School leaders and the implementation of education management information systems (EMIS) in the Bahamas: a case study of six principals

Case study: The tension between the leadership of technology and technology as a means of school improvement are still issues of debate. Researchers have argued that education management technology has yet to make a significant contribution to school improvement, while others have experienced small pockets of success. This study seeks to contribute to the debate by exploring the tension associated with the implementation of an education management information system (EMIS) in The Bahamas from the experiences of school leaders. More specifically, this thesis explores EMIS from the understanding of six principals in their schools and its contributions to their schools. This study develops a social constructivist view and relies on the case study approach. Among the major findings of the study was that EMIS was often perceived by principals to be associated with conflict and the primary uses of the technology were for generating report cards, facilitating school administrative tasks and monitoring. Principals’ expressed concern for the lack of support from senior management and the impact of using the technology on their role as leader. As conflicts hindered the implementation of EMIS, principals adopted a shared leadership approach. This study offers pertinent information concerning the reasons why EMIS is underutilized and the important contributions of leadership to the successful implementation of the technology. Such information can be useful for understanding EMIS in education organizations.

Type
Case Study
Licence Condition
Full Copyright - All rights reserved
Date of Publication
Region
Latin America & the Caribbean
Language
English
Topics
Governance
Sustainable Financing
ICT Infrastructure
Organizational Structures and Staffing
Capacity Building
Quality Assurance
Change Management
Monitoring and Evaluation
Data Collection
Data Processing
Data Analysis
Data Reporting
Stakeholder Collaboration
Knowledge Sharing
Publication and Dissemination
Keywords
EMIS
social constructivist
school leadership
The Bahamas
Bahamas education
Authors
Alexader Cash
Publisher/Source
University of Sussex (1061)

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Latent (0-25%) - The organization lacks the foundational elements necessary for effective EMIS implementation and does not align with the component characteristics that are required for impactful EMIS outcomes. Incipient (26-50%) - The organization has begun to establish foundational elements in the component for EMIS implementation but requires significant development to achieve impactful EMIS outcomes. Emerging (51-75%) - The organization has developed foundational elements for EMIS implementation and is partially aligned with the component characteristics needed for impactful EMIS outcomes, though gaps remain. Established (76-100%) - The organization has fully developed and implemented the foundational elements for EMIS, demonstrating strong alignment with the component characteristics required for impactful EMIS outcomes.