What makes administrators effective technology leaders?

What makes administrators effective technology leaders?

            One of the questions that I ask right at the beginning of our students’ School Technology Leadership certificate program is whether administrators can be effective technology leaders in their school organizations without being at least somewhat technology-savvy themselves. Here are some example student responses:

• Yes. They just need to get the right people on board and empower them appropriately.
• No. How, for example, can a principal truly understand the power and potential of blogging without ever having blogged himself?
• Yes. There’s no way school administrators have the time to learn new technologies in addition to everything else for which they’re responsible. Principals need to focus on instructional and academic leadership. Of necessity, the answer has to be yes for most school leaders.
• No. “Do as I say and not as I do” doesn’t play very well with teaching staffs. If a principal is going to ask her teachers to use digital technologies, she better be using and learning technology too.
• Yes. It’s all about appropriate delegation and oversight. For example, a principal doesn’t have to be an accounting expert to effectively oversee her school business manager.
• No. There is at least some evidence to show that teachers are more likely to integrate technology into their instruction when administrators are modeling technology usage.

And so on…

What do you think? Can a school administrator be an effective leader in the area of technology but not be very tech-savvy himself / herself?

How you answer this question is critically important in terms of how you think about administrators’ professional development, job expectations, time allocation, etc. I look forward to hearing from you!

             Después de leer este artículo, bajo mi punto de vista creo que si puede ser un buen líder un director aunque no sepa mucha informática. Puede tener iniciativa para aprender a usar las herramientas y adquirir los conocimientos que no tuviera, y sería bueno que un director tuviera la iniciativa para hacer cambios tecnológicos y promover cambios en la escuela que favorezcan la enseñanza y aprendizaje.

            Estoy de acuerdo con la respuesta de un estudiante que dice: “For example, a principal doesn’t have to be an accounting expert to effectively oversee her school business manager.” Muchas personas son buenas y saben mucho en ciertos campos y la mayoría no han estudiado de lo que saben, pero valen para ello.