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Course Name: Leading Educational Change (ELE921)

Assignment Name: Critique of a journal article (1000 words)

Critique the journal article on: The contribution of Education for sustainable
Development to transformational leadership among selected Namibian School Principals
(2015) by A. T. Kanyimba, E. N. M. Katewa and P. Claasen

or

Leading Education change in the 21st Century: Creating living schools through shared
vision and transformative governance (2019) by Patrick Howard, C. O’brien, B. Kay &
K. O’Rourke

In your critique, you may consider the following aspects:

Introduction

This paper intends to critique the research article entitled “ Leading Educational Change
in the 21st Century:Creating Living Schools through Shared Vision and Transformative
Governance ” authored by O’Brien, C.; Howard, P.; Brent , K & O'Rourke, K ( 2019). The
following factors that affect a research article's robustness will be the subject of my
critique: (i) the abstract; (ii) the introduction; (iii) the literature review; (iv) the
methodology; (v) the results and findings; (vi) the conclusions; and (vii) the referencing.
Research studies must follow the steps in the process logically since it is crucial for a
research piece to demonstrate logical consistency. Additionally, there should be a distinct
connection between the phases of the study, starting with the goal and continuing with
the literature review, theoretical framework, research question, methods section, data
analysis, and results ( Ryan-Wenger , 2002).

Abstract
The researchers' abstract accurately and concisely summarized the study's findings and
included details about the study's objectives, methodology, key findings, conclusions, and
recommendations—exactly the points Dale made in his introduction (Conkin Dale,
2005).Because of this, the author is required to summarize some of the most important
bits of pertinent data from the study points. They hinted when they said, "...In order to
facilitate education reform, this study presents an alternative vision for educational
leadership and governance that is based on a comprehensive strategy for long-term local
economic growth. To educate education leaders for a different vision of leadership in
education, an interdisciplinary model of professional development is suggested. This
makes the abstract a crucial topic of study since it allows a reader to decide whether or
not the study is interesting and whether or not to keep reading (Parahoo, 2006).

Introduction

The title of the research paper is nicely worded, understandable, and clear: "Leading
Educational Change in the 21st Century: Creating Living Schools through Shared Vision
and Transformative Governance." The study's goal should be made abundantly evident to
the reader in the title, which should be between 10 and 15 words long (Connell Meehan,
2009). Too-long or too-short titles may be confusing or deceptive (Parahoo, 2006). The
study article's title is appropriately in line with its subject matter.

According to Bassett and Bassett (2003), the reader is frequently initially introduced to a
research problem in the study's introduction. In either scenario, the statement should at
the very least give the reader a general idea of the topic to be explored (Polit and Beck,
2006). Since the problem in this research study was so broad, it seemed obvious to me
that it shouldn't have been discussed in the study's introduction. Prior to doing their
investigation, the writers had to narrow and focus their attention on the complex and
wide-ranging subject. The literature review was crucial in this research paper in helping
to clarify the study's objectives. The authors' failure to list their credentials in this study
article is very disheartening.The credentials and job title of the author(s) can be a helpful
sign of the researcher(s)' familiarity with the topic at hand and capacity for critical
thought (Conkin Dale, 2005). On the other hand, a research study should be evaluated
according to its own merits rather than being taken as genuine and credible based solely
on the credentials of the author or authors.

Literature review

In any research project like this one, defining or developing the research topic and
choosing an appropriate technique of data collecting are the two main goals of the
literature review (Burns and Grove, 2007). A proper depth and breadth of reading on the
issue of "Leading Educational Change in the 21st Century:Creating Living Schools
through Shared Vision and Transformative Governance" was shown in this research
article's literature analysis. The kind and source of literature that the author offered are
also crucial factors to take into account. The literature's recurring themes were effectively
presented and analyzed. It is crucial to critically evaluate the data while presenting past
research, emphasizing both the study's advantages and disadvantages. The authors have
developed a strong justification for conducting this kind of extensive research. The
results of other investigations should also be contrasted and compared (Burns and Grove,
2007). The literature evaluation was done precisely how the writers intended, and it is
appropriate and pertinent to the project at hand.

Methodology

Methodology describes the specifics of how a research study is carried out. The research
design is the first of several significant components that must be mentioned in this
context. Because it is primarily descriptive, the study design for this paper appears to be
qualitative research (Robertson, 2002). The goal of a research study's aims and
objectives, research question, and research hypothesis is to establish a connection
between the study's original purpose or research problem and the method used to conduct
it (Burns and Grove, 2009).Sincerily, I'm afraid they aren't expressed explicitly in this
research paper. This is merely due to the fact that the author may have chosen to carry out
a descriptive research study.The theoretical framework is one of many important factors
that affects how reliable a research study is. According to Bassett & Bassett (2003), the
researcher should give the theoretical framework "following the identification of the
research problem and the review of the literature" (p. 34). The Living Schools conceptual
model was utilized as a theoretical framework in this research study to set the parameters
for the research and to conceptually map out themes from the literature (Miles and
Huberman, 2004).

The discussions and fightings

The discussion of the research's conclusions followed logically from the data, and the
authors were able to connect it to the literature review to put the study in perspective
(Russell, 2002). "To achieve this vision requires a substantial shift in how we come to
understand what is required of education leaders," the author concluded. It is possible to
indicate a potent path forward in enacting the change we require now and in the future
through a collaborative professional program that unites the fundamental business skills
and knowledge with a profound understanding of the aims and goals of transformative
education and Living Schools. As a result, this research study's conclusions were
generalizable, which is known as external validity (Polit and Beck, 2006).

Reference

Each and every one of the references is pertinent to the problem being researched and
aids in educating the reader about the aim of the study. By connecting the numerous
research that were discussed in this section, the authors performed a great job of
educating the reader and outlining the study's justification.
References

Bassett C, Bassett J (2003) Reading and Critiquing Research. Br J Perioper Nurs

13(4):162-4

Burns N, Grove S (2007) Understanding Nursing Research. 2nded. WB Saunders

Company. Philadelphia

Conkin DaleJ (2005) Critiquing Research for use in Practice Pediatric Health Care
19:183-6

Connell Meehan T (2009) The Research Critiques. In Treacy P, Hyde A, eds. Nursing
Research and Design. UCD Press, Dublin: 57

Miles M, Huberman A (2004) Qualitative Data Analysis. 2nd ed. Sage, Thousand Oaks.
Canada

Ryan-Wenger N (2002) Guidelines for Critique of a Research Report. Heart Lung 21(4):

394-401

Parahoo K (2006) Nursing Research: Principles, Process and Issues. 2nd ed. Palgrave
Macmillan. Houndmills Basingstoke

Polit D. Beck C (2006) Essentials of Nursing Care: Methods, Appraisal Utilization. 6th
ed. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia

O’Brien, C.; Howard, P. The living school: The emergence of a transformative sustainability
education paradigm. J. Educ. Sustain. Dev. 2016, 10, 115–130.Robson C (2002) Real World
Research. 2nd ed. Blackwell Publishing, Oxford

Russell C (2005) Evaluating Quantitative Research Reports.Nephrol Nurs J 32(1): 61-4