Before taking this course (and this program), I believed that anyone working in education could take a leadership role in digital learning.\u00a0 All it would take is a passion for learning, some hard work, and anyone could lead the path to digital change.\u00a0 While passion for learning is important, I now think it takes more than hard work to create a successful digital environment (which is a very different place than a seated environment).\u00a0 One must understand the inner workings of digital learning and the theories behind the environment.<\/p>\n
As I complete courses in MALAT, I realize more and more that this is a specialized field for which we are training.\u00a0 It is complex since we must learn to navigate technical issues and personnel issues.\u00a0 Education is never only about the content it is also about the people in, either the physical or electronic, room.\u00a0 The care for the people<\/em> portion does not diminish in the digital environment, if anything the need is greater.\u00a0 The leader plays a larger role in this segment of learning than I initially realized.\u00a0 As stated by Castelli (2016), “sharing experiences and admitting mistakes shows the human side of leaders\u201d (p.223).\u00a0 If the leader can show his\/her human side to the team members they might show their human side to the students.\u00a0 In my first blog post for this course, I discussed the idea of an adopting a reflective practice (Moore, 2020, para. 4).\u00a0 Now that I am near the completion of the course, I believe even more in that practice.\u00a0 As the implementation of changes occurs, it is critical to look back and see what worked well and what needs improvement.\u00a0 Without that reflective piece, it would be too easy to repeat errors and miss repeating the positive actions.\u00a0 No one wants to do that!<\/p>\n At this time, I am not in a leadership role; as a result, it is a challenge for me to lead digital change.\u00a0 A practice I have adopted is to make changes in my own responsibilities, ensuring that I am making the changes for the right reasons (based on data, need, organizational goal, etc.).\u00a0 When the time arises that I am in a leadership role, I plan on looking back to the information in this course to help me make the best decisions possible.\u00a0 I hope to use an adaptive leadership style, as described by Khan (2017), as it is a flexible style.\u00a0 Motivating the team is as important as understanding the technology and the data.\u00a0 A strong piece of adaptive leadership is remembering to inspire the team.<\/p>\n Given the circumstances that we are facing, I find it noteworthy that many people who do not speak highly of online learning are facing learning and\/or teach digitally.\u00a0 This course has supplied us with many tools to navigate this complicated realm.\u00a0 I feel fortunate that I now have those tools and I will reach out to anyone I see struggling.\u00a0 I may not be in a leadership role, but that does not mean that I cannot take what I have learned and help those around me.<\/p>\n Resources<\/p>\n Castelli, P. (2016).\u00a0Reflective leadership review: a framework for improving organisational performance.\u00a0Journal of Management Development<\/em>,\u00a035<\/em>(2), 217-236.\u00a0 Retrieved from https:\/\/search-proquest-com.ezproxy.royalroads.ca\/docview\/1767544220?accountid=8056<\/p>\n Khan, N. (2017).\u00a0Adaptive or Transactional Leadership in Current Higher Education: A Brief Comparison.\u00a0The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning<\/em>,\u00a018<\/em>(3).\u00a0 Retrieved from http:\/\/www.irrodl.org\/index.php\/irrodl\/article\/view\/3294<\/p>\n Moore, K. (2020). Attributes of a Leader [Blog post]. Retrieved from https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru0108\/attributes-of-a-leader\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Before taking this course (and this program), I believed that anyone working in education could take a leadership role in digital learning.\u00a0 All it would take is a passion for learning, some hard work, and anyone could lead the path to digital change.\u00a0 While passion for learning is important, I now think it takes more … Continue reading Leading Change in Digital Learning Environments<\/span>