Ifan Shepherd - The Dissertation: Skylark or Albatross?

The (Masters) Dissertation: Skylark or Albatross?

Prof. Ifan D H ShepherdDirector, Professional Practice Programmes

Middlesex University Business School

Middlesex UniversityAnnual Teaching & Learning Conference

11 July 2013

Next week’s celebrations

© 2013 - Ifan D H Shepherd, Middlesex University Business School

The academic gown tradition


Dissertation: a diverging tradition

Dissertatio (Latin):

“any formal discourse in speech or writing”

Common in the title of 17th century scientific books e.g. Jacobi Bernouilli (1685) Dissertatio de Gravitate Aetheris

19th century American culture:

"An American cannot converse, but he can discuss, and his talk falls into a dissertation. He speaks to you as if he was addressing a meeting…"

-- Alexis de Tocqueville (1835)


The research-based dissertation

The research PhD emerged in 19th century German universities -- e.g. Friedrich Wilhelm University

Traditional dissertation chapters appeared:

‘Methodology’

‘Literature review’

‘Results/Findings’

’Analysis and Interpretation of Findings’

This structure closely linked with scientific experimentation


A persistent tradition – trickled down


Cultural divergence in terminology


UK USA

Dissertation Masters PhD

Thesis PhD Masters

The masters landscape (UK)


MA

MSc

MPhil

MRes

MBA

MProf

Subjectemphasis

Researchemphasis

Academicemphasis

Vocational/Professionalemphasis

Roles of the masters (then and now)

15th century: “A licence to practice theology” -- Hart (2004)

19th century: “Altogether a teacher’s degree” -- McLaughlin (1917)

20th century: “Preparation for a doctorate” -- ‘Second cycle’ in Bologna Process

21st century: “A PhD is not enough these days … You need something more to stand out. Go do an MBA … or a masters in patent law” -- Unemployed Australian PhD student (2013)


Roles of the masters dissertation (now)

Gives students an opportunity to:

shine (i.e. be ‘stretched’) enjoy a capstone learning experience acquire mastery of research methods through application be inducted in the ways of the (academic) researcher

“Your [masters] dissertation is the physical evidence that you [can] be accredited as a competent researcher” -- Hart (2004)

The PhD dissertation is the “centrepiece of graduate education” -- Boyer (1990)


So…

Is everything in the garden rosy?

The masters landscape (UK)


MA

MSc

MPhil

MRes

MBA

MProf

Subjectemphasis

Researchemphasis

Academicemphasis

Vocational/Professionalemphasis

An inquest into our Masters dissertation

Autumn 2008 : Department of Marketing & Enterprise

Continuing under-performance by a significant percentage of students submitting a dissertation

Distinction 13% Merit 18% Pass 32% Fail 19% } c.40% failed or Referred to Registry 18% } referred for plagiarism

[ 2007-2008 academic year, n=39 students ]


An inquest into our Masters dissertation

Poor lecture & seminar attendance

Vague and/or confused research proposals

Late submission of research proposals

Highly plagiarised literature reviews

Weak methodology

Superficial data analysis

Inability to express ideas coherently

etc.


A problem of our own making?

We restrict the period available for mastery of research methods and their application -- “Dissertations within masters programmes follow the completion of taught modules” (MU Learning Framework)

We atomise the research process, and wonder why dissertation chapters are disconnected


A problem of our own making?

We feed students unnecessary jargon -- e.g. research, paradigm, positivism, ontology

We adopt categories of dubious value -- e.g. quantitative vs qualitative data/research

We nurture expectations of original knowledge -- “an emphasis on independent and original study” (ITS)


Research competence doesn’t come easily

Many students (especially overseas) do not come from a western academic research culture

Research methods mastery can’t be achieved within the one-year masters

Gladwell’s ‘10,000 hours rule’ for mastery/expertise is a salutary reminder not to have exaggerated expectations


The numbers challenge

Large masters intake (e.g. 100+ per annum)

+Modest-sized department (e.g. 20+ staff)

=

Supervisory problem

5-10 students per annum per supervisor Frequent demands from needy students

But this is not simply a numbers problem…


The ‘tangential duties’ problem

What do the following have in common? –

Supervising dissertations Attending recruitment events (e.g. open evenings) Visiting placement students Answering student emails promptly

Evidence of a module-based silo mentality


One person’s honesty

“I would have been a bad don [at Cambridge]. … I would not have been sufficiently interested in my students ... I’m not humble enough, and the capacity for ordinary work is not in me. The necessary sense of duty to my students would have been missing.”


So … What’s to be done?

Sticking plaster vs radical surgery

Sticking plaster solutions (1)

Problem: Insisting on a thorough literature review when students may never have encountered a journal article Solutions: -- Support practice in critical reading -- Bibliography only of read items -- Appendix of annotated read items -- Reduce assessment weighting

Problem: Foisting a full research methods course on students when < 20% relevant to their research project Solution: -- A la carte rather than table d’hôte research methods course


Sticking plaster solutions (2)

Leaving writing until the end of the process Solutions: -- write as a form of thinking (e.g. ‘research journal’) -- write early to permit supervisory feedback -- write throughout to avoid the deadline guillotine -- write often to permit plagiarism checks


Towards more radical solutions

Some awkward questions I’ve asked myself:

What (exactly) does ‘academic’ mean in a research context?

What do our employed students do at work that could make a contribution to knowledge?

How do you wrap research around professional activities?

Is the disinterested researcher an outmoded ideal?

How can knowledge (academic as well as professional) be generalised?


An alternative perspective on dissertations

The academic researcher is ever on the outside looking in…


…while the professional practitioner is an embedded researcher

The relevance of insider research

The academic style of research dissertation for part-time (i.e. working) students is of questionable value

-- actionable knowledge is equally valuable -- action research can be equally rigorous -- team-based research may be more relevant

Maybe we should replace ‘academic’ by ‘relevant’ as the criterion of ‘level 7-ness’

We have considered two variants of insider research: R & D projects

Professional practice dissertations

In both cases, there is a bigger role for assessing the research process itself -- e.g. through students’ critical reflection


We’re moving in the right direction…

e.g. MA marketing dissertations


MA MarketingManagement

MA MarketingCommunications

MA e-Marketing& Social Media

Research format

ResearchOR

R&D format

R&D format

Marketing is following a well-trodden Business School path e.g. HRM, Accounting, Finance, MBA, etc.

Old habits die hard…


Research dissertation

Aims and objectives (10%) Literature review (25%) Methodology (20%) Findings & analysis (20%) Conclusions & recommendations (15%)

Language & presentation (10%)

R&D dissertation

Client needs (10% User needs (10%) Clients/user requirements (10%) Team R&D process (10%) Technical & organisational specifications (20%) Implementation (30%) Evaluation (10%)

We’re moving in the right direction…


We also have an MProf in Professional Practice for:

Accounting, Business, Economics, Enterprise, Finance,Human Resources, Management, Marketing

Includes APL/APEL, Review of Learning, and a practice- based research project centred on the practitioner’s organisational activities

No longer based on the mini-PhD template

Research without the dissertation?

The dissertation is not the only tool we have for giving students an opportunity to undertake research

Fieldwork and residentials Local business consultancies ‘Open’ paper Mini-projects etc.

Submissions encouraged in non-textual media


Research without the dissertation?

Q: If we believe research is so valuable for masters students, why not distribute it throughout their programmes?

Instead of the dissertation, we could have other kinds of ‘deliverable’:

reports audits evaluations proposals etc.



Martin Luther King’s PhD -- about half was plagiarised (After a formal enquiry, Boston University decided not to strip him posthumously of

his doctorate)

What would we lose without dissertations?

A useful reminder that while there may be shortcutsto producing a dissertation, there are no shortcuts to

becoming an effective researcher

What would we lose without dissertations?

Simon Pegg’s undergraduate dissertation: ‘Base and Supersucker’ A marxist critique of Star Wars, comparing

the film to the Cold War


Ros Barber’s DPhil thesis: ‘Writing Marlowe as writing Shakespeare’

= blank verse novel + commentary(70k words + 50k words)

Thanks for listening!

Happy to answer your questionsand hear your own solutions

[email protected]

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Ifan Shepherd - The Dissertation: Skylark or Albatross?