Abstract:
The research aimed to examine and compare the current and desired conditions, needs, and guidelines for developing digital competency of school administrators under Nakhon Phanom Municipality, as perceived by school administrators and teachers. The research sample consisted of 126 participants, including school administrators and teachers, in the 2024 academic year. The tools for data collection included a set of questionnaires on current and desired conditions for digital competency of school administrators under Nakhon Phanom Municipality. The set of questionnaires examining the current condition of digital competency of school administrators had the discriminative power ranging from 0.290 to 0.928 and the reliability of 0.985, whereas the desired condition questionnaire had the discriminative power ranging from 0.566 to 0.940 and the reliability of 0.989. The interviews with scholars were also conducted to establish the development guidelines. Statistics for data analysis were percentage, mean, standard deviation, and Priority Needs Index. The hypothesis was tested using t - test and F - test.
The results showed that:
1. The overall current of school administrators digital competency was high, while the desired condition was at the highest level.
2. The comparison analysis revealed that the current conditions of school administrators digital competency under Nakhon Phanom Municipality, classified by positions, school sizes, and work experience, showed no differences, both overall and in each aspect. The desired conditions, classified by positions and school sizes, showed differences at the .05 level of significance, but there were no differences in work experience.
3. The needs for school administrators digital competency were ranked from most to least as follows: 1) Using digital technology to enhance school potential; 2) Using digital technology in planning and managing school projects; 3) Designing and creating innovations in information systems in schools; 4) Understanding and complying with digital management laws, policies and standards; and 5) Knowledge and utilization of digital technology in school administration.
4. The research has proposed guidelines for school administrators digital competency development under Nakhon Phanom Municipality comprising three aspects as follows: 1) Using digital technology to enhance school potential, administrators should develop digital skills, support learning, and create partnerships with external organizations to develop strategic technology plans within schools;
2) Using digital technology in planning and managing school projects, administrators should support the use of digital tools through personnel training and continuous evaluation of technology use; 3) Designing and creating information system innovations in schools, administrators should develop technological skills and train personnel to use information technology effectively. This will improve the quality of school management.