Chapter 1 Revised

As frustrating as it is for those who are following my dissertation journey… my deepest apologies.  Here is my December 2011 update… I have completed Chapter One… again.  This seems absolutely ridiculous, but I have learned a couple of things:  (1) the body of the dissertation relies heavily on the quality and clarity of Chapter 1; (2) the dissertation process is 100% attuned to my happiness.  What do I mean by this?  I am not saying that I have to be “happy” to write and research.  What I am saying is, I need a clear mind and spirit to write my dissertation with some objectivity, distantiation, and disembeddedness.

There is no question in my mind that my research topic is important to me.  My greatest concerns are advocating for student learning, teacher professional development, and quality mathematics education.  My writing has evolved over time.  How do I know?  Here’s my feedback so far… Version 1: “Get out of the problem.” Version 2: “It’s not political.” Version 3: “It’s not about you.”  Version 4: “Make it academic.”  And, here I am at Version 5 that I have edited and avoided numerous times this winter session.  What did I have to do?  Tighten my writing, revise my research question, focus on teacher learning not teacher efficacy, “make it academic,” and figuring out the ‘Significance of the Study.’  This has been a daunting process, but I am understanding that this kind of precision matters.

Is this what we refer to as 21st Century Learning?  I am using technology.  My learning is personally relevant.  I am working at my own pace.  With that said, working independently and self-directing my learning has been challenging and sometimes non-existent.  Yet, I am grateful to have the opportunity to challenge myself in my doctoral studies to prove to myself that it is possible.  However, I can certainly see how completion rates can be compromised with this approach.  A balance between formative feedback, personal accountability, and autonomous learning would be ideal.

In the spring session, I will be on the SFU Burnaby campus for the Teaching & Learning Centre certificate program on learning how to teach in universities.  This will be a once a week affair.  To take it a bit further, I talked briefly to one of my supervisors last week who offered to get me a desk at the Surrey campus to study regularly on campus.  I love this idea.  Being on campus, connecting with others, resonates with my learning style.  I am an extroverted thinker.  Running around in a hamster wheel of my own mind can result in unnecessary spinning (aka. little productivity).  I look forward to making the shift, writing & researching, and committing to get my research done.

Keep it narrow.  Keep it doable.  Keep it academic.  Chapter 2, here I come… the Literature Review.