Assessing the Quality of Supervision Experiences in the Different Research Stages at Postgraduate Level

Saleem, Tooba; Mahmood, Nasir

doi:10.22555/joeed.v5i2.1851

Cited by 13 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Jones (2013), for example, established that from 1971 to 2012, research on doctoral studies through examining 995 publications focused on six themes: teaching (3%), employment and career (post-doc) (13%), writing and research (14%), the student-supervisor relationship (15%), doctoral students' experience (26%) and doctoral programme design (29%). Saleem and Mehmood (2018) explored the role of supervisors as perceived by supervisees at different stages of the doctoral supervision process. The findings established the need to train supervisors in time management in the areas of teaching and supervision that reflects the stage students are at in their doctoral studies.…”

Section: Problem Statement and Study Objectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Trends show increased enrolment in doctoral studies in developed and developing countries, because of their relevance at the personal and societal level (Cyranoski, Gilbert, Ledford, Nayar, & Yahia, 2011;Pearson, Cumming, Evans, Macauley, & Ryland, 2011). However, enrolment is limited by the ability of institutions to manage the doctoral education process, especially the related supervision (Saleem & Mehmood, 2018). Apart from the institutional mechanisms guiding supervision in line with the Salzburg Principles II (2010), the supervision of those pursuing modern doctorates (which include trans-, cross-and multi-disciplinary studies) and how doctoral supervisors develop the supervision skills in the contemporary world has not been theoretically researched (Bøgelund, 2015;Bacwayo, Nampala, & Oteyo, 2017;Fillery-Travis et al, 2017;Halse, 2011;Saleem & Mehmood, 2018;Sefotho, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Theoretical Perspective on How Doctoral Supervisors Develop Supervision Skills

Swai

2019

IJDS

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Aim/Purpose: The paper establishes how doctoral supervisors develop the supervision skills needed to handle the doctoral supervision process in the contemporary world. Background: While the existing literature confirms that PhD holders can supervise doctoral students, there is a need to provide supporting evidence that the skills they possess qualify them to do this. Methodology: Using the qualitative research approach, the study established the knowledge and skills that are needed to supervise doctoral students in the contemporary world. Through thematic analysis of 82 scholarly publications, the study established, in order of preference, five mechanisms through which doctoral supervisors develop supervision skills, i.e. the supervision process, doctoral education, institutional guidelines, institutional training courses and individualized learning. Contribution: The study contributes to the ongoing research on the supervision of doctoral studies in the 21st century. Findings: Findings show that a well-structured doctoral education, including the related processes, imparts the knowledge and skills needed for doctoral supervision. Likewise, a combination of the mechanisms and an individual’s commitment, in terms of time and engagement, develop the skills that are relevant for doctoral supervision. Recommendations for Practitioners: Higher Education Institutions need to make supervisors aware of the potential of these mechanisms for developing the skills necessary for doctoral supervision and encourage them to use them Recommendation for Researchers: Further research on the development of doctoral supervision skills should broadly consider the role of different programmes in developing doctoral supervision skills in different contexts. Impact on Society: The study has implications for doctoral supervisors and universities as regards the need to ensure that both mechanisms are instituted to enable doctoral supervisors to develop doctoral supervision skills. Future Research: Since the study was done theoretically, it might be important to conduct further research using mixed-methods research with a phenomenological design to establish the skills possessed by doctoral supervisors and the mechanism they used to develop the supervision skills in any context.

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Section: Problem Statement and Study Objectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Theoretical Perspective on How Doctoral Supervisors Develop Supervision Skills

Swai

2019

IJDS

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“…On top of that, good research experience, conduct, and thesis report are largely determined by the quality of supervision that takes place throughout the process (Lankau & Scandura, 2007;Maxwell & Smyth, 2010;McAlpine & McKinnon, 2013Moxham et al, 2013Saleem & Mehmood, 2018). Guiding research is an often complex task which requires the supervisor to not only be an experienced researcher, an expert in the subject matter, and a master in the methodological aspect of the research, but also an empathetic individual with sufficient supervision skills (Phillips-Jones, 2003;Roberts & Seaman, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Guiding research is an often complex task which requires the supervisor to not only be an experienced researcher, an expert in the subject matter, and a master in the methodological aspect of the research, but also an empathetic individual with sufficient supervision skills (Phillips-Jones, 2003;Roberts & Seaman, 2018). Previous researchers examining supervision (Anderson et al, 2006;Denis et al, 2019;Ismail et al, 2014;Jamieson & Gray, 2006;Phillips-Jones, 2003;Saleem & Mehmood, 2018) have tended to emphasize several elements as the critical determinants of a successful dissertation: the need for students to develop their analytical skills and improve their communication skills; a supervisor-supervisee relationship which includes the personal dimension of thesis supervision; the quality of feedback and guidance provided; expectations and the degree of mutual agreement. Other scholars (Nordentoft et al, 2013;Nurie, 2018;Peachey & Baller, 2015;Wichmann-Hansen et al, 2015) have also suggested factors which are effective in preparing a good thesis report which include: clarity of goals, standards, and expectations; thesis supervision and (written) feedback; types of feedback (content, generic, linguistic); promotion of skills; scientific climate; team-based learning and collaboration; evaluation process; students' satisfaction and exposure in the process of thesis writing.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment Rubric for Research Report Writing: A Tool for Supervision

Bukhari

Jamal

Ismail

et al. 2021

Malaysian Journal of Learning and Instruction

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Purpose – Assessment rubric often lacks rigor and is underutilized. This article reports the effectiveness of the use of several assessment rubrics for a research writing course. Specifically, we examined students’ perceived changes and observed changes in their Chapter 1 thesis writing as assessed by supervisors using an existing departmental rubric and a new task-specific rubric. Methodology – Using action research methodology, two of the authors played active roles as the course supervisors, i.e., the practitioners. Two final year undergraduate students from a communication department (one from each supervisor) participated by writing three drafts of the first chapter of their research: (1) without a rubric, (2) with an existing departmental rubric, and (3) with a revised rubric. We collected artefacts of students’ writing drafts; students’ interviews; and supervisors’ reflections over the course of four months. We employed content analysis to evaluate students’ writing, while thematic analysis to analyze the students’ semi-structured interview and supervisors’ reflections. Findings – The findings suggest substantial improvements between the three drafts of students’ writing. Each student-supervisor pair acknowledged the improvements in the student’s writing after the introduction of the departmental rubric. With the newly revised rubric, they noted additional and more specific improvements especially in the scope of literature searches, problem statements, formulation of research questions, and operational definitions of variables; more generally, they also indicated improvements in the clarity of writing by using examples and providing relevant explanations tailored to the research topics. Significance – With effective scaffolding in supervision, students will regulate their learning and assess the quality of their own research report writing. We demonstrated the importance and benefits of a properly designed and validated rubric tailored to the program and course objectives to help students improve their writing drafts. Collective collaboration and input-sharing from faculty and instructors in developing and improving a rubric specific to the course and program objectives will produce quality assignments, provide constructive learning experiences for students, and achieve better grading for the program and department.

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“…In the local context, a review of indigenous studies indicates that these constructs have not been explored earlier through any qualitative research study. Most of the doctoral education-related studies have focused on exploring supervision related issues (Saleem & Mahmood, 2017;Saleem & Mehmood, 2018;Hammad, Ahmed, & Zahoor, 2018;Riffat & Muhammad, 2019) and on the lived experiences of doctoral students (Ali, Ullah, & Sanauddin, 2019). There seems a dearth of research studies related to doctoral students' perceptions of writing dissertations in the Pakistani context.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Writing a Doctoral Dissertation: A Qualitative Study of Education Doctoral Students' Perceptions

Batool

Muhammad

Anis

2021

GSR

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For doctoral students, dissertation writing is an important stage in their completion of the degree. They might face several problems during this stage. The aim of the current qualitative study was to explore doctoral students' perceptions of dissertation writing. Ten participants were selected through a purposive sampling technique from the education department of a private university in Lahore, Pakistan. An interview guide was constructed in light of the research objectives and literature review. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed through qualitative content analysis. The findings of the study revealed language barriers, insufficient academic writing skills, inadequate supervisory support, and personal factors as problems faced by doctoral students during their dissertation writing. It is recommended that an academic writing course should be offered during coursework. Moreover, effective supervisory support should be ensured at the dissertation writing stage. The concerned department should facilitate and solve the problems of doctoral students during their write-up stage.

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Assessing the Quality of Supervision Experiences in the Different Research Stages at Postgraduate Level

Cited by 13 publications

References 14 publications

A Theoretical Perspective on How Doctoral Supervisors Develop Supervision Skills

A Theoretical Perspective on How Doctoral Supervisors Develop Supervision Skills

Assessment Rubric for Research Report Writing: A Tool for Supervision

Writing a Doctoral Dissertation: A Qualitative Study of Education Doctoral Students' Perceptions

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