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1. HOW ADULT EDUCATION CENTRES MANAGE SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENT
INTEGRATION OF DIGITAL EDUCATION AND CHANGE MANAGEMENT.

This section provides guidance on how adult education centers manage and implement integration
of digital education and change management into their existing learning environment.

In the present constant changing environment, educational organizations must adapt accordingly.
There are two circumstances that trigger changes implementation within adult education centers:

1) changes in legislation and regulation of education that all organizations must obey by
implementing appropriate integration strategies, and

2) changes that emerge from within the organization itself as a result of certain needs: acquiring
more students, both young and adult; demands for increased quality of education; the need for
alternative teaching & learning methods like digital education in order to prepare people for the

technological changes and new work environment challenges.

Before implementing changes, most of adult education centers assess their current situation from
the digital technology point of view in order to identify the main strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities and threats to easier set SMART goals and create their own digital strategy that could
foster initiatives like: increase digital literacy for staff and adult students; develop and encourage
digital teaching methods; improving digital access to a wide range of courses for different student
groups. But the success of the digital education strategy is mostly based on the human factor.
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The main role in the change management within education centres comes to the leader of the
organization. The way he is embracing, implementing, and communicating change further to his
team is the key to a successful digital integration.

The first steps are crucial, and the manager needs to have the appropriate leadership skills and
behaviours that will motivate people to accept change. It is very important at the beginning of the
implementation that the leader forms a team made of people specialized in the education field for

whom change is just another challenge they want to face.

This team of professionals will be trained to best implement changes within the organization and
among the rest of the administrative staff and the more reluctant colleagues. The resistance to
change is inevitable and each manager will have to face it. In the end, all teachers from adult
education centers will accept changes out of fear of losing their jobs by not being prepared for the
new digital skills requirements on the labour market.

1.1 ITALY

Italian organizations faced a really difficult period when had to manage integration of digital
practices and tools in learning as well as to change methodology and switch to more formal digital
education. Change has been challenging due to a lack of proper funding and equipment. Especially