1.

0 INTRODUCTION

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is a vast technology that brings a major
impact to this era of globalization as well as the integration of ICT in the field of education
that becoming a tremendous changes to the school in worldwide. Education has been
seen as an important role for managing change and the changes in technology education
should be incorporated in the education that leads to the effective education system for
community. The rapid growth and an explosion in Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) has led to the spread of technology in education. According to Lim &
Hang (2003), ICT integration can be defined as an mediated tool that is use to accomplish
specific teaching and learning activities as it is also an ICT functioning that integral in order
to meet certain instructional purposes. As stated in the Policy on ICT in Education Malaysia
(2010), Ministry of Education (MOE) Malaysia believes that the use of ICT in teaching and
learning as well as in schools and educational institutions administration and management
areas is an essential for Malaysia to be a high-income nation. For this reason, it seems
that ICT is not only the backbone of teaching and learning but it is also an important
educational tool to encourage reforms the change of our school management into
productive knowledge officers.

According to Shah (2013), the lack of confidence or skills, workload clearly not effective
and the network is a significant negative factor of the issue in integrating ICT in school.
However, positive factor in addressing in ICT have been identified as good leadership,
appropriate training, technical support, and effective network (ibid). Thus, integration of
ICT in school management may improve the quality of education with a knowledgeable
and skilled in order to achieve the competencies needed in the development of education.
With the rapid changing of modernization, educational system will enable to produce a
capable nation with the 21st century learning skills as well as ICT skills that able to compete
in the global job market. Makewa, Maremo, Role & Role (2013) stated that administrators
participation is essential for any meaningful change to occur as they have a vital role to
play in professional development. Data use in school administration currently ranges over
multiple areas, informing administrators about demographics, school processes, student
learning, as well as perceptions and projections (Bernhardt, 2000 as cited in Makewa,
Maremo, Role & Role, 2013).

Other than that, leader for the school management plays an important role to the
integration of ICT. According to Makewa, L., Meremo, J., Role, E., & Role, J. (2013), they
stated that leaders who is able to change their mind-set and perceptions towards the ICT

integration will attempt to support the utilization of ICT in their areas and have a welladjusted planning for development of school management. Moreover, they stated that
idealistic leadership and effective management from the school administration is needed
in the process of ICT integration. The leader of the school management or the principals
need to understand the application of ICT integration in school so that they are able to
implement the innovations in school for better administration and achieve the vision and
mission of the school itself.
The Malaysian Government has since 1970s introduced various schemes to assist in
the wider adoption of ICT to increase competencies in every field including education
(Multimedia Development Cooperation, 2005 as cited Singh, T. K. R., & Muniandi, K.,
2012) and the Malaysian government has implemented many of the concurrent
progrmammes that are committed in enhancing educational opportunities and improving
the national education system to nurture national unity, support economic growth and
reduce poverty (Singh, T. K. R., & Muniandi, K., 2012). The implementation of ICT
integration in education is an effort that shows the educational innovation that envisioned
to reform the existing form of school management for a better educational establishment.
Thus, with the integration of ICT that support by the Malaysian Government may leads to
more improvement in term of availability of the resources in order to fulfill the need of each
school to fully integrate ICT in the school management.

1.1 PROBLEM STATEMENT

School management construct an effective environments across different policy options to

determine needs and analyze the potential impact of the ICT integration and boost the
efficiency of resource management for the benefit of stakeholders. Thus, the needs to
analyze and evaluate scientifically in integration of ICT is compulsory in order to measure
the results and in terms of educational management may give impact on ICT integration.
School management information systems increase effectiveness and efficiency in term of
saving time and assisting the growth of alternate solutions for sophisticated problems
(Visscher & Wild, 1997; Pegler, 1992 as cited in Shah, 2013). In school management level,
the use of ICT has become significance as it is used for the administrative management
of school such as teacher and student data management in term of student examination
results and teacher weekly lesson planned, etc.

The implementation and integration of ICT in education and curriculum is the schools
responsibility itself in which these activities include projects, programmes and learning
communities conducted by organizations that provide support that aims to meet the
existing needs of schools (Brummelhuis & Wijngaards, 2010 as cited Hoque, Ahmad
Zabidi Abdul Razak & Zohora, 2012). Nonetheless, the existing school management need
modification to accommodate and increase the utilization of ICT by following the
emergence of ICT in modernization era nowadays in order to increase the ICT integration
towards school management. The evolution of technology has given different inspiration
to use of ICT in management in schools in which the issue relates to teacher workload
may be reduce and it is easier for the officer and teacher as well as principal to deal with
computerized information rather than paper based information.

The problem faced in utilization of ICT in school administration these days were the
difficulties in obtaining appropriate software computer viruses, hardware damage,
inadequate computers and printers, and interrupted power supply (Makewa, L., Meremo,
J., Role, E., & Role, J., 2013). They also observed that efforts of school administration
should be made to acquire appropriate software, improve the working environment and
increase the accessibility of hardware for administrative purposes. Eventually, this issues
may leads to negative effects on the school management as the administrative
management may needs the use of ICT in reducing staff workload as well as easy maintain
of information related to student registration, etc. in school. As it for teacher, it is also affect
their instructional management for the teaching and learning that they need it to produce

a better understanding for the student lesson as well as for their lesson planned and other
administrative work related to their performance as an educator.

Besides that, the lack of confident in teachers to utilize the ICT as part of their teaching
and learning and also administrative works is some of the problem faced in increasing the
integration of ICT in school management. Buabeng-Andoh (2012) mentioned that
teachers can easily provide better understanding on the adoption and accommodation on
the integration of ICT if they portrayed a positive attitudes toward the use of ICT in
educational management. He furthermore explained that the successful of ICT integration
is depends on the teachers attitude and beliefs towards the ICT integration in school
management. If the teachers willing to change the attitude, thus it may bring a lot of positive
impact on the school management in managing the administrative work as well as the
administrative support staff to fully utilize the ICT to reduce their time in completing their
task rather than doing it manually. Furthermore, technical problem might occurs when it
comes to ICT, then without a technical support some teacher might have low motivation
because they might face difficulties in term of equipment failure (Buabend-Andoh, 2012).
Hence, this study looks at the extent adoption and accommodation of ICT integration in
the school management.

1.2 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

In general, this study aims to determine the influences of Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) to the school management. This study will be based on the following
objectives and the study expects to:
i.

To analyze the influence of ICT integration towards the school administrative and
instructional management?

ii.

To identify how ICT integration facilitate the school administrative and instructional
management?

iii.

To determine the level of availability of ICT integration towards the school

management.

1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The main research question was addressed:

1. To what extent does ICT integration influences the school administrative and
instructional management?
2. To what extent does ICT integration facilitate the performance of administrative
and instructional management in school management?
3. What is the level of availability of ICT facility towards administration and
instructional management in school?
1.4 OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS

ICT Integration
Rosnaini Mahmud and Mohd Arif (2008) define ICT integration as the process of
determining where and how technology fits in the teaching and learning scenario.
(Ghavifekr et al., 2014). However, in this study, it will not only focus on the teaching and
learning but more on the school management that includes the administrative support staff
other than principal and teachers.

Administrative Management
Oyier et al. (2015) explained the usage of ICT in administrative management involves
attaching with technology for better planning, setting standards, implementing change and
observing results of the core functions of secondary schools. This means that the
administrative management that includes maintenance of records, communication and
documents management are maintained in which the information to be transferred, stored,

retrieved in day-to-day school operational activities especially in managing information

about students, staff and resources.

School management
Nzoka & Orodho (2014) stated that school management consist of the application of
management ideologies in designing, developing and implementing resources towards
achievement of desired outcomes in educational goals.

Instructional Management
Instructional management is a ways of inculcating excellence quality of instruction and
education that purposes to improve the teaching and learning processes in school. (Oyier
et al., 2015).

Secondary School
Secondary school education includes student the age of 13 to 17 years only that divided
into lower secondary and upper secondary.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

The concept of ICT in education, as seen by the Ministry of Education, includes systems
that

enable

information

gathering,

management,

manipulation,

access,

and

communication in various forms (Chan, 2002).

1.5 SCOPE OF STUDY

The study focused on the ICT integration in school management in secondary school
specifically in rural secondary school in Keningau, Sabah. The key of informants is the
principals since they are directly involved with the day to day school administration in using
ICT. Other stakeholders that includes teachers and administrative support staff that were
also part of the study since they are also contribute on the school management.

1.6 LIMITATION OF STUDY

The study limited itself to different levels of staff includes principals, teachers and
administration staffs who are in school with access to ICT and it is delimited to one study
area that is the rural secondary school in Keningau, Sabah. Although there are other areas
of ICT integration in a school set up, this study only focused on the administrative and
instructional management of the school management because of the time limitation,
financial constraints and logistics problem. Hence, to generalize the results of larger
groups, it is not possible to generalize the study to all rural secondary school.

1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY

Contribution to the body of knowledge

There is some significance relating to the ICT integration in school management,

especially in the educational fields. This study will help in giving the benefits to the
community in school management areas where they can gain more knowledge and skills
that related to the ICT integration in management. This is because through ICT integration,
it may improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the school management hence increase
the integration of ICT from time to time. In additions, the study also can contribute to the
viewpoints of the young generations especially young teachers nowadays to create and
increase a better school management for the development of the school. Thus, the
integration of ICT need to be improve and implement from time to time in order to maintain
and increase its effectiveness throughout the school management.

This study is beneficial to the principal, teachers and the school management with the
integration of ICT in the school. It will improve in managing, storing and maintaining
information and other work such as preparing reports and other administrative works.
Moreover, it will provide guidance to the Ministry of Education (MOE) in providing more
adequate financials budget for the rural primary school to improve their quality of ICT
integration and training. In addition, the stakeholders of the school may cultivate a positive
relationship between each other in improving the ICT skills and culture in schools in term
of more efficient administration. Other than that, a higher utilization of school resources
will increase in improvement to the quality of administrative and instructional management
of the school either in academic or non-academic activities.