Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Bulent Dogan & Kadir Almus (2014) School Administrators Use of iPads: Impact of
Training and Attitudes Toward School Use, Computers in the Schools: Interdisciplinary
Journal of Practice, Theory, and Applied Research, 31:3, 233-250, DOI:
10.1080/07380569.2014.932660
INTRODUCTION
Research Questions (if research questions are not specifically mentioned, what is
the theoretical background or overarching theme):
1. What is the impact of the training process on school administrators use of iPads for
administrative tasks and personal organization in their professional duties?
2. What is the impact of the training process on school administrators beliefs regarding
how teachers should use iPads in the classroom?
3. Are there any differences in school administrators survey responses based on gender,
age, years of experience in school administration and education, highest degree attained,
school classification, or school size?
The purpose of this research was to examine the impact of school administrators
attitudes toward iPad use after receiving specific iPad training.
METHODOLOGY
What is the methodology for the research or approach used to understand the
issue? Provide information regarding the following:
Participants:
*Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software was used to
conduct the data analysis
RESULTS
Findings or Results (or main points of the article):
Participants were asked in the post-survey which iPad applications they found most
useful among those highlighted in the training session and posttraining resources.
Google Drive storage and sharing files was the most selected response (22.30%)
to this question (see Appendix). Other popular responses included syncing Google
Calendar to your iPad (16.55%), Dropbox for storage and sharing files
(13.67%), and Go Tasks with Google Tasks (10.07%). (See Appendix.) When
school administrators were asked in the post-survey which applications they
actually used among those highlighted in the training session and post-training
resources, Google Drive storage and sharing files was again the most selected
response (23.53%), followed by syncing Google Calendar to your iPad (20.59%),
Dropbox for storage and sharing files (17.65%), and Evernote for note
taking/organizing (8.82%).
DISCUSSIONS
Conclusions/Implications (for your profession):
This survey-based quantitative study investigated the impact of receiving iPad training on
school administrators attitudes toward iPad use in their professional duties and in the
classroom by teachers. The study examined how school administrators used iPads and
iPad applications in their professional duties before and after training, their beliefs on
how teachers should use iPads in the classroom, differences in participants responses by
demographic and contextual data, and evaluation of the training process.
Participants in this study were relatively young administrators and that may have played a
key factor in the positive response to training activities.
K-5 administrators reported their level of iPad skills were higher than K-8 and K-12
schools. The reason for this is unknown.
One of the traits of a strong school leader is the ability to be visible and get out of the
office (Principals Identify Top Ten Leadership Traits, 2008). School administrators in
this study reported valuing the iPads mobility, the touchscreen, and the ability to use
various application features for work related purposes.
After the training school administrators reported that their iPad skills and knowledge
were intermediate to advances, which was an increase prior to training.
REFLECTIONS
Students Reflections (changes to your understanding; implications for your
school/work):
Technology is in full force no matter where you look. It is part of every aspect of
education. Since administrators are the leaders of the school, it is vital for administrators
to have a comprehensive understanding of technology. This study focused specifically on
the use of iPads and the principals knowledge regarding the iPad. It was obvious that the
school administrators had some knowledge of the iPad, but the results of the training
definitely showed positive growth. I believe this study proved not only the positive
effects of proper training, but the need for training. Every administrator should make it
their priority to be the example for their campus. Technology is such a wonderful
resource when it comes to teaching, and teachers should be given the opportunity to
learn, grow, and effectively use the iPad as a teaching tool in their classrooms regularly.
This opportunity starts with the administrators complete understanding of the effective
uses of the iPad.