Avatars Meet Face-to-Face: Learning Leadership Online--A Thematic Analysis of East-African Perspectives
Journal of Leadership Education
; 21(1), 2022.
Article
in English
| ProQuest Central | ID: covidwho-1823676
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.
ERIC, Current Index to Journals in Education (CIJE); Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Teacher Attitudes; Cultural Differences; Computer Mediated Communication; Leadership Styles; Leadership Training; Online Courses; Religious Colleges; Student Attitudes; Christianity; Foreign Countries; Kenya; African Culture; Graduate Students; Comparative Analysis; Teacher Student Relationship; Western Civilization; Video Technology; College Faculty; Teaching Methods; Transformational Leadership
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Collection:
Databases of international organizations
Database:
ProQuest Central
Type of study:
Cohort study
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
Language:
English
Journal:
Journal of Leadership Education
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
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