Principals’ Technology Leadership and Teacher Professional Development in Under-Resourced Schools in Southwest China
Keywords:
Technology leadership; Teacher professional development; educational equity; under-resourced schools; Southwest ChinaAbstract
Teacher professional development is essential for educational improvement, yet limited evidence explains how different dimensions of principals’ technology leadership support teacher learning in under-resourced schools. This study examined the relationship between principals’ technology leadership and teacher professional development among 474 public secondary school teachers in Southwest China selected through proportionate stratified two-stage random sampling. Technology leadership was assessed using a 22-item scale adapted from the ISTE Standards for Education Leaders, while teacher professional development was measured using a 38-item established scale. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression were employed. Principals’ technology leadership was strongly associated with teacher professional development (r = .751, p < .001), and the five dimensions jointly explained 56.5% of its variance. Equity and Citizenship Advocacy emerged as the strongest predictor (β = .227), followed by Visionary Planning (β = .211), Systems Design (β = .210), Connected Learning (β = .196), and Empowering Leadership (β = .189). By extending technology leadership research beyond technology-oriented outcomes to teacher professional development and comparing the relative contributions of its dimensions, this study provides evidence from an under-resourced context. The findings suggest that school leaders should prioritize equitable access, inclusive participation, and professional learning opportunities when advancing digital transformation.
https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.25.9.28
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