Leading from within: Understanding the lived experience of Gen X school heads in a digitalized world

The issue that schools and school systems are dealing with nowadays is how to find, nurture, and maintain talented and committed leadership. For systemic change to occur, the leaders of tomorrow must be identified and developed. There is a need to change structures and redefine boundaries in order to fully utilize the leadership potential in schools (Beach, 2020). However, according to Werde (2023) Gen Xers have experienced difficulties in their quest for leadership roles due to a few major issues. First off, with only 20% of the workforce made up of members of their generation, they are the least represented. They are frequently referred to as "the forgotten middle child" in the workplace because of their smaller proportion and lack of majority, and the second obstacle to their ascent to top positions in organizations is their commitment to work-life balance. This study aimed at determining and understanding the leading from within: the lived experience of gen x school heads in a digitalized world. Specifically, this study determined the lived experiences of Gen X school heads in private schools in a digitalized world and to understand how Gen X being school heads in private schools face the demands and challenges in a digitalized world. The researcher employed the phenomenological research design to understand and describe the lived experience of Gen X school heads in a digitalized world. Phenomenological research focuses on describing what all the participants have in common as they face the demands and challenges brought by the digitalized world. The basic purpose is to reduce individual experiences with a phenomenon to a description of the over-all essence. The salient findings of the study are: as to the lived experiences of Gen X school in a digitalized world: Three themes emerged with regards to their experiences as Gen X school heads in a digitalized world. It was revealed in their experiences that open communication and shared responsibility are evident in their school through their leadership. Being open with suggestions and willing to accept criticisms are some of the helpful and vital characteristics that they have to ensure communication among the teachers. It was noted that they also emphasize the significance of collaboration through open discussion in resolving issues or problems and understanding others’ sentiments. Moreover, some of the challenges that most of the participants’ encounter includes negative attitudes of teachers and students; digital divide since not all have the same level of technological skills, generation gaps considering the diversity of learners and the gap between them and the teachers and the slow internet connection and availability of teaching resources that affect the delivery of quality education. In addition, they also experience ways on how to keep up with the technological advancement, with this they have peer tutoring, programs that develop their own and the teachers’ digital skills, and being up-to-date with the latest technological advancements.


I. Introduction
The issue that schools and school systems are dealing with nowadays is how to find, nurture, and maintain talented and committed leadership. For systemic change to occur, the leaders of tomorrow must be identified and developed. There is a need to change structures and redefine boundaries in order to fully utilize the leadership potential in schools (Beach, 2020). Without strong leadership at the level of the school system and the individual school, school reforms are rarely successful. The challenge facing schools and school systems is how to find, develop, and maintain committed and talented leadership, as stated in "There is not a single documented case of a school successfully turning around its student achievement" (Beach, 2020). According to Yango et al (2022) a leader is someone who establishes objectives and then uses their abilities to assist others in achieving them. The best managers have a thorough understanding of their staff and are more conscious of their assets than their weaknesses. Great leaders are conscious of their flaws and those of others, but they also understand that their strengths give them an advantage over their competitors.
On the contrary, the study of Aquino et al. (2021) shows that in the Philippines school administrators have been observed to consistently display impressive leadership techniques in the areas of planning, organizing, regulating, directing, and unifying; teachers displayed highly effective teaching practices. Teachers and school leaders have provided incomparable justifications for the outstanding leadership techniques used by school leaders. The difference in leadership styles experienced by school leaders and their teachers is crucial, demonstrating that both sectors' responses are fundamentally superior.
However, according to Werde (2023) GenXers have experienced difficulties in their quest for leadership roles due to a few major issues. First off, with only 20% of the workforce made up of members of their generation, they are the least represented. They are frequently referred to as "the forgotten middle child" in the workplace because of their smaller proportion and lack of majority, and the second obstacle to their ascent to top positions in organizations is their commitment to work-life balance. Xers reject the idea that putting in more hours equates to being a more deserving candidate for leadership positions because they are unwilling to give up family time in order to advance their careers. Xers have endured two devastating recessions during their professional lives, which has made matters more difficult.
In addition, Bugnos et al. (2022) claim that the workforce of today is more diverse than ever. Given that there are currently four generations working in the workforce, age diversity is particularly interesting. Organizations must acknowledge and comprehend that generational differences are a real diversity issue . Generation X believed that vision and participative leadership traits were more crucial for effective leadership. Teachers from Generation X (Gen X) are renowned for their dedication to lifelong learning and versatility. However, due to their lack of computer or technological literacy, they struggle to complete paperwork, attend seminars, and provide instructions online.
On the contrary, according to Bayeux (2022) Generation X, who are about to enter the middle of their careers and who typically grew up with working parents, follows them. They are the first generation on track to have less saved for retirement than their parents. This generation would prefer a more self-directed learning plan because they detest micromanaging. Additionally, they prefer information and practice to pure theory and want to know precisely how learning will advance their careers. They are not put off by modern technology. Learners in Generation X are practical. They are aware of the value and necessity of compliance training, but they prefer learning and development to make learning simple and available so they can control the learning process.
Studies have been conducted revealing the importance of strong leadership in educational institutions. Although the study conducted by Aquino et al (2021) shows the good attributes of principals in some areas in the Philippines, there are researchers that claim the diversity of school heads considering their generation and leadership styles. Researches also reveal the characteristics of GenX leaders and managers, however, there was no study conducted yet that dealt with the experiences of GenX educational heads in a digitalized world, particularly among the selected Gen X school heads of private schools in the local setting.
Hence, the researcher was inspired to conduct a study that dwelled on understanding the lived experiences of GenX school leaders specifically among the selected school heads of private schools in the City of San Pedro Laguna. The findings of this study may serve as inspiration and guide towards understanding how the GenX school heads of private schools face the demands and challenges in a digitalized world in order to come up with proper measures on how to further their leadership styles and skills appropriate to the digitalized world.

Objective of the Study
The main objective of this study was to determine the lived experience of Gen X school heads experience in a digitalized world. Specifically, this aimed to identify the lived experiences of Gen X school heads in private schools in a digitalized world and describe how do Gen X, being school heads in private schools face the demands and challenges in a digitalized world.

II. Methods
Considering the research problem, this study focused on the experiences; the difficulties, the problems, and the challenges encountered by the Generation X school heads in private schools in the City of San Pedro, Laguna. This study utilized psychological phenomenological research design. Phenomenological research focuses on describing what all the participants have in common as they face the demands and challenges brought by the digitalized world. The basic purpose is to reduce individual experiences with a phenomenon to a description of the over-all essence. Further, the goal is the return to the concrete, captured by the phrase 'Back to the things themselves! (Creswell, 2018). Specifically, this study explored the experiences: the difficulties, the problems, and the challenges encountered by Gen X school heads of the private schools in the City of San Pedro, Laguna.
In the selection of the participants of this study, the researcher considered fifteen Gen X school heads from the City of San Pedro, Laguna. Fifteen (15) participants were enough, since according to (Creswell, 2018) the required number of participants for a phenomenological study is 5 to 25 individuals who experienced the same phenomenon. The actual sample of the study was chosen through purposive sampling using the following criteria: The participants should have been serving as a school head in the private schools in the City of San Pedro, Laguna for three years and above, members of the Gen X, and are currently in the position during the academic year 2022-2023.
The researcher conducted an interview using a research interview protocol through email and hardcopy. The interview protocol was predesigned form containing the research questions which were general and open-ended considering the guidelines of Morse and Field as reintroduced by Woodgate (2018). However, the interview question was self-made and not standardized, so the researcher presented it to experts in the field of qualitative research for comments and recommendations for validity. The researcher-made interview protocol presented to the adviser for initial validation and submitted to the research validators for finalization.
All interviews and field notes were transcribed using the Microsoft Word processing program. Through the interview protocol, the researcher reviewed the transcripts repeatedly for significant statements in an attempt to find meaning and understanding through themes. Thematic statements were isolated using van Manen's selective highlight approach. In this approach, the search for themes or structures of the experience involved selecting and highlighting sentences or sentence clusters that stood out as thematic of the experience. Notes were made to capture the thematic statements. All phrases, sentence clusters, notes, and textual data were reduced until essential themes emerged. Further, each theme was arranged according to textural and structural themes and were discussed based on the actual responses of the participants. In addition, both discussions on textural and structural themes were digested to come up with textural and structural descriptions. Overall essence was the final product of the summarized textural and structural description.
The final step in this qualitative data analysis was the verification. In this step, the researcher went back to the participants and present the synthesis of the responses to make sure that they were transcribed, analyzed, and interpreted with accuracy and validity. Corrections and comments of the participants were added in the findings of the study.

III. Results and Discussion
Initially, the bracketing element of this paper where the researcher expressed what driven her in materializing this study.
I have been in the academe for quite some time and had witnessed and become a part of the teaching force. I had experienced and was able to observe the leadership styles of my superiors from different generations. Being a millennial, I had felt the so-called generation gap between me and my school or department head and even among my colleagues. In addition to that, being in a digital world, increased the said gap that sometimes causes the delay of paper works or misunderstandings among teaching and non-teaching staff and even between the teachers and the school/ department head.
These experiences made me more curious on what challenges that Gen X school heads face and how they handle demands and challenges in this digital world and how they are able to adapt to the needs of the diversity of generations-from parents, students, and teachers. I find it overwhelming and challenging. Thus, upon interpreting the responses of my participants, it is important to set aside my preconceived knowledge and experiences with Gen X school heads.
This is to ensure that the themes that will be emerged are valid and authentic which are important in achieving the goal of this research-to make an in-depth understanding of the live experiences of Gen X school heads in a digitalized world.
The horizonalization of this study was presented through listing the significant statements that were extracted from the verbatim transcriptions of the participants' responses. These statements were read and analyzed numerous times to answer two central questions with probing questions in the research interview protocol. From the ten words for word transcriptions, the researcher got hold of the significant statements. After highlighting significant statements from their ideas, theme clustering followed. These were grouped as to emerging themes considering the research problem which is understanding the lived experiences of Generation X school heads in a digitalized world. From the intensive analysis of the ninety-four (94) significant statements, the researcher classified six (6) theme clusters focusing on two theme groups which answered the two central questions of the study. Presented on the succeeding statement is the table on which summarized the categorization of clustered themes procured from the significant statements and their relative ideas. Seeking support -support system -address concerns for proper assessment and evaluation -learn together with colleagues -building and promoting harmonious relationship connection with partners -functioning laptop or tablet -use google for help -authenticating Information -peer tutoring

Theme 5: Continuous learning
-mentoring, and coaching programs -rigorous trainings and seminars -find activities that help them get to know each other better -get to know themselves better -should learn how to sustain, be flexible, amenable, adaptable -need to be familiar with Canva and online learning system -enrolled in short computer courses -starting to be digitalized Being open with suggestions and willing to accept criticisms are some of the helpful and important characteristics that they have that ensure communication among the teachers. It was noted that they also emphasize the significance of collaboration through open discussion in resolving issues or problems and understanding others' sentiments. open communication and shared responsibility, understand each and every sentiment, engaging all teachers while doing discussions though there were lesser physical interactions since meetings can be done online thus communication with others despite of the distance is possible. Moreover, some of the challenges that most of the participants encounter teachers' negative attitudes, digital divide among teachers, lack of required digital skills, generation gaps, more responsibility, demand for immediate feedback is getting worse, slow internet connection and the availability of the resources, and attitudes and their working habits. In addition, they also experience ways on how to keep up with the technological advancement. Thus, they have ways on ensuring quality education through multimedia, develop digital skills, updating devices, trainings, coping strategies, more digital tools and applications, online learning and meetings, to stay up-to-date with the latest technological advancements and managing energy.
Structural Description. There are three emerging themes that explain how the participants face the challenges and demands of the digital world; Theme 4: Seeking support; Theme 5: Continuous learning; and Theme 6: Making a difference. This implies that Gen X school head are positively facing the demand and challenges of the digitalized world. They address concerns for proper assessment and evaluation, learn together with colleagues, building and promoting harmonious relationship connections, with partners, functioning laptop or tablets, use google for help, authenticating information, and peer tutoring Moreover, they believe that continuous learning will help them to be more adept of whatever technology brings in their leadership. Thus, they promote mentoring, and coaching programs, trainings and seminars, find activities that help them get to know each other better, get to know themselves better, should learn how to sustain, be flexible, amenable, adaptable; need to be familiar with Canva and online learning system, enrolled in short computer courses and starting to be digitalized. Lastly, they are confident that they can make a difference lead by example and adapt to changes, more patient and flexible in dealing with my Gen Z, planning ahead of time, making a positive impact on people's lives, adjust and be flexible with different generation, commitment to a lifelong learning, ensuring that a school has to provide an enhanced internet connectivity and to shape the education and future of countless student.
Essence. Being a Gen X school head in a private institution in this digitalized world seems to be very challenging. With the enormous demand of technology integration, it is expected that Gen X school heads are technologically advanced to be able to lead a team of teaching and non-teaching staff who are majority millennials and learners who are Gen Z. Also, there is generation gap that exist that might become barrier in effectively leading a school organization. On the contrary, it was shown based on the responses of the participants that despite of the challenges they meet, they are ready to improve themselves, to help improve their teaching and non-teaching staff, and aim to deliver the quality education that learners deserve. Moreover, it can also be noted that the participants are ready and have established plans on how to deal with the expected challenges and issues that the digitalized world brings. They are also determined to bring change probably to erase the notion that Gen X teaching and non-teaching staff struggles with technology; thus, they prove that they can deal with whatever issues they meet. These are good practices and examples to the next generation as some of the participants emphasized that they walk the talk, meaning they set good examples to their teachers and to the students.
Verification. For the verification part of the study, the researcher conducted another meeting with the participants first, to present the synthesis of the responses to make sure that they were transcribed, analyzed, and interpreted with accuracy and second to extend her appreciation towards them. The corrections of the participants were considered in the writing of essence, so credibility was established.

IV. Conclusion and Recommendation
The significant findings of the study were as follows: the lived experiences of Gen X school heads in private schools in a digitalized world waas described through the three prevailing themes: (Theme 1: The need of communication and collaboration; Theme 2: Filled with Challenges; Theme 3: Keeping up with technological advancements) emphasized the views of the participants with regard to their experiences as Gen X school heads in a digitalized world. It was revealed in their experiences that open communication and shared responsibility are evident in their school through their leadership. Being open with suggestions and willing to accept criticisms are some of the helpful and important characteristics that they have that ensure communication among the teachers. It was noted that they also emphasize the significance of collaboration through open discussion in resolving issues or problems and understanding others' sentiments. open communication and shared responsibility, understand each and every sentiment, engaging all teachers while doing discussions though there were lesser physical interactions since meetings can be done online thus, communication with others despite of the distance is possible. Moreover, some of the challenges that most of the participants encounter teachers' negative attitudes, digital divide among teachers, lack of required digital skills, generation gaps, more responsibility, demand for immediate feedback is getting worse, slow internet connection and the availability of the resources, and attitudes and their working habits. In addition, they also experience ways on how to keep up with the technological advancement, thus, they have ways on ensuring quality education through multimedia, develop digital skills, updating devices, trainings, coping strategies, more digital tools and applications, online learning and meetings, to stay up-to-date with the latest technological advancements and managing energy.
With regards on how the school heads in private schools face the demands and challenges in a digitalized world, there are three emerging themes that explain how the participants face the challenges and demands of the digital world; Theme 4: Seeking support; Theme 5: Continuous learning; and Theme 6: Making a difference. This implies that Gen X school head are positively facing the demand and challenges of the digitalized world. They address concerns for proper assessment and evaluation, learn together with colleagues, building and promoting harmonious relationship connections, with partners, functioning laptop or tablets, use google for help, authenticating information, and peer tutoring Moreover, they believe that continuous learning will help them to be more adept of whatever technology brings in their leadership. Thus, they promote mentoring, and coaching programs, trainings and seminars, find activities that help them get to know each other better, get to know themselves better, should learn how to sustain, be flexible, amenable, adaptable; need to be familiar with Canva and online learning system, enrolled in short computer courses and starting to be digitalized. Lastly, they are confident that they can make a difference lead by example and adapt to changes, more patient and flexible in dealing with the Gen Z, planning ahead of time, making a positive impact on people's lives, adjust and be flexible with different generation, commitment to a lifelong learning, ensuring that a school has to provide an enhanced internet connectivity and to shape the education and future of countless student The researcher came up with the following conclusions based on the textural and structural descriptions; the lived experiences of the Gen X school heads are full of challenges they must be able to face these challenges with proper communication and collaboration with teaching, non-teaching staffs and learners and they must continue to upgrade themselves with technological advancement. It is indeed exciting yet challenging. It is astonishing at first yet, during the process it is filled with adversities. The school heads have acknowledged that teaching and non-teaching staff as well as student's learning is the heart of every teaching process. Therefore, they need to face whatever issues and challenges encountered in the digitalization. Gen X school heads must also face the demands and challenges in the digitalized world by seeking support from colleagues, teaching, non-teaching staff, and learners as they continue learning the updated technological trend aiming to make a difference in their leadership.
Considering the findings and conclusions of this study, the researcher elicited the following recommendations for expected actions: The researcher recommends that Gen X school heads should continue leading and managing the school through the latest and most appropriate leadership style in accordance with the needs and demands of the digital world. Therefore, personal and professional growth should be a continuous part of the faculty development plan. Moreover, it is recommended that teachers and non-teaching staff must be able to take into consideration the effort of Gen X school heads by being more cooperative and collaborative with their initiatives and supporting their plans despite of generation gap. In addition, they should keep themselves updated on the latest trend in terms of technological pedagogical knowledge which are essential to be able to meet the needs of the 21 st -century learners. They must attend information and communications technology (ICT) conventions or conferences and must have rigorous training, and seminars related to technology integration and innovation.
School heads are also encouraged to do simultaneous and diverse leadership style by persuading and implementing to their subordinates that they should have to be more open in embracing and valuing change in terms of digitalization. Change is good all the time. Though it is a bit challenging but with proper adjustment and appropriate mindset everything will fall into place. Thus, they must have workshops and webinars for proper guidance and directions to tailor fit with their needs in terms of workloads, teaching and learning processes and pedagogical mechanisms. They should become the walking and talking advertisement. Role modelling is the key to bridge the gap and make sure that they are fully aware of the Vision, Mission, Philosophy, Goals and Objectives in a particular university that will serve as an avenue, vehicle, and anchor in performing duties.
Furthermore, since they are dealing with diverse generations, they should learn how to compromise and try to adopt and understand the kind of generation that they are in. It is a matter of open communication and shared responsibility.
Lastly, future researchers are encouraged to duplicate the study utilizing other research methods and considering other related variables.