Last week was such a wonderful learning experience for me. I had several assignments due in class, which kept me really busy. However, I felt as thought the work was very beneficial and taught be a good deal about the research process. For one of the assignments, I created a subjectivity statement, which forced me to look at my own limitations and bias as a researcher. The process of completing the subjectivity statement helped me to understand what I really hope to accomplish as I continue working on my Ph. D. Although my subjectivity statement had to do with personalized learning, I made several statements about the need for change in the education system, and my own experiences as an educator. Moving into the class activity with my professor, I realized that my interest isn’t really in personalized learning but in changing the education system.
During class last week, my professor walked us through the process of identifying our topic of inquiry, related sub-topics, and research goals. We completed three examples in class, and mine was the most underdeveloped when we started working on it. However, as the professor and I talked it out, my topic of interest became clearer. For the first time since starting my doctoral coursework last summer, I am starting to understand the direction I want to go in for my dissertation.
I started working on my Ph.D. because I wanted to make a difference in education. In my opinion, the education system needs to be revamped. As is, it doesn’t meet the needs of students or the community. When I first started teaching, I felt as though I had control in my classroom to develop learning experiences that would grow my students and prepare them for the future. However, as the emphasis on standardized-testing results grew, my role as a teacher changed. My professional skills and expertise were no longer appreciated, and I was given a scripted curriculum that didn’t consider the individual needs my students.
In the current education system, two groups carry the majority of the workload: teachers and students. Yet, they are also the most undeserved and underappreciate parts of the system. For these reasons, I want to focus on dissertation on improving the responsiveness of the k-12 education system. After working with my professor on my topic of inquiry, I am focusing on reducing the inefficiencies of the current system in order to recapture funds for reduced class sizes and implementation of pedagogies that better meet the needs of students, colleges, and the community, including potential employers.
At this point, I have two concerns with this dissertation topic. One is how to relate it to learning technologies. Technology has drastically changed how we learn and interact with information as well as the skills needed to compete in today’s workforce. Jobs are constantly changing, yet the US education system has stayed pretty stagnant in the last fifty-years. Obviously, technology has a major influence on the need for change in education, but is that enough of a connection to justify this topic of inquiry for my dissertation topic?
My second concern is that the topic may be too broad for a dissertation. After working with my professor last week, I have started looking at research and reading books on the topic…trying to better understand the issues within our system and what successful countries are doing within their education systems. There are so many components within a system that it may be impossible to focus on all of them. Yet, when you are designing a system, you cannot isolate parts of the whole. In order to create an integrated system, each subsystem has to designed with the other components in mind. As I continue to delve into this topic, I may see a potential for a narrower research focus. However, at this time, I need to focus on the complex education systems of the United States and other countries, both as a whole and a series of subsystems working together to meet the needs of teachers, students, and society as a whole.
I am fairly certain my research on this topic will not end with my dissertation.