Background/purpose. With the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI), it has become possible to invent computer systems that can perform human-like processes to tackle large data and solve complex problems. AI has manifested itself in the field of education through several technologies such as intelligent tutoring systems, adaptive teaching/learning, large-scale assessment and evaluation designs, predictive modeling and learning analytics, educational games. AI has incrementally begun to transform the ways teachers teach, students learn, and schools function with inevitable implications for school management and leadership.

Materials/methods. This study aims to focus on these implications through highlighting possible contributions of AI-based innovations to school leadership and management based on a comprehensive review of early evidence.

Practical implications. With its capability to process large datasets, engage in human-like cognition, thinking, and conversation, make decisions, and execute actions by this means, AI technologies offer several opportunities to improve school-wide leadership, practice open management based on the principles of transparency, participation, and digital skills, create the required synergy to achieve ever-changing educational goals by integrating teachers, students, and parents into educational processes. These technologies have also proven their capacity to help school leaders manage various technical tasks ranging from the management of food/transportation services, supply of instructional materials, human resource management, security, and student information processing. AI also enables learning analytics, or educational data mining, which allows for taking preventive actions and providing customized education by obtaining comprehensive data from students’ educational activities across a period.

Background/purpose. There exists a desire to provide schoolteachers with mentors. In English schools, school-based mentors are mandatory for schools participating in Initial Teacher Education and the Early Career Framework. The purpose of this study is to highlight the need for a professional mentoring capacity within schools without burdening existing teachers’ already stretched workload. To that end, a case study of secondary school mathematics teachers acting as early career teacher mentors were interviewed in order to ascertain whether they were officially recognized as school-based mentors. The participants were asked whether they held a title as a mentor, and their responses analyzed and interpreted according to Miles et al.’s (2020) “think display” visualization.

Materials/methods. The literature has previously used the “Cinderella” metaphor to describe the role of school-based mentors. This study pursues this analogy to interpret school-based mentors’ qualitative responses to juxtapose the metaphor in relation to schoolteacher recruitment and retention coupled to an extrinsic motivating factor to provide school-based teacher mentoring. Seven school-based mentors were interviewed separately within their own practice schools. Audio recordings and transcriptions of the interviews were shared with each respective participant for their approval and to check for accuracy, and each were also given the opportunity to withdraw from the study at every sequence, following the ethics agreement laid out by the researcher’s university. The collected data were analyzed according to Miles et al.’s (2020) “think display” technique and a constructivist interpretation following research by Knapp (2019) to integrate theories of mentoring exposed by Kemmis et al. (2014).

Results. The study founds that most teachers acting as mentors were extrinsically charged to fulfill the role since their employing school participated in initial and early career teacher provision. None of the participating teachers held a specific title of mentor as reward for their endeavor. This case study consisted of seven participants from seven different schools, and although small, the participant group was homogenous and therefore representative so as to interpret the phenomenon. The findings were then used to make predictions that could affect the success of mentoring programs for teachers.

Background/purpose. Exploring intelligent agents in digital learning raises questions about the essence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its potential impact on education. This article provides insights into these inquiries and outlines outcomes from various experimental implementations, emphasizing the pivotal role of intelligent agents and conversational bots. These technologies have the power to revolutionize education by nurturing adaptive learning and problem-solving skills among university students. This work builds on existing research, aiming to articulate a conceptual understanding of AI as a strategic tool for learning.

Materials/methods. The study systematically collected data from Colombian universities and underwent thorough analysis through a systematic review process. Findings were meticulously organized according to themes and categories, enriched by contemporary perspectives in learning theories and artificial intelligence, ensuring a comprehensive exploration within the context of Colombian higher education.

Results. The synergy between repositories and artificial intelligence significantly enhances the capability to discover, analyze, and manage academic information. This amalgamation holds great promise as a strategy to enhance efficiency and precision in the university research process.

Background/purpose. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate the Learning Leader Competency Test in South Korean university students. Based on the analysis of previous studies, this study defined the concept of learning leader competencies, consisting of cognitive, motivational, and behavioral domains.

Materials/methods. A total of 638 university students participated in the study and data were collected via online survey. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted using principal axis factoring and Oblimin rotation. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed using maximum likelihood and goodness indices such as IFI, TLI, CFI and RMSEA. Construct, convergent, discriminant, and cross-validities were tested.

Results. The Learning Leader Competency Test consists of 23 items and three factors; knowledge, thinking, and problem solving; learning goal orientation and self-determination; and constructive self-expectation and caring for the community. The test’s reliability (Cronbach’s α = .856) and validity were confirmed.

Background/purpose. While the existing literature explores the internalization of higher education, a significant gap remains in comprehending the motivations behind international students choosing Portuguese higher education. This study aims to address this gap by examining the motivations of a specific group within Portuguese universities: international students from Portuguese-speaking African countries.

Materials/methods. The study was conducted with a qualitative approach using data obtained from biographical interviews with African Portuguese-speaking international students. The collected data were then analyzed according to content analysis.

Results. The findings demonstrate that the students’ motivations for studying at Portuguese higher education institutions varied. Their reasons include the international reputation of Portugal, the quality of its education, upon recommendation from family members, the Portuguese language, lower tuition fees compared to their home institutions, cultural proximity, scholarship opportunities, and the perception of Portugal as a safe country.

Background/purpose. This study presents a systematic review of teaching observation instruments in the current literature based on PRISMA standards.

Materials/methods. Three researchers performed searches on two databases, SCOPUS and Web of Science, focusing on two criteria: a) peer observation of teaching and b) higher education, with search terms included in the “Title/Keyword” fields. The AND command was used to join certain words, including peer observation and teaching, whilst the OR command was used to separate search terms within each criterion. Five exclusion criteria were defined and applied following the initial searches. The quality of research conducted in the literature using observation tools was assessed using a validated instrument in social science research.

Results. The results revealed a total of 13 instruments that were analyzed in terms of four variables: country, validation, observation, and feedback. a) Country: More than half were designed by researchers from universities in the United States and Australia. b) Validation: Only three studies were designed following some kind of validation procedure. c/d) Observation and feedback: The number of items ranged from very loosely structured, with only a few items, to more comprehensive research. The most repeated item (8 of 13 instruments) was about the objectives of the observation section. Four study instruments included only an observation section, with no specific feedback section. Of the remainder, some included all three aspects of “strengths,” “weaknesses,” and “comments” in the feedback section, while others included only a feedback section.