From the first day of the program, students spend
significant time planning for their dissertations in structured and supervised settings, particularly within the evidenced-
based leadership modules and the applied research sequence that spans the program. Our systematic approach to the dissertation will allow students to defend in their last semester of the program.
Since students develop their dissertation questions early in the program, they ground the preparation of their dissertations in their classroom work and at their places of employment. Working closely with program faculty, students develop a project designed to identify, analyze, report and make recommendations about an actual problem identified by their educational organization, which will serve as the client.
Projects may include analyzing the effectiveness of a school district's literacy program; developing a standards-aligned community outreach program for an independent school, or designing a districtęs teacher professional development system and providing recommendations in preparation for upcoming contract negotiations. During the course of the program, students refine their dissertation topics and the questions they seek to answer. Some may change topics completely as they assess the feasibility of their initial ideas. By the beginning of their third year in the program, studentsę dissertation projects are clearly defined, and during the third year, students complete their projects. The program expects a culminating experience, which takes the form of a presentation or oral report to the studentęs client, in addition to a final written dissertation.
RESEARCH
SEQUENCE AND DISSERTATION SCHEDULE
| Semester |
Dissertation
Activity |
| Summer
Year 1 |
«
program orientation |
| Fall
Year 1 |
«
explore techniques for qualitative and quantitative analysis
« case
studies in educational research and evaluation |
| Spring
Year 1 |
«
introduction to dissertation process
« generate
dissertation topic and questions related to issue at place of employment
or related institutions (clients) where data are available
« draft
preliminary introduction and significance section of dissertation for faculty
review |
| Summer
Year 2 |
«
explore and synthesize research literature related to topic
« draft
literature review section for faculty review
« develop
research design and draft research design section for faculty review |
| Fall
Year 2 |
«
begin data collection and analysis |
| Spring
Year 2 |
«
revise and finalize significance, literature review, and research design
sections for approval by faculty committee as part of comprehensive examination
«
begin data collection and analysis and draft
findings section for faculty review and approval
|
Summer/Fall
Year
3 |
«
complete data collection and analysis and write findings section for faculty
review and approval
« complete
conclusions and implications sections for faculty review and approval |
| Spring
Year 3 |
«
defend dissertation (oral presentation and paper) |
|
|
