Leading Schools in A Digital Era: Appreciating the Success Stories of Adaptive School Heads

Authors

  • Richard S. Talaid Principal IV, Iligan City National High School, Philippines , Graduate School Student , Misamis University image/svg+xml

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63671/ijeir.v2i2.53

Keywords:

Adaptive Leadership, Digital Leadership, Technology-driven, school collaboration, Visionary Leadership

Abstract

This study explored the success stories of twelve (12) school heads both in the elementary and secondary schools in the Division of Iligan City, selected through purposive sampling. Data were gathered using an interview guide and analyzed through the Appreciative Inquiry 4D model—Discover, Dream, Design, and Destiny. Findings revealed four core themes: (1) Adaptive Leadership as a Catalyst for Digital Transformation in Schools, (2) Empowering Visionary Leadership for a Technology-Driven and Collaborative School of the Future, (3) Digital Leadership for School Transformation, and (4) Sustaining Digital Leadership Culture. Digital leadership should be institutionalized through policies, routines, and evaluation systems to sustain growth. Regular monitoring and evaluation can identify effective practices and expand successful strategies. Together, these actions help ensure that digital transformation is meaningful, sustainable, and beneficial for the whole school community.

References

Ablasa, L. A., & Liwan, R. K. (2024). The role of school leaders in enhancing digital literacy: For teachers and students. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13335069

Akhmad, A. (2024). Digital leadership practices in educational management: Narrative literature review. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research. https://www.ijlter.org/index.php/ijlter/article/view/13942

Aldosemani, T. I. (2022). Digital leadership and ICT integration in schools: The role of leaders in developing teacher capacity. Education and Information Technologies, 27(1), 1141–1159. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-021-10642-3

Baldera, P. R. (2025). Digital leadership pioneers: Navigating outstanding school principals’ successes in the evolving educational landscape. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 24(4), 154–177. https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.24.4.8

Bozkurt, A., & Sharma, R. C. (2020). Education in normal, new normal, and next normal: Observations from the past, insights from the present and projections for the future Retrieved May 25, 2025, from https://www.asianjde.com/ojs/index.php/AsianJDE/article/view/512

Cooperrider, D., & Whitney, D. (2020). Appreciative inquiry: A positive revolution in change (2nd ed.). Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Retrieved June 3, 2025, from https://bkconnection.com/books/title/appreciative-inquiry

Dacer, G. B., Magana, M. D., Asis, A. F., & Volante, D. C. (2024). Barriers, strategies and interventions of digital governance in the Schools Division Office of Camarines Norte, Philippines: A case study. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science. https://rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/articles/barriers-strategies-and-interventions-of-digital-governance-in-the-schools-division-office-of-camarines-norte-philippines-a-case-study/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Daing, C. A., & Mustapha, L. C. (2023). School administrators’ instructional leadership skills and teachers’ performance and efficacy in senior high schools in the National Capital Region, Philippines. International Journal of Educational Policy Research and Review. Retrieved June 9, 2025, from https://journalissues.org/ijeprr/abstract

Frontiers. (2025). A systematic review on the impact of teacher professional development on digital instructional integration and teaching practices. Frontiers in Education.

Hew, K. F., Jia, C., Gonda, D. E., & Bai, S. (2022). Transitioning to digital learning: The role of leadership vision and teacher empowerment in technology integration. Computers & Education, 182, 104463. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2022.104463

Leithwood, K., Harris, A., & Hopkins, D. (2020). Seven strong claims about successful school leadership revisited. School Leadership & Management, 40(1), 5–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/13632434.2019.1596077

Maulana, I., Sirajuddin, S., Susanti, R., Sari, E., & Karnati, N. (2024). Adaptive leadership in the digital era in educational institutions. Jurnal Edusci. https://annpublisher.org/ojs/index.php/edusci/article/view/510

Ng, W., & Park, J. (2021). Teacher collaboration and digital competence: How professional communities support technology integration. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 24(3), 1–12.

Onai, C., & Ligembe, N. (2022). Challenges faced by school heads in maintaining students’ academic performance in private secondary schools in Tanga and Korogwe Districts, Tanzania. East African Journal of Education Studies. Retrieved June 7, 2025, from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/358988570

Owolabi, A., et al. (2025). The influence of digital professional development and professional learning communities in the relationship between school digital preparedness and digital instructional integration. PMC.

Reis Andersson, J. (2024). Leaders’ perceptions of digitalisation in K–12 education: Influencing arrangements for leading the expansion of digital technologies. Education and Information Technologies. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s44217-024-00247-y

Salmon, G., Eradze, M., & Milton, M. (2023). Community partnerships in digital schooling: Parent and stakeholder engagement in technology-supported learning. British Journal of Educational Technology, 54(2), 412–427. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.13209

Sheninger, E., & Murray, T. (2022). Digital leadership: Changing paradigms for changing times (2nd ed.). Corwin Press.

Sri Nuraini. (2019). Digital leadership and organizational transformation: A literature review. Jurnal Ilmiah WUNY. https://journal.uny.ac.id/index.php/wuny/article/view/85286

STEM Study. (2025). Science teachers’ mentoring support experiences when integrating technology in design-based learning activities. PMC.

Syauta, D. D. H., Titaley, E., & Pelupessy, P. J. (2025). The adaptive approach in digital transformation of primary education: Implementation of digitalization in elementary schools in Maluku. Baileo: Jurnal Sosial Humaniora. https://ojs3.unpatti.ac.id/index.php/baileofisip/article/view/15002

Tondeur, J., Van Braak, J., Ertmer, P. A., & Ottenbreit-Leftwich, A. (2019). Understanding the relationship between teachers’ pedagogical beliefs and technology use in education: A systematic review. Educational Technology Research and Development, 67(1), 21–50. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-018-9627-5

Wijayati, P. H., Imron, A., Hadi, S., Nisa, K., & Lestari, A. D. (2023). Transformational-digital leadership of school principals for service acceleration and digital literacy: Empirical study. Proceedings of the International Conference on Educational Management and Technology. Atlantis Press. https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-156-2_15

Yeh, C. Y., & Tsai, C. C. (2022). Massive distance education: Barriers and challenges in shifting to a complete online learning environment. Frontiers in Psychology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.928717

Downloads

Published

2026-04-28

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 2: April-June 2026

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2026 International Journal of Educational Innovations and Research

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Talaid, R. S. (2026). Leading Schools in A Digital Era: Appreciating the Success Stories of Adaptive School Heads. International Journal of Educational Innovations and Research, 2(2), 01-14. https://doi.org/10.63671/ijeir.v2i2.53

Similar Articles

21-30 of 44

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.