What Educational Administrators Need To Know about Information and Information Systems: A User's Point of View.

This paper examines what educational administrators need to know about information systems in order to be effective within a system of higher education, particularly a community college, environment. The first section provides a general overview of the nature and role of information in contemporary organizations. The second section focuses on the role of information in higher education environments. Also examined in this section are the characteristics and distinct informational needs of four academic cultural types: collegial, managerial, developmental, and negotiating. Regardless of their cultural type, all institutions will need to realign their structures in response to the demands of the information age, the need for individualized learning, the mandate for lifelong learning, and the need for high-quality and flexible enabling services. The paper concludes with a list of 27 recommendations for managing information in an educational setting, drawn from the author's experience at a community college whose primary academic culture was developmental. Contains 17 references. (SJL) ******************************************************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * * from the original document. * ******************************************************************************** WHAT EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATORS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT INFORMATION AND INFORMATION SYSTEMS: A USER'S POINT OF VIEW U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) \kiThis document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it. 0 Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. o Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERI position cr policy. Harriett J. Robles August 14, 1998 2 PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY