Abstract
The educational change management is often a complex and challenging process. It entails a gradual system-wide modification of an institution’s instructional and management structures. In this regard, a change initiative must involve all stakeholders, such as the teaching staff, administrators, board, and students. In this paper, I propose a change process for a successful implementation of a virtual learning environment to support learning flexibility and meet the diverse needs of the students of King Abu Al Aziz University (KAU). The implementation plan describes the strategies for implementing the change initiative in KAU as well as in other Saudi universities.
Overview
King Abu Al Aziz University (KAU) is a premier government university in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It has a student population of 13,000 male and female students. KAU operates gender-segregated campuses by Islamic principles. The campuses are equipped with recreational and educational facilities that serve the lecturers and students. In terms of inclusivity, KAU is a pioneer in the provision of educational programs to both male and female students. KAU inaugurated its programs for male and female students in 1968 with a small student population of 68 males and 30 females. Since then, the university has expanded its programs and student population to become a leading academic institution in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
In recent years, KAU initiated changes to align its programs with the ‘Education for All Programmes’, a government policy that seeks to enhance inclusivity in the curriculum and keep pace with “constant changes in science and technology” (Al Shaer, 2004, p. 2). The university strives to increase equality in education through an inclusive curriculum and learning environment. Ensuring educational opportunities for all and flexible learning environments are some of the ways institutions can increase public literacy.
The ‘Education for All Programmes’ initiative is a policy aimed at achieving greater efficiency and inclusivity in basic and higher education for all. The Saudi Ministry of Education, through the National Forum, drew an education policy to achieve universal basic education by 2015. The aim was to ensure that graduates coming out of universities possess Islamic values and competitive professional skills and knowledge to thrive in the modern work environments. A second aim was to equip both male and female graduates with skills designed to enable them to compete at a global front (CAST, 2010).
It is evident that to achieve the goals of the Education for All Programmes, it is necessary to create an educational system with the capacity to function in a way that fosters competitive skills and abilities in all students. The model underlying the Education for All Programmes brings together different aspects of education through a concerted effort involving the government, the private sector, and the education experts. The KAU University staff, of which I am a member, plays a leading role in implementing the goals of the ‘Education for All Programmes’.
I intend to implement an online learning environment (OLE) at KAU to promote student learning and complement traditional instructional methods (Detweiler, 2005). Online learning courses appeal to different learning styles. The goal is to develop an online platform for assessment, instruction, communication, and learning resources to allow for flexible learning and enhanced student-tutor interaction. Although KAU has the IT infrastructure, the implementation of online learning is still problematic. To successfully implement the change initiative, I will use a flexible and coordinated change management strategy to accommodate the needs of all stakeholders who will include the university teaching staff, the management, the students, and the ministry of education.
Implementation Plan
Change Management Theories
Organizational change is a complex, but essential process for improving organizational performance (Carnall, 2005). In my view, the implementation of a change initiative, such as the Education for All programs, in Saudi would require collaborations among the various stakeholders in higher education. The KAU administration has undertaken to put in place systems that facilitate education change to meet international standards. Wallace (2003) writes that an effective change strategy in education requires strong leadership and provides a platform for improving success for all learners. This means that management commitment is essential in the change management process. (2005) argues that effective change in higher education requires an overhaul of entire educational systems. In this view, any change initiative must involve consultations with all stakeholders to seek their support.
Both internal and external factors have a profound effect on the change process in higher education institutions (Al Shaer, 2004). These factors act as hindrances to the effective implementation of change. Silins, Mulford, and Zarins (2002) identify government education policies on inclusivity and the need to align the curriculum with international standards as the factors that affect change in higher education. In my view, besides commitment from the administration, identifying those affected by the initiative is essential in effective change management. As Levin (2008) observes, for educational institutions to thrive in the modern learning environment, they must create positive conditions for change. Change initiatives can be implemented at the department or institutional level.
Although educational change has gained acceptance in learning institutions, the failure rate of change programs is relatively high (Burnes, 2004). One of the reasons for the high failure rate is the lack of a clear implementation framework for the change initiatives (Bamford & Forrester, 2003). Kotler and Cohen (2002) contend that institutional leadership is required to drive the process, prepare staff, and motivate stakeholders to achieve the goals of the initiative. A good change management framework should be embedded in the institution’s goals and policies. KAU has a clear framework of the Education for All Programmes as enshrined in Saudi’s education policy. In this framework, department heads and staff play an active role in implementing change initiatives.
Planning is the key to a successful implementation of a change initiative. As Paton and McCalman (2000) put it, planning how resources, such as personnel, rooms, time, and review tools, among others, will be utilized, is essential in an education change strategy. On his part, Burnes (2004) attributes the failure of change initiatives to a lack of an effective implementation framework. An effective implementation of a change initiative also requires the participation of all stakeholders in defining the objectives and priorities of the change process. In the case of OLE, the objectives will reflect the key areas of student assessment, curriculum and instruction, and learning/instruction materials.
Organizational change is a process as opposed to a random act. Kotter and Cohen (2002) outline eight steps of implementing change initiatives in organizations. The first step is establishing the need for the change to help stakeholders to understand why the initiative is necessary. This step serves to prepare the personnel for the change. In the second step, a coalition of the key personnel is formed to drive the change process. In the third step, the vision and strategy for the change initiative are identified to guide the change process. Van Dijk and Van Dick (2009) note that organizational leadership must define the vision and goals of the initiative to eliminate resistance to change.
The fourth step involves the communication of the initiative to key stakeholders. Communication promotes cooperation and understanding among stakeholders, which helps drive the change process forward (Meyer & Stensaker, 2006). The fifth step entails the formulation of a plan on how the objectives will be achieved. An example is the proposed implementation plan for a comprehensive OLE program. The sixth step entails the measurement of the progress of the initiative while the seventh step involves the consolidation of the achievements resulting from the change. In the final step, the change process is integrated into the organizational culture of an institution.
In KAU’s case, the implementation of Education for All Programs is hampered by the preference for older systems at the department level. In this view, the change process must be seamless and predictable as opposed to being reactive and discontinuous (Burnes, 2004). Harris, Leithwood, Sammons, and Hopkins (2007) argue that effective change is an inclusive process that requires input from all stakeholders. It also requires regular communication between stakeholders through clear feedback systems. The aim is to avoid disengaging stakeholders who play an essential role in education change management.
Implementation Actions and Strategies
Freshmen have dissimilar backgrounds, skill sets, abilities, and learning styles. In KAU’s case, most students are not native English speakers. In this regard, the OLE program will support both English and Arabic (Detweiler, 2005). Providing all materials in English will only create resistance to the change initiative. To implement the initiative successfully, I will first build staff capacity through seminars and workshops to enable them to utilize the OLE tools and develop and disseminate learning materials (23). The instructors and staff are the implementers of OLE activities. As Levine (2008) writes, an effective change strategy in education is characterized by a focus on “capacity building and results”. Therefore, staff training on OLE tools will help me amass support for the change initiative.
I have also set out strategies for seeking the support of stakeholders to minimize resistance to the change. One strategy I will use is establishing a coalition team comprising of members of staff, students, and technicians, among others. Their perspectives on the program will help design the initiative in a way that optimizes its outcomes. They will also act as change agents to create awareness about the aims of the initiative (CIT). Establishing clear project goals is an essential change management action. I intend to set benchmarks and dates when particular courses will be transferred to the OLE platform (2016). Goal-setting will involve deliberations with the stakeholders through the discussion boards. Self and Schraeder (2009) contend that an education change initiative should comprise of a few “ambitious, but achievable publicly stated goals” (p. 166). My decision to involve students, instructors, and administrators in the change process is a multi-level engagement strategy meant to create a system-wide awareness. Additionally, a collaborative strategy will be adopted in the development of learning materials.
The Education for All initiative is founded on the premise of creating a learning environment that promotes successful learning for all students. In this regard, the OLE initiative is consistent with KAU’s strategic plan of providing education for all. According to Handy (2002), a change initiative must be anchored on the institution’s strategic framework for it to succeed. My change initiative will enhance self-driven learning where students learn from their experiences, online interactions, and multiple information sources. Additionally, student evaluation will take into consideration each student’s learning style and field projects. Curriculum changes will involve an environmental scan to determine the areas that may be changed. These will include “content representation, student engagement, and student expression” (Sopko, 2008, p. 34).
Change in education can hurt learning. Educators recognize that learning styles influence student achievement. Thus, there is a need for instructors to adapt their instructional approaches to suit diverse learning styles (Levin, 2012). In my change initiative, teaching instructors on how to identify each student’s learning style is emphasized. The aim is to avoid the attribution of certain learning styles to particular social groups. This will help achieve inclusivity as enshrined in KAU’s Education for All initiative. KAU has made great strides in improving the learning outcomes for all learners since adopting various educational technologies. Therefore, infrastructures exist for the implementation of the OLE initiative.
An educational change that follows the OLE principles is one that provides diverse ways of evaluating the students’ outcomes. Student assessment under the OLE initiative will involve measures such as skill acquisition, self-learning skills, and social growth. Thus, the assessment goes beyond the evaluation of numeracy and literacy skill development. I propose the involvement of external testing bodies to ensure that the assessment of the students’ skill development meets international standards. The new courses will also be reviewed at the end of each semester to determine how well they align with KAU’s educational policies. According to Hargreaves (2004), a change initiative must have an inquiry circle plan to evaluate the progress regularly. The review will also provide opportunities for the introduction of new curriculum changes to improve the learning outcomes of the students.
The digitization of learning materials is another strategy proposed for implementing OLE in KAU. It entails the creation of a central media center, a bar code system for tracking material, and computer labs to support self-driven learning. This change initiative has future implications for classroom instruction and learning. It will enhance student engagement through educational technology and promote the learning outcomes of diverse students.
References
Al Shaer, A. (2007). Education for all programmes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Ankara: United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization.
Bamford, D. R., & Forrester, P. L. (2003). Managing planned and emergent change within an operations management environment. International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 23(5), 546-563.
Burnes, B. (2004). Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational Dynamics. Harlow: Prentice Hall.
By, R. (2005). Organisational change management: A critical review. Journal of Change Management, 5(4), 369-380.
Carnall, C. A. (2003). Managing Change in Organizations. Harlow: Prentice Hall.
Center for Applied Special Technology [CAST]. (2010). Principles of Universal Design for Learning. Web.
Detweiler, R. (2004). At Last, We Can Replace Lectures. Web.
Handy, C. (2002). Elephants and fleas? Is your organization prepared for change? Web.
Hargreaves, A. (2004). Inclusive and exclusive educational change: Emotional responses of teachers and implications for leadership. School Leadership and Management, 24(2), 287-309.
Harris, A., Leithwood, K., Sammons, P., & Hopkins, D. (2007). Distributed leadership and organizational change: Reviewing the evidence. Journal of Educational Change, 8(1), 337-347.
Kotter, J., & Cohen, S. (2002). The Heart of Change. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
Levin, B. (2008) How to Change 5000 Schools. A Practical and Positive Approach for Leading Change at Every Level. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.
Levin, B. (2012). System-wide improvement in education. Education Policy Series, 13, 1-16.
Meyer, C., & Stensaker, I. (2006). Developing capacity for change. Journal of Change Management, 6(2), 217-231.
Paton, R. A., & McCalman, J. (2000). Change Management: A Guide to Effective Implementation. London: SAGE Publications.
Self, D., & Schraeder, M. (2009). Enhancing the success of organizational change: Matching readiness strategies with sources of resistance. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 30(2), 167-182.
Silins, H. C., Mulford, W. R., & Zarins, S. (2002). Organizational learning and school change. Educational Administration Quarterly, 38(5), 613-642.
Sopko, K. (2008). Universal Design for Learning: Implementation in Six Local Education
Agencies. Alexandria, VA: The National Association of State Directors of Special Education.
Van Dijk, R., & Van Dick, R. (2009). Navigating organizational change: Change leaders, employee resistance and work-based identities. Journal of Change Management, 9(2), 143-163.
Wallace, M. (2003). Managing the unmanageable? Coping with complex educational change. Educational Management and Administration, 31(1), 9-29.