interviews with principals and ICT co-ordinators in case-study schools. The chapter starts by exploring the role of school culture in ICT integration. It then discusses school leadership and organisational culture; factors shaping principals’ dispositions towards adopting and using ICT; the role of ICT co-ordinators; and the importance of schools having an ICT strategy.
5.2 ICT INTEGRATION AND SCHOOL CULTURE
There is now an extensive body of research on organisational culture in schools (Schein, 1992; Keup et al., 2001; Kruger, 2003). School culture has been found to impact on the work of both students and teachers and is cultivated by school management. The culture can either assist school improvement or act as barrier to change. Exploring organisational culture is important for understanding the integration of ICT in schools. In this study, second-level school principals were asked whether the school culture/ethos and objectives include the use of ICT by staff and students. The interviewees associated school culture, first and foremost, with creating a supportive and caring school environment: ‘that would be the whole ethos, right, of caring for the student, helping them to develop’ (Daisy Road, High ICT, Principal), and providing all students, including those with learning difficulties, with a high-quality education. The principal of Alder Lane, a large rural school with high ICT integration, linked school ethos explicitly with
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access to ICT. He indicated that in their school every child has access to ICT, especially those availing of learning support.
Technology featured more strongly in the organisational culture of Elm Road and Juniper Avenue. In Elm Road (medium ICT integration) the principal in the school was a strong advocate of providing young people with specific skills that may help them to pursue further study in the field of technology:
We’re one I suppose of a small number of schools in the country that would run Technology right through to Leaving Cert and I'd certainly feel that that particular subject would greatly enable students to go on to do degrees in engineering. (Elm Road, Medium ICT, Principal)
In the same vein, Juniper Avenue (high ICT integration) can also be characterised as having a strong focus on ICT. Having invested in ICT integration in the school the deputy principal believed that introducing ICT into education has a potential to enhance academic achievement, as well as provide students with important skills for the future:
The ethos of [school name] is excellence through encouragement and effort. And what we have actually tried to do in recent past, working with the ICT co-ordinator is [to explore how] we can actually become excellent at the use of ICT of in our school. (Juniper Avenue, High ICT, Deputy Principal)
The information gathered from the case-study schools indicates that most principals see school ethos or organisational climate in broader terms such as supporting students in helping them to achieve their potential. In this context some high and medium ICT-integration schools explicitly linked school culture with innovation and technology. Yet, all schools, irrespective of the levels of ICT integration, acknowledged the increasing importance of ICT for teaching and learning and performing administrative tasks – important aspects for school improvement.