When artificial intelligence meets educational leaders’ data-informed decision-making: A cautionary tale

Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to a type of algorithms or computerized systems that resemble human mental processes of decision making. Drawing upon multidisciplinary literature that intersects AI, decision making, educational leadership, and policymaking, this position paper aims to examine promising applications and potential perils of AI in educational leaders’ data-informed decision making (DIDM). Endowed with ever-growing computational power and real-time data, highly scalable AI can increase efficiency and accuracy in leaders’ DIDM. However, misusing AI can have perilous effects on education stakeholders. Many lurking biases in current AI could be amplified. Of more concern, the moral values (e.g., fairness, equity, honesty, and doing no harm) we uphold might clash with using AI to make data-informed decisions. Further, missteps on the issues about data security and privacy could have a life-long impact on stakeholders. The article concludes with recommendations for educational leaders to leverage AI potential and minimize its negative consequences

Getting personal! Twitter communication between school districts, superintendents, and the public

The purpose of this study is to examine the Twitter communication between school districts, superintendents, and the public. Content analysis of the tweets posted by the 100 largest U.S. school districts and those district superintendents was performed to investigate how the districts and the superintendents communicated with the public on Twitter. Next, paired sample f-tests were performed to compare the differences between public sentiment toward the districts and the superintendents. The findings suggest that the districts and their superintendents primarily used Twitter for one-way information broadcasting, leaving Twitter’s two-way communication functionality largely untapped. Further, the public expressed significantly less negative sentiment toward the superintendents than the districts, whereas no statistical difference existed in the public’s positive or neutral sentiment toward the districts and the superintendents. The findings provide novel insights into educational institutions’ and leaders’ Twitter communication. More importantly, the findings offer research-based guidance on districts’ and superintendents’ Twitter communication. Recommendations were provided for districts and leaders to use social media effectively and thus engage the public and garner social support for education

The Panorama of the Last Decade’s Theoretical Groundings of Educational Leadership Research: A Concept Co-Occurrence Network Analysis

Purpose: Given the essential role of theories in research, this study aims to identify the theories and concepts undergirding the educational leadership research, illuminate the interconnections among them, and examine the evolution of the theoretical groundings of the field from 2005 to 2014. Methods: This study constructed a concept co-occurrence network, in which the nodes represent all framing concepts that theoretically framed the 1,328 articles published in four leading educational leadership research journals (EAQ, JEA, EMAL, and JSL) over the last decade, and the ties link the concepts that co-occur in an article. The reference frequency and centrality measures were used to identify the influential concepts. Next, the k-core analysis was performed to visualize the interconnections among the concepts. Moreover, a series of network cohesion measures were used to detect the changes in conceptual cohesion over the last decade. Findings: While 295 framing concepts guided educational leadership empirical studies, a small number of concepts exerted disproportionately large influence on the research. Further, these influential concepts closely interplay with one another, and the strongest interconnection was seen between the concepts of leadership approaches and organizational perspectives. Lastly, the increasingly pluralistic theoretical foundation did not yield the growing conceptual cohesion in educational leadership. Implications: This study for the first time elucidates the structure and evolution of the theoretical groundings of educational leadership research, laying the foundation for further theory development and inviting researchers to bring conceptual cohesion to our field through integrating concepts, allowing random ideas to mutate, and developing new theories

Social Media in Schools: A Treasure Trove or Hot Potato?

In the sphere of education, social media has posed enormous challenges and unleashed its potential as a venue to communicate with stakeholders. This case is a fictionalized version of several real cases related to the school leaders’ struggle with utilizing social media to accomplish changes in schools. This case describes two high school administrators’ exploration in school’s use of social media. All people and schools’ names are pseudonyms. The narratives in this case are presented to deepen the understanding of the role of schools’ social media in creating social capital, and to raise the acute awareness of legal issues of schools’ social media

Using Research on Neuroeconomics Games in School Leaders’ Decision-Making Training

This article demonstrates how to use three neuroeconomics games adapted from game theory— the Ultimatum Game, the Trust Game, and the Public Goods Game—in school leaders’ decisionmaking training. These three games have been commonly used in the emerging field of neuroeconomics—an interdisciplinary field intersecting behavioral economics, psychology, and cognitive neuroscience. For each game, I first outline how to play it in the training of school leaders’ decision making, followed by the constructs relevant to leaders’ decision making, including fairness, justice, inequity aversion, reciprocity, emotions, social identity, trust, distrust, and altruistic punishment. These games, with a lighthearted touch, serve as part of the pedagogical support to help school leaders uncover salient constructs relevant to their decision-making process

The Social Networks and Paradoxes of the Opt-Out Movement Amid the Common Core State Standards Implementation

Opting out of state standardized tests has recently become a movement—a series of grassroots, organized efforts to refuse to take high-stakes state standardized tests. In particular, the opt-out rates in the state of New York reached 20% in 2015 and 21% in 2016. This study aims to illustrate the social networks and examine the paradoxes that have propelled the opt-out movement in New York—the movement’s epicenter with the highest opt-out rate in the United States. Drawing on the conceptual frameworks of social movement theory, social network theory, and policy paradox, this study compiled the opt-out corpus by using the data from 221 press-coverage and 30 archival documents. Social network analysis was performed by examining the relational data that suggest coalition ties between movement actors. Further, to explicate how the movement actors forged coalition ties, all data in the corpus were then coded by Stone’s framework of policy paradox regarding how the movement goals were articulated, how the movement was framed, and what policy solutions were mobilized. In addition to identifying the movement actors and two competing coalitions, it is found that to forge coalition ties, the movement actors in the opposing coalitions articulated contested goals of standardized testing, framed the movement via symbols, numbers, and interests, as well as mobilized policy solutions via inducements, rights, and power. The findings have important and timely implications for policymakers and movement actors as they seek and advance on common ground to make substantive changes in education policy

Understanding Congressional Coalitions: A Discourse Network Analysis of Congressional Hearings for the Every Student Succeeds Act

The purpose of this study is to investigate policy coalitions of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) at U.S. congressional hearings. This study is grounded in the advocacy coalition framework, which argues that advocacy coalitions are forged by policy actors who have similar policy preferences. To identify the coalitions, according to the policy claims articulated by policy actors, discourse network analysis was performed to examine 30 testimonies in the congressional hearings on ESSA since its passage in 2015. The policy actors fall into eight categories: (1) federal administrative and executive offices, (2) state administrative and executive offices, (3) teachers unions, (4) interest groups, (5) superintendents, (6) teacher, (7) education professor, and (8) Congress members. The results of discourse network analysis suggest four coalitions based on the actors’ policy claims on (1) equity, (2) assessment and accountability, (3) states have changed/passed legislation to align the state accountability systems with ESSA goals, and (4) the U.S. Department of Education’s state plan approval was inconsistent with the ESSA statutory provisions. The findings provide timely insights into the ongoing process of ESSA implementation at the federal, state, and local levels

As redes sociais e os paradoxos do movimento opt-out entre a implementação do normas estaduais Common Core: O caso de Nova York

Opting out of state standardized tests has recently become a movement—a series of grassroots, organized efforts to refuse to take high-stakes state standardized tests. In particular, the opt-out rates in the state of New York reached 20% in 2015 and 21% in 2016. This study aims to illustrate the social networks and examine the paradoxes that have propelled the opt-out movement in New York—the movement’s epicenter with the highest opt-out rate in the United States. Drawing on the conceptual frameworks of social movement theory, social network theory, and policy paradox, this study compiled the opt-out corpus by using the data from 221 press-coverage and 30 archival documents. Social network analysis was performed by examining the relational data that suggest coalition ties between movement actors. Further, to explicate how the movement actors forged coalition ties, all data in the corpus were then coded by Stone’s framework of policy paradox regarding how the movement goals were articulated, how the movement was framed, and what policy solutions were mobilized. In addition to identifying the movement actors and two competing coalitions, it is found that to forge coalition ties, the movement actors in the opposing coalitions articulated contested goals of standardized testing, framed the movement via symbols, numbers, and interests, as well as mobilized policy solutions via inducements, rights, and power. The findings have important and timely implications for policymakers and movement actors as they seek and advance on common ground to make substantive changes in education policy. La exclusión de las pruebas estandarizadas estatales se ha convertido recientemente en un movimiento organizado para rehusarse a tomar pruebas estatales de alto riesgo. El índice de opt-out en el estado de Nueva York llego a 20% en 2015 y a 21% en 2016. Este estudio ilustra  redes sociales y examina las paradojas que han promovido el movimiento opt-out en Nueva York, el epicentro con el índice más alto de opt-out en los Estados Unidos. Este estudio examina cómo los actores del movimiento crearon lazos de la coalición, cómo se articularon los objetivos del movimiento, cómo se enmarcó el movimiento y cuales soluciones de polítiza se utilizaron en la teoría de los movimientos sociales, la teoría de las redes sociales y la paradoja de las políticas fueron movilizados. De acuerdo con este estudio, para poder crear conexiones de coalición, los actores del movimiento en coaliciones opuestas articularon objetivos disputados de pruebas estandarizadas, enmarcaron el movimiento a través de símbolos, números e intereses, así como soluciones de políticas movilizadas a través de incentivos, derechos y poderes. Los hallazgos tienen implicaciones importantes y oportunas para los formuladores de políticas y los actores del movimiento a medida que buscan un terreno común para realizar cambios sustantivos en la política educativa.A exclusão de testes estaduais padronizado tornou-se recentemente uma organizada se recusam a tomar testes estaduais movimento de alto risco. A taxa de opt-out no estado de Nova York atingiu 20% em 2015 e 21% em 2016. Este estudo ilustra as redes sociais e examina os paradoxos que promoveram o movimento opt-out, em Nova York, o epicentro com o índice maior opt-out nos Estados Unidos. Este estudo analisa como os atores do movimento criado laços de coalizão, como os objetivos do movimento foram articulados, como o movimento foi enquadrado e que soluções apólice de seguro de carro usado na teoria dos movimentos sociais, a teoria das redes sociais e políticas paradoxo foram mobilizados. De acordo com este estudo, a fim de criar conexões de coalizão, os atores se movem em coalizões opostas objetivos disputadas teste padronizado articulados, enquadrado o movimento através de símbolos, números e interesses e soluções políticas mobilizados por meio de incentivos, direitos e poderes. Os resultados têm importante e oportuna para os decisores políticos e actores do movimento como eles procurar um terreno comum para mudanças substantivas nas implicações políticas educacionais.

Artificial intelligence in educational leadership: a symbiotic role of human-artificial intelligence decision-making

Purpose. Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to a type of algorithms or computerized systems that resemble human mental processes of decision-making. This position paper looks beyond the sensational hyperbole of AI in teaching and learning. Instead, this paper aims to explore the role of AI in educational leadership. Design/methodology/approach. To explore the role of AI in educational leadership, I synthesized the literature that intersects AI, decision-making, and educational leadership from multiple disciplines such as computer science, educational leadership, administrative science, judgment and decision-making and neuroscience. Grounded in the intellectual interrelationships between AI and educational leadership since the 1950s, this paper starts with conceptualizing decision-making, including both individual decision-making and organizational decision-making, as the foundation of educational leadership. Next, I elaborated on the symbiotic role of human-AI decision-making. Findings. With its efficiency in collecting, processing, analyzing data and providing real-time or near real-time results, AI can bring in analytical efficiency to assist educational leaders in making data-driven, evidence-informed decisions. However, AI-assisted data-driven decision-making may run against value-based moral decision-making. Taken together, both leaders\u27 individual decision-making and organizational decision-making are best handled by using a blend of data-driven, evidence-informed decision-making and value-based moral decision-making. AI can function as an extended brain in making data-driven, evidence-informed decisions. The shortcomings of AI-assisted data-driven decision-making can be overcome by human judgment guided by moral values. Practical implications The paper concludes with two recommendations for educational leadership practitioners\u27 decision-making and future scholarly inquiry: keeping a watchful eye on biases and minding ethically-compromised decisions. Originality/value. This paper brings together two fields of educational leadership and AI that have been growing up together since the 1950s and mostly growing apart till the late 2010s. To explore the role of AI in educational leadership, this paper starts with the foundation of leadership—decision-making, both leaders\u27 individual decisions and collective organizational decisions. The paper then synthesizes the literature that intersects AI, decision-making and educational leadership from multiple disciplines to delineate the role of AI in educational leadership

It All Starts With Forging Social Ties: Developing School Leadership From the Social Network Perspectives

School leadership can be developed and strengthened from many approaches, including, but not limited to, transformational, instructional, distributed, and social justice leadership. This article presents an alternative perspective to develop school leadership from the social network perspectives. Drawing upon the growing body of research on social networks in school leadership, this article elucidates the evidence-based school leadership practices from four facets: social ties, network structure, social influence, and school culture. These four facets influence one another as the school leaders emerge, exercise leadership, and build a nurturing school culture through forging social ties, shaping network structure, and gaining social influence