Taking you into the holidays, this week’s EDDi is a postgraduate tips ‘Extra’.

Our study tips piece considers:

Educational stratification. What are the best and most prominent readings that would be recommended (empirically and theoretically)?

In ‘Thinking Sociologically’ we ask:

What is the relationship between culture, society and politics?

And, for any EDDi readers also on Twitter, there is a useful thread here on browser extensions to have/install during postgraduate study - potentially a huge time saver and well worth a look.

In addition to these postgraduate pieces, we are also reposting last week’s article by Dr Denry Machin. Hugely popular, Denry looks at what is involved in the new PGCE iQTS qualification, how it is different to PGCEi’s, and how each is valued by the market.

The PGCE … now with added iQTS: Why the letters after your name matter

Don’t forget too that EDDi readers can still get access free access (in both text and audio form) to the Foreword of Dr Stephen Whitehead’s new book ‘Total Inclusivity At Work’. You can download the chapter here.

Happy reading…and enjoy your summer break.

EDDi

You may not use theory to understand your reality, but theory certainly uses you. Whether you are a teacher, principle, lecturer, student or simply curious, in this short EDDi section Dr Stephen Whitehead will answer common questions related to sociological theory. 

All of his answers were originally published on Quora*. We offer these answers on EDDi in the hope you acquire some sociological insights into the 21st century. 

Treat these articles as a healthy, and heavier, counter-point to all the lighter fluff which gets posted on social media.

Question: What is the relationship between culture, society and politics?

By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

This is a massive question that cannot be fully answered other than in a book.

But I’ll try.

The first thing that humans do when they connect with each other, in whatever environment, under whatever circumstances, and for whatever reason, is to begin to create a (mini)culture. Over time this culture deepens, strengthens, gets passed on to future generations and so becomes directly connected to the individual’s sense of who they are. Reinforced by intimate relations (e.g. families) so emerges the beginnings of a society. This has been the pattern of human life since at least homo sapiens and very probably before then.

So the basic and arguably most natural form of human existence is not isolation but community (starting with family). Communities have cultures (not least language), communities eventually merge and become societies. But societies need organisation, they need provisions, they need to develop and adapt, they need safety, they need protection. Societies need leaders. And so we have politics.

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book ‘Total Inclusivity At Work’ is available for pre-order HERE.

EDDi is delighted to offers readers FREE ACCESS to the books Foreword in both text and audio form (the latter via Jason Lasky).

For further details, download the flier:

Total Inclusiviry

4.36MB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Question: I am writing my PhD thesis on educational stratification. What are the best and most prominent readings that would be recommended (empirically and theoretically)?

By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

It is not possible to write a PhD thesis on educational stratification.

Why?

Because before you embark on the project, indeed before you even begin to write the PhD proposal, you must have identified which type of educational stratification you are referring to and intend to study.

Simply put, are you examining social class; gender; ethnicity/race; sexuality/trans; nationality; geopolitics; ableism?

Stratification is a big term encompassing a host of variables any one or combination of which might operate as a form of opportunity/disadvantage within any single intersectional identity.

I doubt you have been allowed to go forward with a PhD study without having first identified your precise research aims and objectives and these would address which type of stratification you intended to research. It is not possible to undertake any research which lacks such a focus because it would be just too vast, complicated, and unmanageable. You’d never complete it.

Let me give you fuller examples:

You want to research social class and educational stratification? Okay, then you are likely drawing on a (neo)marxist or structuralist range of theories which might be as diverse as Bourdieu (cultural capital), Gramsci (hegemony), Weber (bureaucracy), Gouldner (anti-functionalism) and Althusser (ideology). Within such theories power tends to be seen as juridico-discursive (Foucault) and structurally given rather than dispersed and subjectively interpreted.

You want to research gender/sex and educational stratification? Okay, then you are drawing on feminist theories and these range from liberal to radical, socialist to poststructuralist, postmodern to marxist. Each theory is substantively different and draws on different understandings of, say, power and identity. If you are researching men and educational stratification then you will have to refer to the large group of theories on men and masculinities, covering concepts such as hegemonic masculinity and a patriarchal dividend.

You want to research Black identities and educational stratification? Okay, but the first question is what type of Black identities - are they situated for example, in say, North America or South America; South Asia or the UK? As for theoretical positions, you could go for post-colonial theory, critical race theory, or utilise any of the (neo)marxist and feminist theories referred to above.

You want to research LGBTQ+ experiences of educational stratification? Then first you need to identify which identity within the acronym ‘LGBTQ+’ you are researching - there is no automatic and inevitable correspondence between them all even if they all get lumped together for the convenience of common social discourse. As for theoretical positions, you have a range at your disposal - intersectionality, queer theory, feminist poststructuralism, gay masculinities theory.

You want to research geopolitics and the stratifications operating within place, nationhood, globalisation? Again, a vast area but you are bound to touch on multiculturalism, diaspora, retreat to nationhood, competition between the urban and the rural, and the reality that everything is relational, fluid and contradictory. That may well take you into Lyotard and postmodernism.

And then there is the other variable not mentioned in your question which is which sphere of education are you researching?

pre-school; primary; secondary; further; higher?

They are all different, having different factors, histories, and forces applied to them by parents, governments, businesses, communities, societies, and the students themselves.

I have researched, for example, gender stratification within English further education management and used a mix of poststructuralism, masculinities theory, and the concept of performativity (see Stephen Ball’s work, and my book titled; ‘Managing Professional Identity’ Routledge, 2002). But this PhD study was highly specific and not intended to address similar situations which might be occurring in schools and universities, though clearly there are overlaps.

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book ‘Total Inclusivity At Work’ is available for pre-order HERE.

EDDi is delighted to offers readers FREE ACCESS to the books Foreword in both text and audio form (the latter via Jason Lasky).

For further details, download the flier:

Total Inclusiviry

4.36MB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

For many teachers, May represents a turning point. The end is in sight!

Well, it’s just over the horizon. There’s June to deal with first. For international school teachers, June is often characterised by fanfare and farewells. There are exams and reports, ‘goodbyes’ and ‘good lucks’. June passes in a blur, making May a critical month for planning ahead.

That might be planning the next move (have we mentioned there’s a book to help you with that…), planning what you’ll teach next year, or planning how you’ll spend the summer break.

For EDDi readers planning to spend the summer on postgraduate study, we encourage you to read through our series of ‘Postgraduate Tips’ articles, to which this week’s edition adds.

Our ‘PG Tips’ piece is useful for anyone contemplating a PhD:

How is a PhD in Europe different from a PhD in Asia?

Accompanying this is a ‘Sociologically Thinking’ piece asking:

What is Kant’s theory and critique of judgement?

You can also subscribe to access the full back catalogue of articles:

Subscribe now

And, if you are planning some summer reading, how about Dr Stephen Whitehead’s new book, Total Inclusivity at Work. EDDi readers can still get FREE ACCESS to a sample of the Foreword in both text and audio form (the latter via Jason Lasky).

We’ll be back early next month with another traditional EDDi digest - and with some of our own farewells.

Happy reading
EDDi

The New PGCE…now with added iQTS

As you've no doubt read, the UK Government is piloting a new PGCE iQTS programme, recognised by the Department for Education as equivalent to English qualified teacher status (QTS).

The University of Warwick is delighted to be one of a select few providers offering this exciting new programme for August 2022.

As you’d expect, the course is rigorous and robust. For an overview of the requirements, there is an outline (and individual eligibility checker) HERE. 

The introduction of PGCE iQTS also means a few changes for Warwick's highly successful PGCEi programme. The admissions and placement criteria have been simplified; head HERE for further information.

A useful comparison of the PGCE iQTS and PGCEi courses can be downloaded HERE.

If you have staff interested in either programme, please feel free to share EDDi.

Share EDDi: Educational Digest International

Or, alternatively, questions can be e-mailed to: pedagogue@warwick.ac.uk

Question: How is a PhD in Europe different from a PhD in Asia?
By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

The key differences between PhDs lies not so much between Europe and Asia, but between the USA and the UK, though European universities can have differing methods of assessment process (viva).

So when looking at Asian university doctorate processes, observe whether they follow the US or UK model.

The US Model

This follows a taught doctorate approach with PhD students spending 1–4 years in taught classes, producing module coursework (essays) before proceeding to production of a single dissertation (2–4 years).

USA students can potentially spend 6 years, full-time, on their PhD study. Only in the final thesis stage does the doctoral candidate undertake original research, leading typically to production of a 50–60k word thesis. In effect, the first two to four years of a US PhD are a lot like a Masters, and indeed some US universities may not make a distinction between an MA and PhD at this early stage. Only when the student has passed the taught element will they normally be permitted to move onto formal doctoral research.

Final thesis assessment is typically a comprehensive exam process, likely involving oral examination, debate with supervisors/examiners, presentation and defence of your doctoral dissertation.

The UK Model

Doctoral candidates submit a formal and quite comprehensive PhD proposal through the university channels, usually under guidance from their likely PhD supervisor. Once the candidate has had that proposal examined, assessed and passed by all relevant university committees (including the ethics committee) then the candidate will be enrolled as a doctoral candidate and can proceed to full research mode.

A full-time UK PhD takes a minimum of three, maximum of four years. Though extensions can be given upon formal request. In effect, unlike the USA model, the UK model ensures the PhD candidate proceeds to full and pure research from the outset. The only exception to this rule is if the university requires the candidate to undertake concurrent MA-level research methods training, usually lasting one or two semesters.

The candidate produces a 90,000 word thesis (note, UK theses are sized on word count, not page numbers as in the USA), excluding footnotes/endnotes, bibliography, appendices. Assessment is by viva voce only. This typically involves an internal (university professor) and external professor both reading and examining the final thesis, after which the candidate will submit to an oral examination/defence of their research.

The examination will conclude with the candidate being given one of four outcomes; fail; significant rewrite; minor rewrite; full pass with no alterations.

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book ‘Total Inclusivity At Work’ is available for pre-order HERE.

EDDi is delighted to offers readers FREE ACCESS to the books Foreword in both text and audio form (the latter via Jason Lasky).

For further details, download the flier:

9e187b11 924f 4cd3 9bce 8218da566001

4.36MB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

You may not use theory to understand your reality, but theory certainly uses you. Whether you are a teacher, principle, lecturer, student or simply curious, in this short EDDi section Dr Stephen Whitehead will answer common questions related to sociological theory. 

All of his answers were originally published on Quora*. We offer these answers on EDDi in the hope you acquire some sociological insights into the 21st century. 

Treat these articles as a healthy, and heavier, counter-point to all the lighter fluff which gets posted on social media.

What is Kant’s theory and critique of judgement?

By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

Kant produced an enormous amount of knowledge, theories, ideas, but one of his central arguments was that the individual is essentially free to act according to their needs and desires, and based on reason and experience.

At the same time, Kant argued that there were limits to reason, and that we should remain open to the metaphysical world, morality, the nonmaterial world (God, for instance).

We humans may consider ourselves accurate observers of reality, and we can indeed perceive the physical world around us (planets, planes, persons), but we are not seeing things as they are, but only as they appear to us. In other words, we see a planet and we label it a planet, analysis its movements, name it, and accord it a scientific rationality. But this is simply humans applying human understanding to something which exists external to us.

Similarly, with regard to morals and morality. Humans have struggled with morality since they first walked the earth, and even more so once they imagined a God and ascribed him the authority to dictate human moral codes and behaviour. Kant saw this moral confusion and uncertainty as a ‘bridge between the experience of being human and the nonmaterial world’.

Is the application of moral codes based on an innate human essence, the feeling that something is right or wrong, true or false? Or is it is based on a moral (God-given) law which exists prior to humankind?

Whatever, Kant saw morality as a defining and most positive aspect of being human. Without it, humans cannot exist. We can apply reason and rationality to our moral judgements, thereby rendering them true to us.

In a testament to Kant’s brilliance, one need only read the epitaph (taken from the Critique of Practical Reason) chiselled on his gravestone, for it signals not a man with answers, but a man who remained incredulous to the questions:

“Two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing admiration and awe, the more often and steadily reflection occupied with them: the starry heaven above me and the moral law within me.”

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book ‘Total Inclusivity At Work’ is available for pre-order HERE.

EDDi is delighted to offers readers FREE ACCESS to the books Foreword in both text and audio form (the latter via Jason Lasky).

For further details, download the flier:

9e187b11 924f 4cd3 9bce 8218da566001

4.36MB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Authors: Abdeljalil Akkari and Kathrine Maleq (Universite de Geneve, Switzerland)
Summary: Dr Stephen Whitehead

I recently had a conversation with a prominent international educationalist who remarked to me on the continued hegemony of ‘Britishness’ in international schooling.

Not being British himself, he was rather stumped by the fact that (despite Covid) British curriculum international schools, many of them in the self-proclaimed ‘elite’ bracket regarding fees and facilities, were continuing to expand in some number across East and South East Asia. He asked:

“Why is British education (and culture) so popular?”

I do have some answers though you’ll have to wait to read them in another EDDi edition.

But the question raises more issues than simply ‘why British?’. It touches deeper concerns concerning ‘internationalisation’, diversity, inclusion, and social justice.

Put another way, are we international educationalists complicit in perpetuating global social injustice simply by being part of a concept and system of multicultural education which is anything but multicultural?

Have we been co-opted into the lie that British (and Western) education equates to multicultural values?

I hope not but I fear we might.

This article by Akkari and Maleq makes salutary reading for anyone who imagines globalisation has brought with it multiculturalism. Or indeed, who believes ‘global citizenship education’ is the powerful counter to nationalism and colonialism which we educationalists all trust (and hope) it to be.

‘As societies face unprecedented challenges that are global in scope, educational policy makers emphasize the importance of fostering active citizens capable of resolving complex global issues. In this paper, we explore how Global Citizenship Education (GCE) could open up new perspectives to rethink dominant approaches to multicultural education by expanding pupils’ understanding of cultural and ecological relationships. Furthermore, we argue that while dominant approaches to multicultural education are well-intentioned, they are often limited to essentialist visions of cultures and therefore fail to develop a critical understanding of inequality and power relations.’ (p. 15)

Just what those ‘essential visions’ are, and the consequences of following them uncritically and unreflectively, is discussed in this article:

‘…the aim of developing a global form of citizenship contrasts with the realities of vast numbers of marginalised citizens across the globe, to the extent that marginality appears to be the ‘”hidden other” of global citizenship’. (Balarin, 2011) (p. 18)

‘One of the challenges associated with global citizenship is the possibility that, like globalization, it would mostly benefit members of elite groups, thereby deepening societal inequality’ (Gardner-McTaggart, 2016). (p. 18)

As far as international schools are concerned, the concept of ‘global citizenship’ is a compelling attraction if not a ‘unique selling point’ for any school which seeks to market itself as international. The very vagueness of the concept means that parents and students (and teachers) can create their own vision and form their own relationship to global citizenship education. For some it will mean being able to study at a Western university. For others it will be determined by speaking English fluently. For a few it will be seen as a ‘passport’ to global employment opportunities and significant prosperity. For the vast majority, it will be undertaken for individualistic personal, professional, social and material improvement rather than for embracing ‘a universal humanist global connection’.

This is why the parents pay the high fees - for the privileges subsequently acquired.

Which brings me back to my original point, how does global citizenship equate with Britishness? Can one become a global citizen by virtue of having undertaken a British education, and in schools which enthusiastically model themselves on the elite British public schools of Eton, Harrow, Dulwich, Westminster, Wellington and the rest (e.g. uniforms, house systems, even the school architecture)?

The British public-school system was never designed for inclusivity, it was designed for exclusivity. It was designed to separate the privileged from the masses. '

A job it did very well indeed.

Is this what we are now seeing emerge in China, the Middle East, and across South East Asia: not a global citizen who embraces a ‘moral global citizenship’ but one who seeks indeed expects, individual competitive advantage?

If so, one is compelled to ask what problems are British international schools building up for the future within their students and within the countries they are located? Seems to me there is a risk in having international school students who have studied only a Western curriculum and in a British/Western school culture, become a distinct global social class. Like the alumni of the British independent schools, they’ll have more in common with each other than with the ‘masses’ beneath them even where they hold the same passport.

‘Global citizenship could also become an instrument of oppression whenever it turns into a normative ideal in opposition to ‘backward’ forms of national or regional belonging and more ‘traditional’ communities. In other words, there is a pressing need to enhance understanding of local perspectives, ideologies, conceptions, and issues related to citizenship education on a local, national and global level in order to open global citizenship agendas to diversity and indigeneity. This may, however, only be achieved by rethinking the Eurocentric paradigm of modernity reflected in conceptualizations of global citizenship and promoting national, cultural, and local ownership (Akkari & Maleq, 2020b). In the global South, the possible relevance of GCE is thus linked to its openness to a non-Western view of global citizenship.’ (Quaynor, 2018). (p. 19)

As this article so expertly elaborates, these are moral dilemmas which cannot be ignored and nor should they. It is not enough for an international school to claim it is creating global citizens through an internationalised education. Not when all the teachers and managers are of one nationality and that nationality isn’t reflected, for the most part, in the student body. Not when the whole feel and vision of the school is designed to replicate (white) British values, British independent school systems, Westernism.

The relationship between Britishness and the continuing growth of international schools, notably in Asia, is contained in the promise of advantage, privilege, elitism and individual prosperity; social exclusivity. This may not be exemplified with every parent and every student, but this is the sell. This is the pitch. And everyone involved in delivering such an education knows it.

To pretend otherwise is at best disingenuous.

In such a setting, the term ‘global citizen’ ends up meaning something rather different to the humanistic, multicultural, internationalist image many educationalists would like it to mean. It becomes just another brick in the wall separating a small privileged global class from the rest.

This is an important article raising a great many important questions for anyone remotely involved in selling the concept of ‘global citizenship’ through elite British/Western education. And like all good research it concludes with recommendations:

• Open new perspectives and provide a definition of culture that transcends national, ethnic and religious boundaries.

• Seek to go beyond the demographics of cultural diversity and a display of how many minority groups are represented in schools.

• Value hybrid, cross-border and fluid forms of cultural identity.

• Consider tolerance to ambiguity and the ability to cross cultural boundaries as key aspects of multi/intercultural education.

• Develop a critical understanding of global power dynamics and roots of global inequality resulting from colonialism, neo-imperialism and neoliberalism.

Teaching global citizenship within this ‘Community of Inquiry’ seems to me a great way forward. Though it remains to be seen whether or not purposefully designed elite, privileged, exclusive and expensive British international schools can ever achieve it – even if their owners, leaders and indeed their paying parents wanted them to.

reference
Akkari, A. & Maleq, K. (2021) Global Citizenship Education: re-envisioning multicultural education in a time ofglobalization, Ecolint Institute RIPE Research Journal, Journal de Recherches, Vol. 7, Spring/Printemps 2021

link
researchgate.net/publication/352180231_Global_Citizenship_Education_re-_envisioning_multicultural_education_in_a_time_of_globalization

INTERESTED IN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOLING?

Join the 000’s of others who’ve read ‘International School: The Teacher’s Guide’

Seen here enjoying the international life in Thailand. Grab a copy or listen to a short sample here (4 mins).

Share EDDi: Educational Digest International

For those of you who got one, we hope you enjoyed a restful and rejuvenating break.

This week’s EDDi Extra returns us to our postgraduate study theme.

Our ‘PG Tips’ article is some sage advice for anyone writing a PhD or EdD thesis":

What advice would you give someone writing a PhD thesis?

Accompanying this is a ‘Sociologically Thinking’ piece asking:

What can Machiavelli teach us about leadership and power?

And, EDDi readers can still get FREE ACCESS to a sample of Dr Stephen Whitehead’s new book, Total Inclusivity at Work. The Foreword is available to download in both text and audio form (the latter via Jason Lasky).

A flier giving more details is here:

Total Inclusive At Work Gbp

4.36MB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

We’ll be back early next month with another traditional EDDi digest.

Happy reading
EDDi

The New PGCE…now with added iQTS

As you've no doubt read, the UK Government is piloting a new PGCE iQTS programme, recognised by the Department for Education as equivalent to English qualified teacher status (QTS).

The University of Warwick is delighted to be one of a select few providers offering this exciting new programme for August 2022.

As you’d expect, the course is rigorous and robust. For an overview of the requirements, there is an outline (and individual eligibility checker) HERE. 

The introduction of PGCE iQTS also means a few changes for Warwick's highly successful PGCEi programme. The admissions and placement criteria have been simplified; head HERE for further information.

A useful comparison of the PGCE iQTS and PGCEi courses can be downloaded HERE.

If you have staff interested in either programme, please feel free to share EDDi.

Share EDDi: Educational Digest International

Or, alternatively, questions can be e-mailed to: pedagogue@warwick.ac.uk

You may not use theory to understand your reality, but theory certainly uses you. Whether you are a teacher, principle, lecturer, student or simply curious, in this short EDDi section Dr Stephen Whitehead will answer common questions related to sociological theory. 

All of his answers were originally published on Quora*. We offer these answers on EDDi in the hope you acquire some sociological insights into the 21st century. 

Treat these articles as a healthy, and heavier, counter-point to all the lighter fluff which gets posted on social media.

Question: What can Machiavelli teach us about leadership and power?
By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

If you wish to understand Machiavelli, read The Prince, recognise what the author is suggesting as ‘good leadership’ practice and how to wield power, and then do the very opposite.

Machiavelli wrote his book as an ironic treatise on the power of the elite, how they abuse the masses, plot against each other, and instil fear in order to acquire control.

He is not suggesting this is the way to behave as a leader. He is however, hoping that bad leaders will read his book as a text for leadership and behave accordingly.

Why?

Because Machiavelli was astute enough to know that any toxic leader who followed his ‘advice’ was doomed to disaster. One example being Thomas Cromwell (Chief Minister to King Henry VIII of England), who did take The Prince at face value and duly lost his head as a result.

Machiavelli is a ‘two-faced writer’ - you must not take the text literally.

As Cardinal Pole wrote about Machiavelli:

“…it is the aim of his doctrine to act like a drug that causes princes to go mad, making them attack their own people with the savagery of the lion and the wiles of the fox.”

Machiavelli was, in truth, a freedom fighter. He suffered from the wiles of the foxy leaders of Florence all his life (1469-1527). His revenge was to write a book which resounds to this day, and in its words are the poisons of leadership and power awaiting to be imbibed by the egotistic, the stupid, the unwary and the downright venal.

(See also, Erica Benner, 2018, ‘Be Like The Fox’, Penguin)

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book ‘Total Inclusivity At Work’ is available for pre-order HERE.

EDDi is delighted to offers readers FREE ACCESS to the books Foreword in both text and audio form (the latter via Jason Lasky).

For further details, download the flier:

Total Inclusive At Work Gbp

4.36MB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Question: What advice would you give someone writing a PhD thesis?

First priority is to have the doctoral research proposal finished and approved by your university and supervisor. This can take a while, especially if there are questions over the research methodology pertaining to ethics, for example.

But once you are passed to move onto the full PhD research (which in the UK will constitute a 90,000 word thesis), then you should plan it as follows:

1. Start writing the literature review. This is usually chapter 2 or 3 of the final thesis. This is the hardest chapter and cannot be attempted until you are fully familiar with the various theories and previously published research informing your study.

2. Then write the research methodology/methods chapter. You cannot complete this until you’ve at least started your field work as one informs the other. This will be chapter 3 or 4 of your thesis.

3. By this time you should ideally have completed your field work (assuming your study is based on qualitative or quantitative research). You then start to transcribe and analysis the findings/data according to your research methods/methodology. This will take time.

4. Based on your work at stage 3, and the evidence you have accumulated from your field research, you now start writing your Data Analysis Chapter - the chapter detailing your research findings. This will be the largest chapter of your thesis. Important that in this chapter you examine and test your findings against the theories and research discussed in your literature review.

5. By this point you are into the final stretch of your PhD. You now write the conclusion to the whole thesis. In this chapter you must show how you’ve addressed the original research questions. There are other aspects to this chapter which are important to address but your supervisor will guide you here.

6. Finally, write your introduction. This should be straightforward, given you’ve done all the main writing and research.

The only other chapter that might get included is a chapter 2 - contextual chapter. This needs to be discussed with your supervisor. It might be the case, depending on your study, that you can cover the contextual issues in your introductory chapter.

Once this is done, and every chapter signed off and approved by your supervisor, you are left with the nitty gritty stuff to write, which is the abstract, index, bibliography/checking references, appendices, and any other supporting information required to go into the thesis. Be careful to ensure you keep a track of your references throughout the writing process.

Have the whole thesis professionally proof-read. So allow time for that.

Once is it all approved by your supervisor you get the thesis professionally printed off and bound.

You then pass to your supervisor who will send copies to the internal examiner and the external examiner. You then prepare for, and await, your viva voce (oral examination).

This may sound all quite straightforward but what I have not done is include the multitude of challenges you’ll face while undertaking this task. For one thing, I’ve no idea what those challenges will be and nor will you until you face them.

Any doctoral study is unpredictable, but whatever the challenges and issues arising, you’ll still only have a limited time to completion. Ideally, you’ll complete a full time PhD within the allotted three years.

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book ‘Total Inclusivity At Work’ is available for pre-order HERE.

EDDi is delighted to offers readers FREE ACCESS to the books Foreword in both text and audio form (the latter via Jason Lasky).

For further details, download the flier:

Total Inclusive At Work Gbp

4.36MB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

This week’s EDDi Extra brings us back to our postgraduate study theme.

We have the third and final part of Dr Mike Whalley’s trilogy on postgraduate study, reflecting on what happens after completing a Doctorate - from the stresses of actually handing the final thesis in to the long-term career benefits:

The Trials and Tribulations of Postgraduate Study While Also Being a Teacher: A Reflective Trilogy

Accompanying this is a useful ‘PG Tips’ article for anyone about to embark on a qualitative research project:

What are the weaknesses of qualitative research?

And a ‘Sociologically Thinking’ piece:

What is the contribution of Auguste Comte in sociology?

We’ll be back early next month with another traditional EDDi digest.

Happy reading
EDDi

PGCEi: WHAT’S IN A NAME?

The Warwick name opens doors.

Warwick’s PGCEi has been designed to be robust and rigorous - and, with a fully assessed teaching component plus 90 Masters credits, it has quickly gained respect amongst international schools. 

Warwick offer more contact, more support, more advice, and more credibility. An extensive teaching placement and external link tutor assessment visit are compulsory elements of the course.

More than just a certificate, Warwick's PGCEi is a passport to employment at high-quality schools worldwide.

FIND OUT MORE

You may not use theory to understand your reality, but theory certainly uses you. Whether you are a teacher, principle, lecturer, student or simply curious, in this short EDDi section Dr Stephen Whitehead will answer common questions related to sociological theory. 

All of his answers were originally published on Quora*. We offer these answers on EDDi in the hope you acquire some sociological insights into the 21st century. 

Treat these articles as a healthy, and heavier, counter-point to all the lighter fluff which gets posted on social media.

Question: What is the contribution of Auguste Comte in sociology?
By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

I’m happy to give credit to Auguste Comte (1798–1857) for being the first person to use the word ‘sociology’ and I respect his position as a positivist.

But beyond that he has had little influence on modern sociology other than in encouraging the propensity of many sociologists to continue to believe that they can somehow find ‘truth’ through the application of scientific method.

The problem is with Comte’s (and Emile Durkheim’s) concept of positivist methodology. Essentially, both thinkers had a desire to objectify, classify and render ‘scientifically’ observable, all the complexity of the social world; individual and communal. Like all positivists, Comte believed that objective (scientific) analysis and research (quantitative) could establish connections between variables and in so doing explain human behaviour even to the extent of developing ‘real laws’ which governed all human action. For example, following Comte, Durkheim famously believed he had discovered the laws of human behaviour which governed the suicide rate.

Comte and other positivists believe they can somehow stand outside the knowledge and discourses they are attempting to identify, analyse, and explain.

So I would definitely part company with Comte, and Durkheim, regards their dismissal of feelings, emotions, motives, subjective interpretation and discursive internalisation as being of concern to sociologists. Sociologists are not outside the social. They are part of it. They replicate it continuously. Better therefore to acknowledge this from the outset in any methodology and to recognise, reflexively, our partiality and bias.

For me, a far more important and influential (but often overlooked) sociologist is C Wright Mills. His book ‘The Sociological Imagination’ (1959) is not just a repudiation of Comte’s positivism, but a brilliant treatise in favour of the sociologist as not a rational and objective ‘scientist’ but an element in that which she/he is researching:

“There is no way in which any social scientist can avoid assuming choices of value and implying them in his work as a whole…he (sic) is already working on the basis of certain values.” (ibid, p. 177–78)

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book (International Schooling: The Teacher’s Guide) is available via: teachabroad.ac.

PGCEi: WHAT’S IN A NAME?

The Warwick name opens doors.

Warwick’s PGCEi has been designed to be robust and rigorous - and, with a fully assessed teaching component plus 90 Masters credits, it has quickly gained respect amongst international schools. 

Warwick offer more contact, more support, more advice and more credibility. A teaching placement and link tutor visit are compulsory elements of the course.

More than just a certificate, Warwick's PGCEi is a passport to employment at high-quality schools worldwide.

FIND OUT MORE

Question: What are the weaknesses of qualitative research?
By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

Qualitative research may appear an easier option to quantitative (who wants to be bothered with all those boring stats and number crunching?) but in reality it is much trickier.

And the main reason is that the social skills and EQ of the researcher count for everything in qualitative while with quantitative you can be a complete social moron and still acquire good data.

Whether the research approach is in-depth unstructured interviews or semi-structured, with qualitative you are going to need to have good social and interactive skills to get the best data emerging from your, usually brief (60mins?) interview.

And it is not just about communication and knowing intuitively when to leave aside your interview plan and go off on a potentially fascinating tangent with your interviewee, it is about the power dynamics. Ever tried to interview a politician or high level leader for qualitative research? If so, you’ll know what I mean by ‘power dynamics’ and an individual’s ability to never answer a question and to always present themselves in the way they want to be presented.

With qualitative you are into research mode from the very moment you set foot in the place where you intend to do the interview. You are observing and noting everything, all the human interactions, the dynamics, the spoken language used and the body language expressed.

You have a short time to get inside the head and imagination of the respondent and get your questions answered. And that means allowing the interview some free flowing movement while ensuring you steer it in the direction you want it to go, without necessarily signposting that intent to the interviewee.

Intuition, maturity, confidence, experience, emotional intelligence, and the social skills which enable the interviewee to open up and reveal what they really feel, rather than what they feel socially obligated to present.

Not everyone can do it well. Though many try.

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on education, relationships, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received over 3.5 million views increasing at the rate of 75,000 a month. He has over 1000 followers. For more info, head here.

PGCEi: WHAT’S IN A NAME?

The Warwick name opens doors.

Warwick’s PGCEi has been designed to be robust and rigorous - and, with a fully assessed teaching component plus 90 Masters credits, it has quickly gained respect amongst international schools. 

Warwick offer more contact, more support, more advice and more credibility. A teaching placement and link tutor visit are compulsory elements of the course.

More than just a certificate, Warwick's PGCEi is a passport to employment at high-quality schools worldwide.

FIND OUT MORE

By: Dr Mike Whalley

This is a series of three short articles on my experience of studying for a Professional Doctorate in Education (EdD) whilst in full time employment as a teacher in a UK independent school. 

What I present is a collection of thoughts, emotions, and memories from the experience, beginning with the decision to embark on such a difficult journey, the practicalities of studying at such an advanced level whilst in full time work, and the surprisingly mixed emotions on completion. 

I hope these thoughts might serve as advice and guidance for fellow educationalists considering the PG journey.

In parts one and two of this trilogy I described my journey of undertaking postgraduate study whilst in full time employment. I described the deliberations I made prior to study and then the events and issues surrounding study during the completion of the course. In this last part I describe how the completion of my EdD impacted on my professional and personal life, and the surprisingly mixed emotions experienced as I returned to a more ‘normal’ lifestyle.

Once I had graduated in December 1998, I returned to work after a Christmas break as normal. Apart from adjustments that the clerical and administrative staff at school had to make in adjusting my nomenclature in official documentation, and I was now known as ‘Doctor Whalley,’ my doctorate had absolutely no impact or influence on what I did on a day-to-day basis. This came as no surprise to me. I did not embark on the study to raise my profile in school or to generate the possibility of promotion within this setting. I expect this to be the case in the experience of others in a similar position.

Having a doctorate also made no difference in my relationship to my family or friends. They were proud of my achievements, but I was still the same friend, parent, husband, and father I was before the years of study. I offered advice to my son on his own academic journey as he studied to become a psychologist, but I cannot remember any other occasions in my private life that warranted a referral to my elevated academic status.

The immediate period after the completion of the postgraduate study was therefore a bit of an anti-climax. I believe that when you are pursuing a goal, the body produces a neurotransmitter called dopamine which helps you feel accomplished, pleasured, and satisfied as you complete milestones along the way. On completion of the task, the dopamine levels drop, leaving a sense of loss and disappointment. So, there you have it, its science that makes you feel down after the completion of a challenging task.

However, I did harbour hopes that the qualification might lead to the possibility of a change of career direction in Education Studies and/or Initial Teacher Training in Higher Education. I was confident that this qualification in addition to the skills and experience I had gained over twenty years (as a teacher Head of Department, Head of Pastoral sector, and Head of Boarding) would leave me ideally placed to enter the Higher Education sector. I applied for numerous lecturing jobs within the Education department of many universities and Higher Education institutions.

All to no avail.

I had spent all my career in schools, gaining the experience and skills that would be so valuable to pass on to prospective teachers, but without any experience lecturing in Higher Education or undertaking research and then publication I would undoubtedly fail the person specification in an application for a relevant post. It seems that the very people who are most qualified to mentor the next generation of teachers are disqualified from doing so because they have devoted their time to the profession rather than working in Higher Education.

Perhaps I am missing something here?

On return to work in January 2012, I became immersed in the daily intensity of being a Head of Department and a Head of Pastoral sector. Although I was remarkably busy, I could not help but compare what I had written about with the reality of my school life. I think the characteristics of performativity as a dominant discourse that I had been discussing were indeed confirmed as a part of my working environment, and those of my friends and colleagues in other schools  Yes, the regulatory and judgemental processes were manifest in continuous mechanisms to ensure cost-efficiency and value for money, climbing academic standards, ubiquitous assessment and appraisal processes, scrutiny of departmental effectiveness and performance, high visibility publicity and marketing and other measures in this ‘tick box culture’.

This indeed was the reality of our work, but it is true to say that I (and many of my colleagues) resented these intrusive mechanisms with the perception that they took valuable time away from the ‘real’ business of teaching.

I also paid more attention to the managerial behaviour, roles, and strategies of one or two colleagues who demonstrated an ‘assumed’ type of masculinity, one characterised by purposeful rationality, instrumentality, and control linked with a new professionalism, clearly influenced by market driven forces and regulatory mechanisms of performative discourse. Although their behaviour was irritating under my recent critical assessment, it gave me somewhat a sense of validation that the theory underpinning my research stood up to reality.

However,  it was also increasingly apparent that there were too many variables in performative managerial cultures to confirm a privileged masculine code of behaviour and practice and I could see more clearly that other colleagues could  switch between newer versions of managerial professionalism influenced by performativity in a rational, controlled, often aggressive manner in one situation, and then be much more collaborative, cooperative, and emotive, in another.

I self-identified as one of these fragmented manager-subjects, identified, proudly capable of utilising multiple identities and a wider range of tactics and strategies emergent in response to the multiplicity and fluidity demanded in my school environment. I would like to think (but cannot absolutely guarantee!) that throughout my working life I was authentic and did not have to resort to the fabricated responses and presentations of self as plural appropriate responses to certain situations necessary to play out roles to achieve a satisfactory conclusion to a demanding situation and no doubt ease ontological anxiety.

In my study I also recommended that further study should examine, in more depth, women’s relationship to performativity (and other discourses). This analysis of the gendered- self in such contexts, would identify further alternative strategies and techniques to respond to the demands of discourse crucially free form masculine-driven practice. I concluded that the promotion of a wider range of roles, versions, and images of the contemporary professional manager as an alternative to exercises that serve to maintain the historical association between masculine-driven and effective organisational practice is therefore creative and realistic.

I wrote:

“Only time will tell if the existing mutually reinforcing and seductive relationship between performativity, masculinity and professionalism found in this study can be contested, disturbed and redirected by an alternative discourse that highlights the possibilities for agency and resistance, and ultimately shapes a new accepted space for ontological survival by ‘un-gendered’ professional subjects, characterised by skill, adaptability and multiplicity in management structures.”

My experience in schools in the period after this statement was that management and leadership styles and techniques were in a period of change in response to the evolving demands in the independent school sector. This included skilled managers crucially ‘un-gendered’ professional subjects as described above. It was true that performativity was a dominant discourse in which these professionals circulated, but others, for example the increased need for ubiquitous safeguarding and child protection protocols were of rightfully equal importance. But there were other greater changes that had to be made in all aspects of education.

Society was undergoing massive changes brought about by the digital revolution, the increase in social media and rapid advances in communication and technology. We now live in a society where information is accessible and available everywhere, where communication and human interaction can be made in many different ways. The social network has changed the way we communicate, privacy is scarce, and although identity and equality really matter individuals reside in cultural bubbles ready to contribute to the polarisation of society through woke and cancel cultural movements.

Schools face an enormous challenge to provide a modern education that can respond to and reflect these evolving societal and cultural demands and expectations. Management discourse must therefore reflect the ever- increasing consumer demands of society, where diversity, equality and identity are so important, but must also be careful not to remove completely the essence of what it means to be educated, and there is a danger that educational communities have little sense of history, tradition, norms, shared experience, civility, art, literature, and celebration if we completely submit to ‘correctness’ in all its various forms.

To discuss whether managerial discourse now is performative and legitimises masculine driven managerial behaviour and practice as written about in my study, seems extremely dated and naïve now. In 2006, these ideas were contemporary and relevant and were of great interest to research, study and write about. The effort and sacrifice were worth it. I am pleased that in education we have moved on from discussions about whether men legitimise their professional identity in response to performative discourse and we must now consider modern educational discourse and professional identity in terms of multiplicity, gender fluidity, adaptability, and equality as it responds to the technological and communication demands of society. This is another dissertation, but I think I will leave it for someone else!

Now, ten years later, I am retired. Nobody where I live now and meet in my everyday life knows I am a doctor. I walk my dogs, I read, I work part time tutoring pupils Maths and English in Alternative Provision. I have coached sport part time in a local school. I have worked for a private company assessing and evaluating teaching resources for GCSE and A level Physical Education. However, I feel I could still offer advice to new and existing teachers and those in positions of responsibility. A combination of a career in extending over thirty years alongside an academic prowess in education leaves me in a position to say I could.

I gained so much experiencing the journey of studying that has stayed with me. There is no doubt that the necessity to become ultra-organised and time efficient undoubtedly improved my ability to do my job more efficiently. I was concurrently the Director of Sport and Head of Middle School where I worked, and shortly afterwards in 2013 became Head of Boarding. I would not have been able to do these jobs without the time management skills and organisational acumen that studying developed. I always worked hard, but the study journey had given me the self-discipline and determination to complete tasks to an even higher standard.

Studying at this level also developed my ability to read and analyse documents with increasing ease. Now I can read whatever I like and have no problem understanding what has been said. At work, it became easy to look at documentation involved in the various posts I held, and in my private life I can now read whatever I like and am able to digest and embrace the information. No books now remain unfinished, and I have developed my interest in history, politics, and law which I was not able to cope with before I gained the analytical skills gained during advanced study.

The same applies to preparing documents and written pieces of work. I had the responsibility to prepare policies and documents for my department and sectors. I no longer found this an arduous task. Laborious yes, but no longer a test of my ability to write in an articulate manner. I prepared many documents after the completion of the doctorate and have done so in other aspects of my post teaching carer such as in reviewing resource materials for examination courses. I would have no problem writing documents in any field, such is my confidence in writing gained from the skills required for sophisticated academic study.

If I had been told by someone as a teenager that I would have a doctorate in my later career I would have suggested that they take their temperature. I would say if I can do it anyone can. I was a mediocre ‘O’ Level and ‘A’ level student back in the 80’s but found an interest in study when I became passionate about education, teaching and PE when I scraped into, HE and Teacher Training College. I was determined to become a good teacher and soaked up and learnt so much from my colleagues when I entered the profession in 1986. This motivation to learn about education led to a MEd and then the decision to study for the EdD in 2006.

If you have this passion about a subject and are prepared to make all the arrangements to be able to dedicate the time and energy to pursue this level of qualification I would recommend you do it.

Having the doctorate is not about having a certificate or letters after your name. It is the sense of achievement and validation that you have the capability to excel in your field and to be accepted as part of the academic community in which your work has contributed to thought and discussion.

By: Dr Mike Whalley

PGCEi: WHAT’S IN A NAME?

The Warwick name opens doors.

Warwick’s PGCEi has been designed to be robust and rigorous - and, with a fully assessed teaching component plus 90 Masters credits, it has quickly gained respect amongst international schools. 

Warwick offer more contact, more support, more advice and more credibility. A teaching placement and link tutor visit are compulsory elements of the course.

More than just a certificate, Warwick's PGCEi is a passport to employment at high-quality schools worldwide.

FIND OUT MORE

This week’s EDDi Extra is a return to our postgraduate study theme.

We have the second part of Dr Mike Whalley’s trilogy on postgraduate study, reflecting on why he chose an EdD.

The Trials and Tribulations of Postgraduate Study While Also Being a Teacher: A Reflective Trilogy

Accompanying this is a ‘PG Tips’ article:

How can researchers avoid inserting their own beliefs about emotion in their research?

And a ‘Sociologically Thinking’ piece:

‘What is the difference between “Critical Theory” of international relations and “Postmodernism”?

Finally, for those who didn’t catch it, last week’s ‘Total Inclusivity’ edition (including a webinar special plus an audio version of the foreword from ‘Total Inclusivity at Work’) is available here.

Until next time…happy reading.

EDDi

By: Dr Mike Whalley

This is a series of three short articles on my experience of studying for a Professional Doctorate in Education (EdD) whilst in full time employment as a teacher in a UK independent school. 

What I present is a collection of thoughts, emotions, and memories from the experience, beginning with the decision to embark on such a difficult journey, the practicalities of studying at such an advanced level whilst in full time work, and the surprisingly mixed emotions on completion. 

I hope these thoughts might serve as advice and guidance for fellow educationalists considering the PG journey.

In part one of this trilogy about my experience of postgraduate study whilst in full time employment I recalled the process of deciding to embark on this adventure.

In this second part I describe key parts of the five-year study.

The Beginning

I began the taught modules of the EdD in November 2006.

Luckily, I seem to remember that all these modules were delivered during school holidays. I would not have chosen this course if the taught sessions were in school time, as to take time off would have been impossible.

Having not studied since the completion of an M.Ed. in 1998, I was nervous at the prospect of returning to academic study at this level, and experienced real imposter syndrome on my arrival for the first meetings. However, having met some new study colleagues and staff, I soon realised that all the cohort were in the same position, and I had nothing to worry about.

The first taught modules were academically demanding, and I asked myself whether I was up to it. Of course, I had made the financial and psychological commitment to study, so in this respect there was no going back.

The first module introduced the various theories and methods used as an educational researcher, followed by an assignment to author a personal research biography, an early reflexive examination of my subjective relation to my experiences in education.

Other modules also introduced us to different sociological theories and the key contributors to such research and current educational debates. I learnt that educational theory, policy, and practice are interwoven and as we progressed the need to engage theory with my own research interests became clear.

Why an EdD rather than a PhD?

Although the two doctorates hold equal status in terms of academic standard, there are crucial differences in the course content, teaching style and purpose.

Whilst the PhD is achieved through independent research (with obvious supervision and assistance), the EdD is aimed at experienced professionals who want to seek solutions to educational problems and contribute to decision and policy making processes at work through reflection in conjunction with reference to contemporary research.

This was the appeal for me.

The EdD was a means to analyse, in fine academic detail, the relationship between educational structure and policy on the one hand, with the experiences of teachers at the sharp end of the profession on the other.

I had this clear in my mind as I made progress through the taught elements.

The Taught Elements

The taught modules progressed on the theoretical components of research and assignments were geared towards us designing a research method from a particular theoretical and epistemological perspective.

It is now a year since I commenced the course, and I was doing some heavy academic research into such research methodology underpinned by a particular sociological perspective.

Five months later I had to prepare a thesis proposal which then had to be presented to a Thesis Proposal Conference. This was a daunting task, presenting my ideas to the other students and staff at the university but I was delighted when my proposal was passed a fleeting time later.

It is important to outline my theoretical stance as it directed the course of my research and final dissertation. Others who are contemplating taking a EdD will go through this process of adopting a perspective to shape their research.

As stated in the first section of this exercise, I was interested in the concept of ‘performativity’ in education.

I found this concept located through postmodern analysis. Connected poststructuralist analyses emergent knowledges, productive power and normalising regulatory systems of performativity as a dominant discourse within which provide how subjects are confirmed as individuals, through projects of gendered (in this case masculine) identity, subjective power, and resistance.

This directed me to embark on a subjective, reflexive exercise to investigate a personal, professional relationship between performativity, management practice and masculine discourse.

The Thesis

For my thesis I decided to interview a sample of teachers who had an extended managerial relationship with performativity.

This would collect qualitative data.

I conducted a pilot exercise a year before the research project. This was a time consuming but necessary part of the process and valuable lessons in technique and protocol were learnt from interviews with a small number of volunteer colleagues.

Then, for the actual project, in-depth interviews with twelve managers using semi-structured questions were used to discuss how managers lived out an experience within performative discourse. I gave the participants some information about the research project prior to their interview.

Despite the theoretical complexity of notions of performativity as a dominant discourse and the gendered subjective ‘self’ I felt the participants could talk openly about their teaching lives.

The Research Questions

The research questions were crucial to the whole exercise. They provided the bridge between theory and experience.

They were centred around the key themes of performativity, masculine subjectivity, and professional ontological security. However, the research questions are not the interview questions; they provide the theoretical foundations on which the actual interview questions can be constructed.

The evidence gathered from the interviews then is set against the original hypothesis for evaluation and further discussion. If the research and subsequent interview questions are correct, they set the agenda for progress in the study, but they should not simply confirm the hypothesis, they should direct to further discussions and argument and suggest possibilities for further enquiry.

Yes, it is satisfying to have a full or partial confirmation of one’s ideas, but alternative, even opposite suggestions that prompt wider consideration (and further time-consuming research) must be anticipated and even welcomed.

I liken the construction of the research questions and the ensuing interview questions to the work of a detective in a criminal case.

In trying to solve a crime, the detective and his/her team will have gathered evidence that must be tested. They have their suspicions about what has happened and who might be responsible. They have their suspects who they consider responsible under arrest and must be questioned. During interview, the detectives must ask the correct questions to confirm that their version of events, place evidence correctly at the scene and identify the role of the suspect in the crime. The right questions will confirm the truthful series of events and confirm that the correct evidence has been collected and fits accordingly. The wrong questions will not assess the evidence, the detective’s suspicions about what happened will be cloudy and will cast doubt over the role and involvement of the suspects. The case, with its investigation lacking in accuracy and consistency will collapse under forensic scrutiny by an expert defence lawyer.

Yes, I have been watching and reading too many criminal investigation stories, but the parallels are obvious.

Failure to have a complete picture of your research field and then ask the correct questions will lead to poor, inconsistent, and debatable conclusions drawn from the collected data which will be scrutinised, questioned  and even dismissed by expert witnesses!

 I was confident that I had prepared the research questions thoroughly and anticipated the possible journeys that each interview might travel. I was therefore pleased and relieved when many interviewees took the opportunity (once confidentiality and anonymity had been confirmed) to express their honest feelings about their working lives amidst performative regimes ranging from frustration, anger, anxiety and disappointment to satisfaction, pleasure, and promise.

The Interviews

The interviews were tape recorded, transcribed, coded, and then analysed in a manner that would stimulate discussion surrounding themes and issues relating to the research questions.

The analysis of the date was complicated, highly technical, and very time consuming, but produced fantastic information that could then make a vital contribution to the thesis.

The aim was to see how the teacher-managers experiences related to my own experience and to the findings of my deep academic research.

It is interesting to discuss how the results of the interviews in relation to the research questions either confirmed or challenged my prior thoughts, experiences, and expectations. In many respects the responses confirmed my expectations, but there were some interesting alternative observations that added a great deal to later discussions.

For example, the teachers reported that managerial behaviour, roles, and strategies had been strongly influenced by the market-driven forces and regulatory mechanisms of performative discourse. They also partially confirmed that an ‘assumed’ type of masculinity, one characterised by purposeful rationality, instrumentality, and control was linked with a new professionalism providing the opportunity for ontological security. This is expected, but many also argued that there were too many variables in performative managerial cultures to confirm a privileged masculine code of behaviour and practice and managers could also switch between newer versions of professionalism influenced by performativity in a rational, controlled, often aggressive manner in one situation, and then be much more collaborative, cooperative, and emotive, in another.

Thus, a fragmented manager-subject can be identified, with multiple identities capable of a wider range of tactics and strategies emergent in response to the multiplicity and fluidity demanded in such structures.

Also, many managers spoke of their experience of fabricated responses and inauthentic presentations of self; a plurality required to complete performative tasks. These were ‘appropriate’ responses to certain situations necessary to ‘play out’ roles to achieve a satisfactory conclusion and no doubt ease ontological anxiety in these stressful environments; an array of responses displayed by colleagues that I had witnessed all to often.

The Draft

Drafting the thesis was also an exceedingly difficult and a lengthy process.

The first chapters of the thesis introduced the key theoretical concepts of the thesis with a deep review of literature. This included chapters on performativity, the centrality of education under contemporary market reform and locating the masculine subject.

These chapters were written before the interviews.

I always felt I could write well. However, in my attempt to cover every aspect of a discussion or argument I tended to write too much. It was better to remove rather than find but this was a time-consuming process.

I was also poor at maintaining a bibliography and reference system throughout writing up the thesis.

This laziness was to cost me dear later. I had to spend hours chasing up references and updating a bibliography to make sure I acknowledged the work of others.

This is such an important part of the writing process but equally forgotten.

I hired a proof-reader to go through my work. This was expensive, but crucial to the production of the final dissertation.

I was lucky to have an incredibly supportive supervisor (thanks Stephen!) who assisted me as I drafted the dissertation, reviewing, advising, and suggesting alterations as I progressed chapter by chapter.

You need this continuous support. Left alone you can easily go astray which can be difficult to return from.

Writing at this level is a very solitary experience. I was able to meet my supervisor in person periodically or via skype. Online communication is even easier now than it was in 2010/11 so constant contact with a supervisor without the travel implications I often encountered should not be a problem.

You need all the resources required for doctoral study readily accessible. You need access to the library at your research institution or access to another nearer to you if you live a long way away. I was able to register at my local university as an associate member. I was therefore able to use and borrow their resources. It is also vital that you have access to the vast array of online resources available through your host institution.

The thesis was submitted in May 2011.

The Viva

I knew I was due to have to go through a thesis defence but when the notice came informing me of my date later in September, I became nervous.

It is awfully hard to prepare for the defence.

It is one thing to be able to write and discuss your work with your supervisor, but I knew I would find it difficult to articulate to this new audience.

The only advice I can give is that you must know your research in the finest detail. You must be able to defend your ideas and process, but also acknowledge that there might be flaws and counter arguments to your thoughts. It is natural to believe your thesis is infallible, but this is not the case, and you must be ready for criticism and alternative points of view.

I made copious notes to accompany me at the defence, with post-it notes in parts of my document marking areas in which I might be asked to discuss theory and research, but I am not sure they were of any use. I found the internal examiner supportive and the external more questioning and critical. I must have done ok though as after I was asked to leave, a little later I was told to return to the room to be told that the thesis was to be passed with minor alterations, the outcome for which I had hoped. I dreaded a verdict of major changes or rewrite.

I am not sure how I would have coped with such news.

Once the viva had been completed, with minor alterations, and again proofread, I was desperate to submit so that I could graduate by Christmas.

I remember the day the dissertation was printed, bound, and sent back to me (again expensive) ready for submission to the library at Keele. This was a proud moment, but wait, there was a misspelling of my name on the front cover! A panicked call to the publisher, waiting frantically for its correction and return a day later and then a mad rush down the motorway after school at 4pm to Keele before the 5pm deadline was not the easiest of days.

Following this harrowing experience I needed closure, and a rest.

To prolong the journey beyond Christmas would have been exceedingly difficult for me and my family. Having said this, I completed the course in five years… a year less than the normal length of time recommended for study.

And relax.

But what next?

What was the point of all this endeavour and sacrifice over the past five years? Was it all worth it?

Let us see what the impact of being a ‘doctor’ had on my professional and personal existence in the final part of this trilogy.

Subscribe to ensure Part III arrives in your Inbox.

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Bio

Mike was a teacher for thirty years. He taught Physical Education in both state and independent schools in the North West of England becoming a Director of Sport, but also held roles as Pastoral Leader and Head of Boarding. He maintained his academic interests in education throughout his career, completing a Masters Degree in 1998 and a Professional Doctorate in 2011.

Mike retired from full time teaching in 2016 due to ill health and now works part-time tutoring Maths and English to children in alternative school provision.

INTERESTED IN INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION?

The Teacher’s Guide is getting around!

Seen here in Thailand with a happy reader - and his new best friend. When we said ‘a companion to your international adventure’ we didn’t quite mean that kind of companion!

Grab a copy to take on your own adventure or listen to a short sample here (4 mins).

As an educationalist you’ll know a lot about credentialism: the theory that social status and professional/career advancement are nowadays directly related to one’s possession of academic qualifications. Well, sorry to have to tell you, it’s about to get worse. In the UK alone, postgraduate applications are up by 20% as thousands of students, faced with a shrinking job market due to Covid, apply to study ‘panic masters” degrees. 

We at EDDi cannot stop you panicking but we can offer you great advice as you embark on that long-awaited (and increasingly essential) MA, MBA, MEd, MSc or doctorate.

By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

Any researcher, quantitative or qualitative, who tells you they are operating entirely objectively in their research activities is kidding not only you but also themselves.

There is no such thing as pure objectivity in human discourse.

We each come with views, attitudes, beliefs and values already functioning in our character and behaviour. And there is no way to keep these removed from research procedures. Sure, we can act to minimise them, but we should not imagine they can be completely erased.

I am a qualitative researcher and much prefer it when the researcher declares their personal relationship to the study from the outset rather than pretend that somehow their emotional selves are not irrevocably tied up with the research.

If you are not emotionally involved in the research then you shouldn’t be doing it. At the same time, don’t allow that subjective association to overwhelm you nor stop you seeing and accepting realities which you’d prefer were not there.

Subscribe to follow our Postgraduate Tips.

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on education, relationships, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received over 3.5 million views increasing at the rate of 75,000 a month. He has over 1000 followers. For more info, head here.

PGCEi: WHAT’S IN A NAME?

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By: Dr Stephen Whitehead

‘What is the difference between “Critical Theory” of international relations and “Postmodernism”?

There is no such distinct entity as ‘critical theory’.

All sociological theory is, by definition, critical of something. So whether it is postmodernism, structural functionalism, neo-marxism, poststructuralism, labour process theory, conflict theory or any branch of feminist theory, criticality is the very essence, indeed purpose, of the theory.

When examining, for example, ‘international relations’ a sociologist would first have a theory by which to undertake such an examination and analysis. Indeed, I could use anyone of the theories mentioned above, and all would offer me a slightly different insight on the subject and topic.

As for postmodernism, that theory emerged in in the late 1980s and has remained around ever since.

Though bear in mind that postmodernism itself has several different theoretical emphases or branches, some of which are in slight conflict with each other.

But for the sake of brevity we can place postmodernist theory (of whatever hue) as a sort of cultural and intellectual postscript to modernism. In this regard I tend to find Lyotard’s definition must useful, in that he argues postmodernism signals the end of the modernist experiment with grand (meta)narratives, utopian religious discourses, dominant and unquestioned political ideologies, and the promise of a world where everything is known, understood, logically and rationally positioned, and working in some harmony for the greater good of humankind.

Postmodernism, if you like, heralds the chaos and uncertainty which humankind is currently experiencing, though this was forecast long before a nasty virus turned over globalisation.

We can also see the postmodern condition expressed and exemplified in the workings of the internet, social media, fake news, algorithms, multiple realities, culture wars, identity conflict, cyber-identities, celebrity culture, and the loss of trust which many millions feel in their governments, religions, and which are now challenging hitherto unquestioned assumptions about human progress.

Back to ‘international relations’, if you asked me to identify one distinct postmodern condition in current international relations, I would say it is the decline of any world order, maybe the possibility of any world order in the future.

For hundreds of years, and certainly through the age of Enlightenment and up to and including the brief period of the American Hegemony (1914–2001), there was a distinguishable World Order (for more on this read H. Kissinger ‘World Order’ Penguin, 2014).

That world order is no more.

What has replaced it? Right now, no one knows.

We have to allow the dust to settle over Covid-19 before we can perceive the outlines of the new settlement.

But don’t take this as a negative or depressing scenario.

On the contrary, postmodernism is the most hopeful of all theories simply because it completely does away with naivete, innocence and faith, thereby leaving us humans looking starkly at that which we always were, only no longer hiding behind ideologies which seduce us into believing we are more than we are or can be.

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book (International Schooling: The Teacher’s Guide) is available via: teachabroad.ac.

At this time of year, engaged and interested professionals (and as a reader of EDDi, that’s you) often start to ponder their options: for some that’s a new job or the next career move; for others it’s further study.

We’ve covered career moves and international teaching jobs in the book, over the next few EDDi Extras we’ll focus on postgraduate study.

In this ‘Extra Special’ we offer the first of a series of reflections by Dr Mike Whalley. Beginning with the decision to embark on the Doctoral journey, the series covers the practicalities of studying whilst in full time work, the process of writing the thesis, the viva, and the surprisingly mixed emotions on completion.

Part I asks why a busy middle-aged school teacher would embark on a postgraduate study journey that would promise to affect his professional and personal life for potentially the next six years?

The Trials and Tribulations of Postgraduate Study While Also Being a Teacher: A Reflective Trilogy: Part One: The Decision to Study

On a related theme, we also have a postgraduate tips piece:

Should I Do a PhD? (Especially if I already have a Masters)

And, for those already engaging with postgraduate theory, there’s a Sociologically Thinking article:

What is Derrida’s contribution to understanding postmodernism?

Part II of the series will be published in late February (if you haven’t already, subscribe to make sure it lands in your Inbox). The next edition will be a traditional digest, arriving in early February.

See you in a few weeks time.

Happy reading
EDDi

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You may not use theory to understand your reality, but theory certainly uses you. Whether you are a teacher, principle, lecturer, student or simply curious, in this short EDDi section Dr Stephen Whitehead will answer common questions related to sociological theory. 

All of his answers were originally published on Quora*. We offer these answers on EDDi in the hope you acquire some sociological insights into the 21st century. 

Treat these articles as a healthy, and heavier, counter-point to all the lighter fluff which gets posted on social media.

Although Derrida didn’t lay claim to this intellectual label when he was writing and publishing his major works in the mid 1960’s, he can now be considered a strategic postmodernist (distinct, that is, from a radical postmodernist such as Baudrillard or a feminist postmodernist such as Nicholson).

The most famous strategic postmodernists are Derrida, Foucault and Lacan.

In common with all postmodernist theories, strategic postmodernism offers a critique of modernism. It directly attacks the totalising ideologies/discourses which arose under modernism and which were (physically and psychologically) forced upon the masses through ideologies such as Fascism and Communism.

Strategic postmodernism is also closely linked with poststructuralism in that it too denies the possibility of a grounded subject (core identity) and replaces that ‘identity’ with the Foucauldian discursive subject.

The key elements of strategic postmodernism are;

1. A conviction that language, or discourse, is fundamental to any understanding of humanity and the human.

2. A rejection of a universal centre to language, social thought, being.

3. Opposition to any ‘isms’ or ideological (modernist) thinking

4. Apolitical in the conventional sense of seeking to change the world ‘for the better’ as they see this as slipping back into modernism and totalitarian thinking

5. A rejection of modernism’s essentialist (and binary) thinking and being.

Derrida’s major contribution to strategic postmodernism was in the concept of ‘deconstruction’. By this is meant the elusive meanings which are contained in the spoken word and language.

For example, if I say a person is ‘gay’, what do I mean in truth?

Am I referring to their happy disposition or their sexual orientation? You cannot easily know unless you know the context for the speech. However, if I write about a person who is gay then no confusion arises because you’ve already read the context and it is therefore clear to you what I am referring to.

Derrida notes that modernity privileged speech over the written word to the point that we now prioritise what is said over what is written.

This has become a big problem for global society in the age of social media as our attention span has been reduced to a few seconds and we increasingly lack the patience to delve deeply into written communication. This leaves us open to over-simplifying that which is inevitably complex and multiple.

An example of this is the covid-19 pandemic.

How is it that politicians (e.g. Trump, Johnson, Bolsonaro) could get away with rejecting all the science behind the pandemic and dismissing it via terms such as ‘fake news’, and ‘lies’. Many people chose to believe the spoken words of these modernist politicians rather than take the time to read the scientific (or even more informed) evidence.

The same problem has beset humanity’s attempt to address climate change.

Derrida would have had a great time deconstructing the language of Donald Trump especially, and would not been unduly surprised at the hypnotic effect it had on certain parts of the American population.

Just imagine, following Derridean theory, which politician would succeed in todays’ America if the Presidential contest were between Abraham Lincoln and Trump? Trump would rubbish the short Gettysburg Address very quickly, not by writing something as compelling, but by words spoken via mass media to an audience of millions, words which said nothing profound but which simply spoke to people’s innate prejudices and fears.

And then when questioned on his inflammatory words he’d say ‘sorry, you got me wrong, I didn’t mean that’.

When was the last time you read anything profound written by Trump?

No, you never have.

Partly because if he wrote anything he’d have to more fully explain himself. He would have to more clearly expose himself and his true intent.

For Derrida, Trump would the archetypal modernist politician, albeit one who utilises postmodern media to powerful effect.

Language, as discourse, gives meaning to the individual, informs identity, but language is also a temporal process (as is the individual). Meaning is never assured, never stable, never fixed, and always in a state of reinvention.

Derrida warns us not to be seduced by oratory and rhetoric; not to assume that what is spoken is meant as you interpret it; and not to build a world on the constantly shifting sands of human speech.

Everything spoken is subject to multiple interpretation.

When I speak you may like what you hear but you still have no idea who that speaking ‘I ‘really is or what they really are thinking.

Dr Stephen Whitehead

Since 2017, Dr Stephen Whitehead has answered over 10,500 Quora questions, mostly on relationships, education, sociology, life and living, and philosophy. To date, his answers have received approximately 3.2 million views increasing at the rate 60,000 views a month. He has nearly 1,000 followers.

Stephen’s latest book (International Schooling: The Teacher’s Guide) is available via: teachabroad.ac.