A Case Study of an Intervention to Support Ed.D. Students in Dissertation Writing

Literature Of Best Practices For Dissertation Writing

For most new faculty, their only experience with dissertation supervision was their own as a student. Thus, they may mentor doctoral students as they were mentored, with little knowledge of what is actually effective or how to meet the needs of different doctoral students. “The traditional model of graduate student supervision can no longer work. It is simply inadequate to the demands of a situation where many supervisors are barely socialized into the demands and rigours of an academic scholarly and research culture” (Yeatman, 1995, p. 9). Kluever (1997) compared responses of doctoral graduates and ABD students in the field of education, finding “regularly scheduled meetings with an advisor, seminars on approaching the dissertation, and a thorough understanding of college and university dissertation guidelines were rated most highly” by completers (p. 52). Similarly, De Valero (2001) examined departmental factors and their influence on doctoral student time-to-degree, making recommendations such as orientations and dissertation workshops, but not implementing any such programs. While articles have been published describing the different responsibilities of a dissertation supervisor, such as “Cheerleader, Coach, Counselor, Critic: Support and Challenge Roles of the Dissertation Advisor” (Spilleti & Moisiewicz, 2004), few have examined best practices in the field (Creighton, Parks, & Creighton, 2008; Mullen, 2007; Yeatman, 1995).