School leaders' adoption and implementation of artificial intelligence

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Mark Tyson ◽  
Nicholas J. Sauers
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Implementation Process ◽  
The Body ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Adoption And Implementation

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine school leaders' experiences with adoption and implementation of artificial intelligence systems in their schools. It examined the factors that led educational administrators to adopt one artificial intelligence program (ALEKS) and their perceptions around the implementation process.Design/methodology/approachThis was a qualitative case study that included structured interviews with seven individuals who have adopted artificial intelligence programs in their schools. Participants were identified through purposive and snowball sampling. Interview transcripts were analyzed and put through a two-step coding process involving in vivo coding as well as pattern coding.FindingsTwo major themes emerged from this study pertaining to the state of the diffusion of artificial intelligence through the adoption and implementation process. The findings indicated that school leaders were actively engaged in conversations related to AI adoption and implementation. They also created structures (organizational) to ensure the successful adoption and implementation of artificial intelligence.Originality/valueThis is an original study that examined the experiences of school leaders who have adopted and implemented artificial intelligence in their schools. The body of literature related to artificial intelligence and school leadership is extremely limited.

The impact of teacher entrepreneurial behaviour: a timely investigation of an emerging phenomenon

2020 ◽  
Vol 58 (6) ◽  
pp. 697-712
Author(s):  
Chun Sing Maxwell Ho ◽  
Jiafang Lu ◽  
Darren A. Bryant
Keyword(s):  
School Leadership ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
School Context ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Professional Capital ◽  
Supplementary School ◽  
Entrepreneurial Behaviour ◽  
Instructional Roles ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis study aims to understand of the role that teacher entrepreneurial behavior plays in developing teacher professional capital. The extant concepts around school leadership mostly encompass the transformative and instructional roles of school leaders in managing, mobilizing and supporting teachers for student achievement. However, school leadership has not focused strongly on promoting innovation and risk-taking for schools in a knowledge economy. As a timely promising response to the increasingly demanding and competitive school context, teacher entrepreneurial behaviour (TEB), which emphasizes teachers' willingness to take risks and be daring, has started to gain recognition in the school leadership literature, yet a nuanced understanding of TEB's potential impacts on schools is lacking.Design/methodology/approachBased on a combined consideration of institutionalized recognition and expert judgement, this study identified three innovative entrepreneurial teachers/teacher groups that had won the most competitive teaching award in Hong Kong. Employing a multiple-site case study design, this study conducted semi-structured interviews with 23 informants and collected supplementary school documents and records.FindingsThis study found that TEB enables the implementation of innovation and promotes cross-subject alignment. It cultivates trusting and coherent relationships among teachers. Teachers with TEB scaled up innovation among other teachers. Furthermore, entrepreneurial teachers enhance school attractiveness by creating competitive advantages.Originality/valueThis analysis showed that TEB enables formal and informal school leaders to bring forth critical school outcomes. This study elaborates how TEB enhances teachers' professional capital through building trusting and coherent relationships. It also adds to the research on school innovation by demonstrating that TEB fosters teachers' capacity for bottom-up innovation in the community.

Coaching: an approach for leadership development in the Singapore education system

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoe Suan Loy Boon
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Education System ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Qualitative Inquiry ◽  
The Body ◽  
Beginning Principals ◽  
Content Type

PurposeThis paper aims to explore coaching as an approach to developing school leaders in the Singapore education system. It takes a close look at the nature of coaching experiences of beginning principals and principal-trainers, as well as the related benefits and challenges.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative inquiry approach was adopted, and four beginning principals and three principal-trainers were interviewed. An emergent coding method was deployed in data analysis.FindingsBeginning principals described a positive, helpful and empowering coaching experience when coached by principal-trainers. The latter skillfully asked questions in a safe, non-threatening space for deeper self-reflection. In the process, beginning principals gained greater self-awareness and self-empowerment, and appreciated the shared context of school leadership. While coaching is a useful leadership development approach, inherent implementation challenges were identified.Research limitations/implicationsCoaching as a system-wide strategy to support school leaders in Singapore has only recently been implemented. Further research using a larger sample is recommended as coaching becomes more pervasive.Practical implicationsThe findings revealed a compelling case for a more pervasive adoption of coaching as an approach to support leadership development. Coaching facilitates effective school leadership, and there is scope for self-coaching, peer coaching and coach supervision of principals, middle leaders and classroom teachers.Originality/valueThis paper highlights the nature and positive impact of principalship coaching within a specific policy and cultural context of the Singapore education system. It adds to the body of literature on principal preparation, development and support.

scholarly journals Evaluating the motives of child labourers in the informal economy

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 409-424
Author(s):  
Aamar Ilyas ◽  
Muhammad Shehryar Shahid ◽  
Ramraini Ali Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Informal Economy ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Child Labour ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
The Body ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Entrepreneurial Education ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Informal Workers

PurposeConventionally, the marginalised population was considered to engage in child labour due to poverty, education or lack of other options, but indeed, a few children work voluntarily. However, a growing number of scholars, in recent years, have drawn their attention to the valuable question, “why children are engaged in child labour in the informal economy”. Even though a few studies have explored the motives of informal workers, to our knowledge not a single paper has explored the motives of child labourers working in the informal economy. The purpose of this study is to fill this gap by evaluating the motives of child labourers, through three competing theorisations of the informal economy.Design/methodology/approachIn this study, face-to-face structured interviews of 45 child labourers were conducted, who worked in different automobile workshops in the city of Lahore, Pakistan. Respondents were selected using the snowball sampling technique as this strategy is suitable for researching sensitive issues and is feasible for small sample sizes.FindingsThe main finding is that no single explanation is universally applicable to all child labourers. Some (27 per cent) justify their participation in the informal sector as driven by necessity (structuralist perspective), majority (40 per cent) explain their participation in the informal economy as a rational economic choice (neo-liberal perspective) and finally, more than a quarter of respondents (31 per cent) engaged in child labour due to their own free will or voluntarily to work for their family (post-structuralist perspective). This study also revealed that entrepreneurial spawning is a key determinant of child labour as the majority of children, in our study, working in automobile workshops intended to start their own workshop business in the future.Research limitations/implicationsThis article shows that children early engaged in work with entrepreneurial intention/spawning. Entrepreneurial education is very important in a child’s life. Entrepreneurial education will be a ticket to fulfill their dreams and learn new things with entrepreneurial attitude.Practical implicationsGovernment should develop the vocational training institutes for children who left the schools.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the body of literature by providing a better understanding of why children work in informal employment, an occupation generally perceived as constituting exploitative working conditions. This study also contributes to the wider literature of entrepreneurship by exploring “entrepreneurial spawning” as one of the major reasons underlying the participation of children in informal work.

A framework of urban entrepreneurship for women breadwinners

foresight ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Babak Ziyae ◽  
Hossein Sadeghi ◽  
Mina Shahamat Nejad ◽  
Mehdi Tajpour
Keyword(s):  
The Body ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
Social And Economic Development ◽  
Training Courses ◽  
Development Tendency

Purpose Today, urban entrepreneurship is considered one of the vital strategies that directed cities toward self-control by reducing the unemployment rate and its arising problems, creating sustainable revenue and preparing the ground for citizens’ independence. This paper aims to present an integrated foresight framework and establish the boundary conditions for urban entrepreneurship of women breadwinners. The study explains how particular women solve workplace-specific poverty and foster urban wealth by developing startups, new businesses or ventures. Design/methodology/approach The current research uses a qualitative method and uses the grounded theory approach. Data were collected by selecting 24 outstanding women entrepreneurs using snowball sampling and semi-structured interviews in Tehran Metropolitan. Findings The results of the study reveal that the main aspects of the model of urban entrepreneurship consist of causal factors, intervening factors and contextual conditions. By shaping the policies and organizing educational plans, training courses and empowering of women, as well as the establishment of supportive units for the development, identification of the opportunities, developing protective rules, the factors as mentioned above lead to cultural, social and economic development, tendency toward entrepreneurship and development of entrepreneurship among women. Originality/value This study undertakes a first of its kind cross-disciplinary conceptual analysis at the level of how women breadwinners foster urban wealth using developing new businesses, startups or ventures. Despite the importance of urban entrepreneurship, theories for understanding the nexus of urban contexts remain underdeveloped. Therefore, there is still a theoretical gap and lack of research; hence, the current study tries to shed light on the topic and fill this gap in the body of knowledge.

scholarly journals The centrality of ethical leadership

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa C. Ehrich ◽  
Jessica Harris ◽  
Val Klenowski ◽  
Judy Smeed ◽  
Nerida Spina
Keyword(s):  
School Leadership ◽  
Ethical Leadership ◽  
Leadership Practices ◽  
School Principals ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Small Body ◽  
Ethical Framework ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Use Of Data

Purpose – The central argument in this paper is that ethical school leadership is imperative in a context of increasing performance-driven accountability. The purpose of this paper is to focus on school principals’ perceptions of how they understand ethical leadership and how they lead the ethical use of data. Design/methodology/approach – This study utilises semi-structured interviews with six state school principals (one primary and six secondary) to explore their perceptions of ethical leadership practices; and how they balance current competing accountabilities in a context of performance-driven accountability. Findings – There were four key findings. First, principals used data to inform and direct their practices and their conversations with teachers. Second, while ethics was a central consideration in how principals’ led, practising in an ethical manner was identified as complex and challenging in the current context. Third, Starratt’s (1996) ethical framework proved to be relevant for interpreting principals’ practices. Finally, all of the principals referred to dilemmas they faced as a result of competing priorities and all used a variety of strategies to deal with these dilemmas. Originality/value – While there is a small body of research that explores school leaders’ understandings of ethical tensions and dilemmas, there is little research that has focused on school leaders’ understandings of the ethical use of data. This study, then, contributes to this area as it provides a discussion on school principals’ leadership practices in the current climate driven by data use.

Conceptualization and challenges: examining district and school leadership and schools as learning organizations

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Welsh ◽  
Sheneka Williams ◽  
Karen Bryant ◽  
Jami Berry
Keyword(s):  
School Improvement ◽  
School Leadership ◽  
Learning Organization ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Learning Organizations ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose Conceptualizing schools as learning organizations provides a potential avenue to meet the pressing challenges of school improvement in the USA. District and school leaders play an important role in creating and sustaining the conditions for a learning organization, yet little is known about how leadership responds to learning-resistant contexts in their mission to improve schools. This study aims to examine the relationship between the district and school leadership and schools as learning organizations. The focus is on the conceptualization of schools as learning organizations and the challenges involved in creating and sustaining conditions and processes in which to improve schools. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses semi-structured interviews with district and school leaders in the state of Georgia and data from completed dimensions of a learning organization questionnaire (DLOQ) study to analyze how district and school leaders conceptualize or make sense of schools as learning organizations and overcome challenges associated with creating and sustaining a learning organization in learning resistant contexts. Findings The analyzes find that participants perceive their school or district as a learning organization when the structure allows others to work together to learn and grow for the benefit of students. Originality/value This study is unique in that it adds to a growing number of studies that examine schools as learning organizations using the DLOQ and sheds light on the nature of learning resistant contexts.

scholarly journals The practice of employee learning in SME workplaces

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 671-690 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Tam ◽  
David E Gray
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Multinational Corporations ◽  
Workplace Learning ◽  
High Growth ◽  
The Body ◽  
Maturity Stage ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Life Cycle Stages

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore how employees in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) practise and view workplace learning at three different life-cycle stages. Design/methodology/approach – It is a qualitative study using a sample of 30 Hong Kong SMEs classified into inception, high-growth or maturity stage, from which firms in each stage were randomly selected and interviewed until data saturation was reached. Snowball sampling was adopted during interviews and data were examined through thematic analysis. Findings – Consistent themes (patterns) from 134 semi-structured interviews are identified, addressing both similarities and differences in the nature of the practice of workplace learning in SMEs between life-cycle stages. Research limitations/implications – More similar comparative studies in other parts of the world, including quantitative surveys on larger samples, with either SMEs or multinational corporations, are encouraged to enrich the current findings. Practical implications – If organisational growth is a priority, SME owner/managers should support employees’ work and learning in a timely fashion. As the study finds, individual learning and inter-organisational learning are considered “a must to have” for employees, regardless of which stage the firm is at. When an SME enters high-growth, however, more opportunities for group learning are particularly beneficial. For mature SMEs, it is essential for learning to move towards systemisation and include a professional development component to meet employees’ career expectations, not just their work demands. Originality/value – The results advance the body of knowledge in SME learning from the life-cycle perspective. As one of the first studies in bridging these areas, it brings new implications to academic researchers and SME practitioners.

scholarly journals User-driven efforts in creating knowledge graph information system

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 97-111
Author(s):  
Stanislava Gardasevic
Keyword(s):  
Information System ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Resource Discovery ◽  
The Body ◽  
Knowledge Graph ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Study Objective ◽  
Content Type

Purpose This paper presents the results of a qualitative study that involved students of an interdisciplinary PhD program. The study objective was to gather requirements to create a knowledge graph information system. The purpose of this study was to determine information-seeking practices and information needs of this community, to inform the functionalities of a proposed system, intended to help students with relevant resource discovery and decision-making. Design/methodology/approach The study design included semi-structured interviews with eight members of the community, followed by a website usability study with the same student participants. Findings Two main information-seeking styles are recognized and reported through user personas of international and domestic (USA) students. The findings show that the useful information resides within the community and not so much on the program website. Students rely on peer communication, although they report lack of opportunities to connect. Students’ information needs and information seeking are dependent on their progress through the program, as well as their motivation and the projected timeline. Practical implications Considering the current information needs and practices, a knowledge graph hosting both information on social networks and the knowledge produced by the activities of the community members would be useful. By recording data on their activities (for example, collaboration with professors and coursework), students would reveal further useful system functionalities and facilitate transfer of tacit knowledge. Originality/value Aside from the practical value of this research that is directly influencing the design of a system, it contributes to the body of knowledge on interdisciplinary PhD programs.

Service innovation in the hotel industry: the dynamic capabilities view

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Babak Ziyae ◽  
Hossein Sadeghi ◽  
Maryam Golmohammadi
Keyword(s):  
Dynamic Capabilities ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Hotel Industry ◽  
Service Innovation ◽  
Innovation Process ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Human Labor ◽  
It Training

Purpose Consistent with the dynamic capabilities view tenets, this paper aims to conceptualize a theoretical framework of service innovation in the hotel industry. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a qualitative method with a content analysis approach. The data were collected using a snowball sampling method and semi-structured interviews with 14 experts in Tehran's hotel industry. Findings The findings demonstrate that the most significant factors are using the new technology, keeping up with it, training human labor, being up-to-date and adopting new infrastructures. Results also reveal that improper management and lack of knowledge are the most critical factors behind service innovation failure in the hotel industry. Regarding the infrastructures needed to develop service innovation in the hotel industry, the results show that adopting the newest technology in diverse aspects, human infrastructure, the capital and appropriate space and place are the key factors. Originality/value This paper contributes to the literature by linking the service innovation perspective to the dynamic capabilities view. It explains how hotels can enhance service innovation to gain a competitive advantage. Therefore, both academicians and hoteliers can develop action plans by selecting and managing the service innovation process.

Mixed embeddedness of Brazilian entrepreneurs in Toronto

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Pessoa de Queiroz Falcão ◽  
Michel Mott Machado ◽  
Eduardo Picanço Cruz ◽  
Caroline Shenaz Hossein
Keyword(s):  
Service Sector ◽  
The Body ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Immigrant Entrepreneurship ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brazilian Government ◽  
Body Of Knowledge ◽  
Multi Method Approach ◽  
High Level ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activities

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to investigate how social integration, immigrant networks and barriers to ventureing affect the entrepreneurial activities of Brazilians in Canada, indicating how mixed embeddedness takes place in that context.Design/methodology/approachData were collected in Toronto, through the application of a survey with 74 Brazilian entrepreneur respondents and 42 semi-structured interviews with selected subjects, thus representing a multi-method approach. The analysis included descriptive statistics from the survey data and a qualitative analysis of the trajectories and life stories of Brazilian immigrants.FindingsOur sample comprises respondents with a high level of education and proficiency in English, coming predominantly from the southeast of Brazil, white, aged from 30 to 49. The majority of businesses are small and related to the service sector. The article contributes to the literature by discussing the elements related to mixed embeddedness, including the need for cultural adaptation and for the creation of networks as a crucial element for business venturing.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focuses on entrepreneurs regardless of their businesses sector or formality/informality status. It could be used as an instrument to support Canadian public policies for welcoming Brazilians and for the Brazilian government to prevent the evasion of potential entrepreneurs.Originality/valueThe article contributes to the body of knowledge of immigrant entrepreneurship in Canada and of Brazilian entrepreneurship overseas. The results suggest factors that may be relevant to the expansion of their business, such as social networking, cultural embeddedness and adaptation of the products/services to a wider range of target customers.

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