What do you need in order to be a successful manager of Educational Technology (ICT)? Part 3

In this series we are looking at the types of skills you need in order to be a successful manager of ICT. In the last article we looked at the 5 different areas of expertise, and, in particular, hardware. This time we focus on the second of these, software.

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Business thought leaders and their relevance to educational technology leadership 01: Abraham Maslow

A few days ago I posted a message in Twitter to the effect that anyone who quotes a statistic like "The number of geniuses in China outnumbers the total population of our own country" does not understand the nature of genius. I believe that genius has much in common with creativity, about which the psychologist Abraham Maslow had particular views. He also had views about human needs.

In this series I should like to explore what the educational ICT leader can learn from Maslow and others when it comes to performing the educational technology leader's role, especially that of encouraging other teachers to incorporate the use of educational technology into their curricula.

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What? You've been in school a week and still not changed the world? Tsk. Tsk.

Many teachers come bounding back from the long summer break full of energy and enthusiasm, and if you're starting in a new job altogether there is the additional wish to create a good first impression.

But that may not only lead to burn-out, it will almost inevitably turn out to be a grave mistake.


This article is available only to subscribers to Leading and Managing Educational Technology.

Twitter: an evaluation

When Twitter first appeared on the scene, I thought it sounded like a complete waste of time.

But as more and people I respect started singing its praises, I thought I ought to give it a whirl.

That was a couple of months ago, and here are my conclusions.

The 5 most recent articles in the Leading & Managing Educational

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Educational Technology Leadership Briefing: making a large purchase

If you're fortunate enough to have secured funding to make a large purchase, such as a new school network, or a Learning Platform, how should you go about it?

When you're spending money, there are some things you really must do. You need to adopt a business-like approach that is transparent and which maximises the likelihood of the purchase helping you achieve your goals. This is good practice that applies to any purchase, but even more so as the amount of money involved increases.

Here are 10 key elements of good practice.

This article is available only to subscribers to Leading and Managing Educational Technology.

Twittering in the classroom: some issues

There has been quite a bit of discussion recently about the use of Twitter as an educational tool. But it seems to me that the proponents of classroom twittering have not fully thought out some of the implications of its use in terms of either management or inclusion.

The five minute lessons that don't exist

The QCA yesterday launched the new secondary (high school) curriculum for England and Wales today, and this has provided an opportunity for some journalists to demonstrate their skills of tenacity and research.

More on that, and what the new curriculum comprises, and the challenges it holds for ICT leaders and managers.

Five minute tip: Managing the end of the school year

For many colleagues in the UK, the end of yet another school year is looming. So, what should the ICT leader be doing?

Here are 10 essential tips to a stress-free start to the new term in September.


This article is available only to subscribers to Leading and Managing Educational Technology.

Next: Managing the start of the new school year.

A breather, name changes, and a consultation over funding for ICT

Three items of news:

• why I allowed myself to relax slightly
  
  
• organisational changes for education at government level
  
  
• proposed new funding arrangements for ICT in England and Wales

Five Minute Tip: Dealing with the politics

Every job has its share of "office politics". You can't ignore it all, but neither should you get embroiled. So how can you handle the situation so as to be able to actually do your job?

Here are 9 tactics to use.

This article is available only to subscribers to Leading and Managing Educational Technology.

Next: Managing the end of the school year.