In a study by Stronge (1988), it was found that an elementary school administrator spends 62 percent of the time on school management tasks. Wayne Reis (1990) conducted a study in British Columbia in 1990 to determine the impact of the administrative use of computers on school-based leadership. This study will attempt to determine the impact of the administrative use of computers in schools.
While there has been much research on the use of computers for administration in elementary schools, a need for specific research on the impact of the microcomputer on the time spent in the principal's leadership role was identified (Tamblyn, 1988, Reis, 1990). Administrators should be aware of the concerns and problems associated with the use of microcomputers in administration. In a study conducted by Strong (1988) it was found that an elementary school principal spent 62.2 percent of his time on school management.
The use of the computer in administration has the potential to help reduce the time spent on management to allow more available time for leadership. These are some of the factors that must be assessed when purchasing equipment for administrative purposes. Use of the computer can save time and allow principals to "spend more of their [time] on human resource issues and activities" (p. 47).
Gatley and Brown (1985) also found that one of the consequences of using microcomputers in primary school administration was the reduction of administrative staff.
CHAPTER III
RESEARCH DESIGN
Respondents were invited to ask any questions regarding the instrument or to comment on the effect of microcomputer use in administration at their school. Some respondents preferred to write additional comments in the questionnaire rather than participate in the interview. Interviews were loosely structured and comments were written down as they went.
The researcher tried to make the interviews as relaxed as possible so that the respondents felt free to express their beliefs and opinions about it. The questionnaire was administered personally and individually with a principal and two teachers from three different school jurisdictions. Under the heading, Human Relations and Interpersonal Skills, one question was added and one question was modified.
34;Maintaining communication with school staff” was added and this category was taken from another question. Questions one through six indicated whether there was a significant change in the amount of time spent on this. Questions seven through thirteen indicated whether there was significant change in the amount of time spent on curriculum, instructional development, and.
Questions fourteen to sixteen asked if there had been any significant change in the amount of time spent on improving the school climate or atmosphere since the computerization of school offices. Questions twenty-five and twenty-six allowed participants to comment on the benefits of computerized school offices and any additional observations they had. Since human subjects were involved, the necessary procedures were carried out through the Human Ethics Committee.
CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS OF THE DATA
In the questionnaire, we asked the respondents whether they think that the school office is theirs. Areas of agreement (SA and A combined) exceeded levels of disagreement for each of the survey items except #11, where there were equal numbers of respondents who agreed and disagreed. Increased efficiency and time savings for staff and administration was one of the main perceived benefits.
Another advantage lay in the easy and quick access when retrieving information (Appendix D). A common theme identified as a result of the interview comments was the benefits of the computer. 34;The true advantage in the computer is with the storage of data and with computerized.
Completed grades and credits are also much easier to access without having to dig into files or call a teacher outside of class.” This has saved time because it now takes twenty percent of the time I used to take for that task ". 34;As an administrator, I am involved in more things because they are on the computer that I have never been involved in before.
34;The computer does cost me time when I have to learn how to use new programs". Many of the respondents felt that changes could not necessarily be attributed to the use of the microcomputer. It is difficult to say whether the computer made the difference A reduction in time for administration has a greater effect on.
At this time, we are not taking full advantage of what the computer can do. As technology becomes available, I believe there will be greater use by both the individual and the administrator." Several administrators commented on the amount of time what they expected. to save in the future. It takes a lot of time to start with a computer and enter all the data.
CHAPTER V
SUMMARY, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS
One of the questions asked respondents to express their opinion on the greatest benefit of computerizing the school office. Respondents were also invited to ask the researcher any questions or provide additional comments during the interview. Based on the analysis of frequencies and percentages of answers to the questionnaires, it was
An analysis of the interviews and of the open-ended questions on the questionnaire revealed four main themes. Administrators and teachers felt that there were many advantages in using microcomputers in education. Some respondents felt that using the microcomputer reduced the amount of time the.
A third common theme was that some respondents felt that it was difficult to attribute the increase in management activities to any one factor such as usage. Many respondents felt that more could be done with this technology to make schools more efficient and more. He concluded that “it has been established that the use of the microcomputer in the school.
Using the same criteria, the results of this study showed greater agreement than disagreement on all questions. There are too many other factors that influence leadership behavior, such as the time available for the administrator, the collaborative nature of the school and the differences within the school. The study should control for as many factors as possible, such as changes in management, differences in management level, style and differences in the amount of time available for administration.
Professional and administrative staff should receive further training on the use of microcomputer hardware and software in the administrative offices to reduce the amount of time spent by school administrators on training staff and to increase their efficiency and effectiveness. Administrators should be aware of the potential risk that the microcomputer will focus the administrator's time more on the task and less on relationships and people management, potentially resulting in less time for leadership activities. However, the value of microcomputers must be recognized as one part of creating a more effective school.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
APPENDIX A COpy A: PRINCIPAL
SA A NS 0 SO 4 maintaining communication with the community (eg, parents, community organizations, the general public, . peers, district personnel, other schools, colleges and universities).
APPENDIX B
APPENDIX C
The biggest time savings are in the data that the secretary does not have to enter all over again. I am regularly looking for ways to integrate the computer into office tasks to make my work easier. If the computer keeps me in the office more, I'll just get rid of it.
At the moment it takes a lot of time to learn how to use the computer and the programs. A reduction in time for administration had a greater effect on leadership activities than the computer has. In some cases, the use of computers has taken away from the time that the administrator can spend in the school.
As an administrator, I'm involved with more things because they're on the computer that I've never been involved with before. We expect to see a time savings in the future, but we haven't seen one to this point. The vice principal uses the computer for a variety of things such as scheduling and student programs.
A lot of time has been spent on the initial setup of the computer. The computer costs me some time when I have to learn to use new programs. The program we have writes the checks and deducts from the right place in the budget.
The computer has made my life as a teacher easier, but I'm not sure how it has affected [my principal's] life. The true advantage of the computer is with the storage of data and with computerized participation. There seems to be an increase in paperwork at our school, but it can't be attributed solely to the computer.
APPENDIX D
Retrieving information, compact form of information I think the principal uses the computer for clerical-type tasks as opposed to professional development or teaching improvement.
