Doctoral boot camps: from military concept to andragogy

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to study the use of writing boot camp cycles with differentiated facilitation in promoting a research culture within an academic setting by investigating its effectiveness and challenges amongst early career researchers.Design/methodology/approachThis research takes a case study approach within a teaching-focussed private institution moving towards teaching and research. A mixed-method approach captured insights of academics' feelings and perceptions at different stages of the boot camps. Participants set their writing objectives prior to the programme. The initial writing boot camp was followed by a post-programme survey. Two months later, a focus group was conducted and the outcomes were used to refine the subsequent boot camp session.FindingsThe findings confirmed that writing boot camps are beneficial in enabling staff members to progress in their writing and in building a research culture. The study further highlighted some of the associated challenges.Research limitations/implicationsThis study used only the largest private institution in the country as a case.Practical implicationsThis paper highlights some of the key considerations and challenges for practitioners who wish to run effective writing boot camps, e.g. environment, facilitation, debriefing, frequency and duration.Originality/valueThis study introduces the concept of “Writing Boot Camp Cycles” coupled with “Differentiated Facilitation” to enhance the output of writing boot camps while at the same time promoting a research culture.

The HDR Process: Reflection on the Motivational Factors, Academic Model, Influences and Challenges That Enabled an Academic to Complete Her Thesis Part-Time

“…Knowledge and knowing how the macro and micro systems work is not always obvious to the diverse community of students undertaking higher degree research programs [19]. Knowles suggests that adults need to be involved in planning and providing feedback on learning.…”

“…Knowles suggests that adults need to be involved in planning and providing feedback on learning. He offers a framework to make sense of the thesis journey where the self-concept of a student moves from being dependent on the supervisor to a self-directed learner [19]. Adult learners have a wealth of experience to refer to which should be a resource for learning.…”

“…Students need to know how to seek guidance and communicate their needs, sharing impediments or barriers, so that the supervisor can adjust expectations and segment tasks scaffolding learning [19]. By posing questions of clarification in a positive way to their supervisors in the micro system they should be able to elicit a useful response, but timing is also an issue ([14, [19].…”

“…Students need to know how to seek guidance and communicate their needs, sharing impediments or barriers, so that the supervisor can adjust expectations and segment tasks scaffolding learning [19]. By posing questions of clarification in a positive way to their supervisors in the micro system they should be able to elicit a useful response, but timing is also an issue ([14, [19]. Also, students do not always know what they do not know as there are limited opportunities for them to converse positively about these concerns with peers and supervisors [20] In some professional doctorates, completion of coursework prior to working on the thesis is required.…”

“…If the students lack knowledge about how the system works and the micro learning activities available to them, it can become a barrier to learning. Stress, fear of the unknown and feelings of helplessness would retain the student in the dependency phase rather than enable progression to become a self-directed learner [19].…”