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in reply to: Module 2, Session 2: Assignment (MU) #4549
In what way may the foreseen summer school or educational course differ from a regular course in terms of duration, distribution and frequency of course sessions, diversity and potential motivation of participants, delivery methods and other factors you can think off?
In our case it is very likely that the course will be much shorter in duration as compared to a regular semester’s course. In this case 1 or 2 weeks. This would of course make it more intense (as Fikret put it also in the last module). This would therefore require daily interactions with the participants in one way or another.The diversity of the participants will depend on the course(s) on offer at the time, i.e. is is a course focused on teaching a new skill or creating more in-depth knowledge etc. The motivation of participants is likely to be extrinsic with a few intrinsically motivated individuals. This means the element of course assessment has to be well thought out. Utilization of innovative teaching methods, both online and face-to-face is key in keeping the participants engaged. Using practicals and field excursions could be of great help.
How may such diverging factors influence course design?
1. The target audience/participants
2. The intended duration of the course
3. The mode and methods of delivery
4. The course assessmentTo what extent does the foreseen course support research?
The exchange of ideas involving practitioners, governmental institutions and academia should in one way or another spur or support research activities. E.g. by establishing gaps that research activities may plug or finding ways to make more use of existing research findings.Define the intended learning outcomes for the foreseen course and describe the learning activities and the assessment methods that you plan to develop.
We can have further discussion as a team and come up with these as we go along.in reply to: Module 1: Session 3 (MU) #4502I am just wondering about how feasible the academic summer school is in our case. The way our system works there isn’t much need for a credited summer school since students who are failing require to resit or retake (whichever applies) their exams/courses when they are next offered.
For the one week summer school it is possible to run a course using the shared responsibility approach… between/ amongst schools within the university, and also with other external universities and/or institutions. In that case the timelines G.M.O has given may be too tight? We may need at least 6 months to identify instructors.
in reply to: Module 5, Session 3: When Things Go Wrong #3249Things are bound to go wrong every once in a while where human beings are concerned. However, what is critical is to have systems in place to ensure that if things don’t go according to plan, there are quick remedial measures.
That said, the examiner should have had the courtesy to return the thesis as soon as they realised they were not capable of examining it
@Rox, just wondering about the additional payments bit. I don’t think that is possible in my university.Hmmmm! Time management is an issue for both supervisors and students at my institution. Not because there are no guidelines (Lucas mentioned above that there are) but adherence due to different reasons becomes a problem.
For the supervisors for instance, teaching is a big part of their daily lives, not to mention departmental meetings and other activities. One would think that a diary would come in handy here but in most cases meetings are on short notice or impromptu, which means EVERYTHING in the diary has to be moved around.
For the students, I think the main thing they have to contend with is juggling work, family life and their research. Most times the former take precedence over the latter.
I therefore very much like the idea of an MOU. Once signed, if there is an adjustment or a breach…there is an explanation as to why what happened did. And like explained in the video, this may be critical for conflict resolution and tracking progress.in reply to: Module 4, Session 3: Coaching and Mentoring #3206Supervisors can be mentors…however not all are. Most supervisors lean towards coaching. Maybe it gets the work done (fit for purpose), given the numerous number of students they have to deal with.
Mentorship requires the existence of some chemistry between the supervisor and student, not usually an easy thing to come by. The resulting relationship is life-long in most cases but with very clear boundaries. Mentorship also requires a very high level of emotional and social intelligence.
This presentation spoke to me at a very personal level. The experiences I went through (both good and bad) as a postgraduate student and what I see students go through now.
One’s role in a research and examination committee should not be taken lightly as it has the power to make or break a young researcher’s spirit. Therefore, in executing our mandate in these committees, it is crucial that we refer to an earlier module of this course that talks about humanising pedagogy. Sometimes what happens is that some academics may feel like the ‘postgraduate club’ should be designate for a chosen few and tend to bring unnecessary power struggles to the examination process.
However, as supervisors it is important to perform ‘due diligence’ like the powerpoint presentation clearly put it so that we don’t end up sending questionable works for examination.in reply to: Module 4, Session 1: Ethics in Research #3203Pertinent ethical issues in my field mainly revolve about how to treat and interact with human participants. This may be issues ranging confidentiality, benefits accruing from a research to how to conduct research in an inclusive manner.
Nurturing ethical responsibility in our students must start early, like Susan pointed out. At undergraduate level is good but in my opinion even earlier. Since we are cogs in a wheel that is the education system, these young minds are passed to us from earlier interactions with other educationists and the earlier they learn what is ethical, the easier it gets for these issues to be reinforced at university level.
But also important is how ethical we are when we carry out our own research. Our students observe what we do and are sometimes part of our research teams. So leading by example is critical in this aspect.Yes, very insightful session on how to give feedback to our students. I have been using this technique (most of the time) to give feedback to my students. I will agree with Everlyn however that sometimes this is much easier said. Just like in conversations, there are people who tend to rephrase the questions asked and give responses to their own questions. What happens then?? Especially if the student keeps doing it over and over and over. And not only when you comment on writing but even when you have face to face meetings with them. They choose how to understand simple and straightforward questions and show up with responses that make you wonder if you ARE part of that conversation…Also thinking aloud:)
This session was very useful for me, not just for developing student writing but also my own writing. As a recent PhD, as well as delving into the supervising world, I am still trying to improve my writing and get published more. It was refreshing to note that I am not the only one who sometimes reads an abstract or an article and at the end of it still wonder what the mumbo jumbo was about, ‘The case of the Anthracenetetrone’ ;)
This session helped me realise that a lot of academics struggle with writing. More importantly, I learnt that I have also been doing a few things right…like free writing and always having something to jot down ideas when they pop up. My challenge usually is that it is often a different book most of the time so I usually have a hell of a time trying to keep track of which handbag has the last ideas.
The pomodoro technique was new to me (at least the term was) and I thought it would be an interesting technique to suggest to students as well as use to improve my writing.
in reply to: Module 2, Session 4: EPE resources’ assessment #2789The EPE website is a wealth of information! I found myself struggling to figure out what would be most relevant for my students and for me as a supervisor…I eventually gave up. I must commend all of the people who gave their time to the development of the website. Very easy to navigate too!
The one thing that stuck out for me is that when we talk about dissemination and publication, we always have at the back of our minds the academic community. For me, postgraduate research is definitely more, and we need to start promoting ways that allow researchers to get the findings of their research out to the lay public. That, is what I would add.
What might a PG supervisor’s support network provide? How can such a network be built?
I think this network can provide mentorship opportunities from peers. Once a faculty member graduates to a supervisor, it would be nice to be able to stand on the shoulders of those who went ahead….so to say. This might of course include his/her own supervisors (depending on the kind or relationship that was developed). This mentorship relationship allows the supervisor to change their hat accordingly to that of mentor or mentee, depending on the circumstances
in reply to: Module 2 – Session 3: Case Studies #2348Group 12 Case F
The key issues in play: Scenario 1. Gender, culture and socialization maybe key here. Gatimu may have been raised to think that men are hunters and aggressors and all women are therefore ‘prey’. In this case he may not even be aware that he is crossing the line.
Scenario 2. Personality. Gatimu may just be the kind of person who does not respect boundaries. And the fact that he was brought into the project because he was a top student in his class may make him think that he is indispensable and can get away with anything.The group felt that a holistic understanding of the issues in play would enable the supervisor chart the most appropriate way forward in dealing with the issue for instance, if there was need for counselling, training on sexual harassment, further investigations or even disciplinary measures.
in reply to: Module 2, Session 1: Library resources and support #2160I think that for most students and possibly supervisors, the role of the library remains a place to get books…literally. Most of us (including the library at my institution)still do not appreciate the wider scope of activities that the library plays in research. This perception in my opinion has limited what would otherwise be a very vibrant relationship between the library and the other two arms of research mentioned at the beginning of the session.Consequently, most of us are unaware of some of the things that the library may already offer and that might make the postgraduate research easier.
I genuinely feel that the library at my institution needs to reinvent and rebrand itself so that it does not become obsolete.Researchers on the other hand also need to make more effort to make their needs known to the library to enable this happen.
I think Gender, status and age are variables that play a role in what knowledge counts. The reality in my institution is that there are more male academics than female. This sometimes means that female researchers are overlooked or considered weaker. The ripple effect of this is that there are also more older male supervisors who hold higher status within the institution and there may be a tendency to patronise or intimidate younger female postgraduate researchers.
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