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Do Leaders Need to Know Technology?

One of the questions that I ask right at the beginning of our university's 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, and time allocation.

By Scott McLeod
Adapted from the TechLearning Blog

Effective Technology Leaders

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 06/15/2007 - 7:30am.
Yes, a good leader is able to delegate and count on others to consult with them on these matters. Administrators do need to keep abreast of current educational/technology trends, but not necessarily have training and extensive knowledge in it. That is where the role of IT Coordinators/Heads of IT come into play. Leaders pull input from all aspects of education not just technology and they cannot be experts in all fields. They can work alongside the experts within their community to develop visions and then they are the driving force towards making that vision a reality.

Do Leaders Need to Know Technology

Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 05/25/2007 - 4:56am.
The question is tricky since it references "Leaders" in the question header, but "effective technology leaders" in the body of the question. Leaders need to first and foremost know how to relate to and manage PEOPLE. However, "technology" leaders implies more than that. So I answer.. NO, a leader can't be an effective TECHNOLOGY leader without understanding how that term applies to the business and people of their institutions.

Tech savvy does not equal leadership.

Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 05/24/2007 - 8:45am.
Of course someone can be an effective leader in the area of technology without being technically savvy. They just need to be supportive. I have made great gains at institutions where the leaders were not tech savvy, but understood technology's importance in the organization. It's about leadership, not technical prowess. It might be a good excuse to try to blame the administration, but is not true.

Empowering Instructional Technologists

Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 05/16/2007 - 2:11pm.

I'm in a position where the leaders are not technologically savvy, but they empower the Instructional Technologist to provide assistance. They also provide funding for the innovators to try something new, and, perhaps most importantly, they actually try new technologies themselves. Nothing too earth-shattering, to be sure, but the faculty see them reaching and are encouraged to reach themselves.

What if we asked, "Can an administrator be an effective leader in 'Literacy' if they are not very 'Literate'?"

I want to answer this affirmatively. My administrative team agreed upon several basic technology skills that all our staff need to demonstrate proficiency in. This is a major step on the road to using technology in a transformative way with students. Hmm, I wonder if the administrators think this list will be etched in stone or do they realize that next spring we will modify and update the list of basic skills? I am forever going back to the beginning and learning something new. I am never proficient in everything!

I have to say that my principal is pretty technology minded. He models tech usage, he puts tech minded people in leadership roles, he even listens when we tell him to get more laptops for the library and forget about another computer lab because we'll get a higher level of inquiry and better results that way. I think he has set a clear tone in our building that we are going to do everything we can to catch up to our students in the area of technology. Now if we can just get him to reduce the size of his faculty meeting powerpoints, we'll all be happy:)

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