Dissertation Topic and Need for the Study
Last week we submitted ideas for our dissertation topic, which forced me to think beyond my initial idea of comparing the education systems of high-performing countries with that of the United States. I have always been concerned that the topic was too massive for a dissertation, but I wasn’t sure how to transform it into something more manageable. After talking with my major professor about my concerns, he suggested focusing on one element within the system. Based on our conversation, I decided to focus on the role of the teacher within the education system. Although I am changing directions, my early research in education reform supports my new dissertation topic.
As I said last week, I have been reading and collecting information related to the educational systems of high-performing countries and education reform in the United States. One common feature of high-performing school systems is an abundance of highly qualified teachers that are treated as professionals, with support for continuous improvement in professional practice (Tucker, 2019). In order to create a workforce of highly qualified teachers, changes need to be made at the political, institutional, and individual level of the education system to support teacher preparation for incoming teachers, provide professional development for current teachers, and elevate the teaching profession to attract elite candidates (Tucker, 2016).
Although society has largely transitioned into the digital age, the education system has remained stuck in the industrial, factory model with very little change to the curriculum and practices developed over a hundred years ago (Houle & Cobb, 2017). However, the rapidly changing realities of the 21st century demand that teacher preparation and professional development focus on transformative educational practices supported by current research related to motivation theory, brain research, or whole child development (Truong, 2019). As we move further into the digital age, education will continue to evolve. These changes will require new, sustainable models and strategies for teacher preparation and professional development in order to provide future capacity (Erstad et al., 2015). While the challenge of changing the entire education system is daunting, perhaps my dissertation research can impact the education reform through teacher education and professional practice.
Next Steps
The majority of my research about educational change and high-performing school systems will continue to be relevant to my new dissertation topic. However, in terms of research related to teacher preparation and professional development, I am starting from scratch. This week, I have been researching the topic and have about 40 related articles and books already pulled for reading. I used Publish or Perish to run a search of related resources, which provided 981 resources for my initial search phrase. My plan this week is to continue vetting these sources and reading the articles I have already pulled. In my reading, I am looking for potential research methods and support for why my research topic is needed. I am hoping to have a better idea of research design by the end of the week and to spend the weekend locating resources that will meet the specific needs of my research design. Changing topics has put me a little behind, but I feel that my new topic is more approachable for a dissertation.
References:
Erstad, O., Eickelmann, B., & Eichhorn, K. (2015). Preparing teachers for schooling in the digital age: A meta-perspective on existing strategies and future challenges. Education and Information Technologies, 20, 641-654.
Houle, D., & Cobb, J. (2011). Shift ed: A call to action for transforming k-12 education. Corwin.
Truong, N. (2019). Aligning education policy with the science of learning and development. iNACOL.
Tucker, M. (2016). 9 building blocks for a world-class education system. NCEE.
Tucker, M. (2019). Leading high-performance school systems: Lessons from the world’s best. ASCD.
