Avatars Meet Face-to-Face: Learning Leadership Online--A Thematic Analysis of East-African Perspectives

Autor/inn/en	Ann, Lorraine; Aziz, Zahra
Titel	Avatars Meet Face-to-Face: Learning Leadership Online--A Thematic Analysis of East-African Perspectives
Quelle	In: Journal of Leadership Education, 21 (2022) 1, (20 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1552-9045
Schlagwörter	Online Courses; Leadership Training; Transformational Leadership; Christianity; Religious Colleges; Computer Mediated Communication; Comparative Analysis; College Faculty; Graduate Students; Student Attitudes; Teacher Attitudes; African Culture; Leadership Styles; Western Civilization; Teacher Student Relationship; Video Technology; Foreign Countries; Teaching Methods; Cultural Differences; Kenya + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Online course; Online-Kurs; Führungslehre; Christentum; Computerkonferenz; Fakultät; Graduate Study; Student; Students; Aufbaustudium; Graduiertenstudium; Hauptstudium; Studentin; Schülerverhalten; Lehrerverhalten; Africa; Culture; Afrika; Kultur; Führungsstil; Teacher student relationships; Lehrer-Schüler-Beziehung; Ausland; Teaching method; Lehrmethode; Unterrichtsmethode; Kultureller Unterschied; Kenia
Abstract	Within education, the online forum is becoming a preferred mode of study across the globe and the COVID-19 era highlights its importance. Research around online education has concentrated on the USA and Europe, and this study sought to redress the Western bias by exploring and comparing the perceptions of six post-graduate East-African students and lecturers at Pan Africa Christian University in Kenya on learning leadership online versus on-campus. It is debatable whether leaders are born or made; however, post-industrial theories embrace the concept that leadership is teachable. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed, using a top-down approach, from a critical realist perspective. The results show that participants' leadership ideals synthesised Afrocentric perspectives of communality, with Western ideals of transformational and servant leadership. Furthermore, there are differences between perceptions of East-African students and lecturers on online leadership learning. Students preferred the online avatar experience, whilst lecturers preferred on-campus or blended methods of leadership studies. Face-to-face connection was deemed important by students and lecturers but impeded by the inability to see facial reactions using the current online platform. This exploratory study gives insight into an East-African experience and sends a clear message to Kenyan institutions to invest further in video technology. Future research could include a longitudinal study of destinations and successes of Kenyan University online leadership alumni. The impact of the global coronavirus pandemic, with lockdowns and social distancing, further underlines the importance of ongoing online leadership research and education across the world. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Association of Leadership Educators. e-mail: Jole@aged.tamu.edu; Web site: http://leadershipeducators.org/page-1014283
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2022/4/11