Edited by Diane McGrath, Kansas State University

formerly Journal of Research on Computing in Education

A Case Study of the Impact of School Administration Computerization on the Department Head’s Role

Moshe Telem
Tel Aviv University

Abstract

The computerization of school administration was found to have a significant impact on the role of the department head. The nature of this impact is presented and analyzed. Accountability, instructional evaluation, supervision, feedback, frequency of meetings, and shared decision making were found to be significantly affected. A “chain reaction” of hierarchically oriented tightening was observed: the principal, and school computer administrator on her behalf, over department heads, and department heads over their teachers. Relations among department heads themselves remained unchanged.

Contributor

Moshe Telem, Chair of the Educational Administration Program at the School of Education, Tel Aviv University, received his doctorate from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He specializes in management information systems (MIS), decision support systems (DSS) and educational administration. His current research deals with the impact of information technology on school organization and management. (Address: Dr. Moshe Telem, School of Education, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel; telem@post.tau.ac.il.)

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