Abstract
Transformative Doctoral Research Practices for Professionals offers a timely insight into the distinctive purpose and impact of the professional doctorate in education (EdD). Burnard, Dragovic, Flutter and Alderton have compiled a fascinating and institution-specific collection that shines a light on lived-through doctoral journeys from the perspective of professional doctoral students as well as their supervisors. The focus of the book, as the title suggests, is on the transformative nature of doctoral research as it examines the role of reflexivity, negotiating identity shifts and the centrality of professionals’ practice in the design and delivery of an EdD programme.
The book comprises three parts, each containing thought-provoking chapters from a range of viewpoints. The inclusion of reflections from supervisors and doctoral students ensures that the book could usefully guide potential and current doctoral students in reflecting on their own journeys. It also raises fundamental discussion points about how doctoral educators can support students to navigate their journeys. The metaphor of a voyage or journey is used by Flutter at the outset and conclusion of the collection to highlight the themes that characterise a professional doctorate experience, including: - Embarkation - Learning the ropes - Guiding lights - Logging the journey - New waters.
Flutter’s use of these themes locates the text in current discussions such as Costly and Lester’s argument about the centrality of practice, experience and context in professional doctorates when compared with traditional doctoral studies.
In the first part, ‘Mapping doctoral practices’, Burnard sets the scene for professional doctorates both nationally and internationally, before considering the role of the researching professional. Here, the challenges, demands and conflicts of being a researching professional are eloquently presented. Burnard argues that one of the fundamental tools to deal with these issues is explicit critical reflexivity, as the ‘researcher is the instrument’ in professional doctoral practices. The subsequent chapters in part one are written by doctoral students, each of whom reflect on their reasons for embarking on a professional doctorate. These narratives provide the reader with a refreshing appreciation of the personal and professional motivating factors involved in choosing a professional doctorate. Particularly interesting are the narratives of two students who have already completed PhDs. As they share their experiences, the reader gains a valuable and rare insight into the lived differences between traditional and professional doctorates.
The second part, ‘Theorising doctorate journeying’, moves on to explore the ‘what’ and ‘how’ of undertaking and supervising a professional doctorate. Dragovic sets the scene by conceptualising the art and craft of professional doctorates. She argues that the craft of professional doctorates is the skill in planning a doctoral journey alongside a professional and personal journey, while the art is the creative process of the journey producing not only the final product (the thesis) but also a new professional identity. This is followed by student reflections on their own shifts in mindset, their changing self (professionally and personally) and shifts in identity. What is particularly notable in this part is the intensely powerful personal accounts that are included in the chapters. One student tells the story of his significant financial hardships, personal difficulties and deep loneliness that did not diminish either his determination to complete the professional doctorate or his sense of empowerment.
The final part of the book, ‘Generating impact’, considers the impact ripples and splashes that can travel from the researcher. Flutter’s examination of the small-scale ripples and immediate, transformative splashes of impact that her work has created is a useful one for professional doctorate students and beginning researchers. The examples of the student voice movement and The Cambridge Primary Review illustrate the impact that is both within and beyond the researcher’s control. The following chapters written by students and supervisors develop the discussion to consider impact within individual experiences, professional contexts and wider fields.
Flutter returns to the theme of voyage in her concluding chapter, as she synthesises the broad issues examined in the collection. She acknowledges the limitations of considering one particular programme and context, while arguing that ‘like all maps, they tell us something about the landscapes and seas they represent and offer directions and ideas for our travelling and exploration in the future’ (160). This is precisely what this collection contributes to the field: a detailed examination of the students, supervisors and programme in one particular institution, whilst encouraging direct engagement in the conversation about how being a professional doctorate student and educator can result in new perspectives, voices and pedagogic practices.