ABSTRACT

The professional development of principals is a key element in improving the quality of educational systems. Although it is common for the training of educational leaders to be associated to formal pre- and in-service principal development programmes, informal learning opportunities are increasingly common. However, research analysing informal learning processes among this professional group is scarce. The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors promoting informal learning strategies, online and face-to-face, used by principals as part of their professional development. The methodology involved implementing an online self-administered questionnaire to a sample of 715 school leaders. The study begins with a univariate and bivariate descriptive analysis. Three multiple regression models are then developed, which allow to check the independent effects among the variable criteria used and the three types of learning methods under consideration. The results show that the development of formal and informal learning activities among principals clearly requires a ‘learning-friendly’ organisational culture, a clear motivation for the profession, a strong professional determination and a positive perception of professional competencies as principals. Schools should start promoting the transition from job-based to competence-based staff systems and structures, in which informal learning strategies become relevant as a basis for promoting innovation.

摘要

校长的专业发展是提高教育系统质量的关键因素。尽管将教育领导者的培训与正式的职前和在职校长发展计划联系在一起是很常见的，但非正式学习机会却越来越普遍。但是，很少有研究对此专业群体中的非正式学习过程进行分析。本文旨在确定促进非正式和在线学习的因素，这些策略被校长用作专业发展的一部分。该方法包括对715名学校领导者进行在线自我管理的问卷调查。该研究从单变量和双变量描述性分析开始。然后开发了三个多元回归模型，它可以检查所使用的可变标准和所考虑的三种学习方法之间的独立影响。结果表明，校长之间正式和非正式学习活动的发展显然需要一种“学习友好型”的组织文化，明确的职业动机，强烈的职业决心和对专业能力的积极认识。学校应该开始促进从基于工作的职员向基于能力的职员制度和结构的过渡，在这种过渡中，非正式学习策略将成为促进创新的基础。结果表明，校长之间正式和非正式学习活动的发展显然需要一种“学习友好型”的组织文化，明确的职业动机，强烈的职业决心和对专业能力的积极认识。学校应该开始促进从基于工作的职员向基于能力的职员制度和结构的过渡，在这种过渡中，非正式学习策略将成为促进创新的基础。结果表明，校长之间正式和非正式学习活动的发展显然需要一种“学习友好型”的组织文化，明确的职业动机，强烈的职业决心和对专业能力的积极认识。学校应该开始促进从基于工作的职员向基于能力的职员制度和结构的过渡，在这种过渡中，非正式学习策略将成为促进创新的基础。