Retos de la investigación cualitativa constructivista en las aulas universitarias

Las transformaciones de las ciencias socio jurídicas en los países de américa Central y américa Latina en los últimos tres o cuatro lustros han implicado dimensiones tecnológicas y generacionales y se han sucedido en el marco de mayores incidencias de unas políticas de ciencia y tecnología abiertamente productivistas y del posicionamiento del modelo gerencial de la universidad-empresa. Esta investigación aborda la epistemología constructivista como base orientadora de la metodología de investigación basada en el pensamiento de diseño, entendiendo que el ser humano es activo constructor de su realidad en interacción con otros; posición que se complementa con herramientas e instrumentos afines conforme los aportes de Piaget, Vygotski y Ausubel, evitando así la procrastinación,​ es decir la postergación o posposición o hábito de retrasar actividades o situaciones que deben atenderse, sustituyéndolas por otras situaciones más irrelevantes sea por miedo o pereza a afrontarlas; el reprocesamiento de actividades mal ejecutadas o, en el peor de los casos, el abandono del esfuerzo ya iniciado, conjunto a una adecuada planificación que debe ser lo suficiente, de tal manera que, no se dejen de lado actividades clave, que no se subestimen los recursos necesarios (tiempo, dinero y personas), que se cuente con herramientas que permitan el logro del objetivo, en afrenta al fenómeno informalmente denominado Todo Menos investigación (All But Dissertation o ABD). A fin de cuentas, la aplicación del enfoque constructivista, incorpora el ejercicio de procesos creativos fuertemente vinculados a la motivación personal y a la disposición para superar obstáculos, citando por no decir lo menos el de “Cómo hacer una tesis y no envejecer en el intento”.

Racial Realities: Exploring the Experiences of Black Male Doctoral Candidates in “All But Dissertation” Status

Aim/Purpose: This qualitative study investigated the educational experiences of Black male doctoral students that contributed to prolonged “All But Dissertation” (ABD) status. Background: Explorations of the enrollment and persistent patterns among Black/African American students has shed light on the disparate rates of graduate school completion. While previous scholarship has focused on Black men in doctoral programs, there has been less focus on the experiences of Black male doctoral students who, after successfully completing coursework, comprehensive examinations, and a dissertation proposal hearing, find themselves mired in “All But Dissertation” (ABD) status. The purpose of this research was to explore the intersections of race and gender in the educational experiences of Black male doctoral students that contribute to delayed terminal degree completion. Methodology: Utilizing Self-Efficacy Theory and Critical Race Theory, this phenomenological investigation examines the racialized experiences of three Black male doctoral candidates enrolled in diverse graduate programs. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to identify how race and gender intersects with faculty advising, mentoring, student behaviors, and the ways faculty members support or impede doctoral student progression during the dissertation phase. Contribution: This study contributes to research in three critical ways: (1) it expands our understanding of the experiences of doctoral students specifically between completing coursework and defending a dissertation; (2) it illustrates the types of racialized encounters experienced during graduate study that contribute to prolonged ABD status and program attrition; and (3) it offers strategies for campus administrators and faculty to consider to extend structures of support to promote degree attainment among Black male doctoral students. Findings: This study’s findings indicate that racialized dynamics during doctoral education create environments that negatively impact doctoral student self-esteem and diminish motivation to complete doctoral studies. Through the narratives of Rico, Jeremy, and Kevin, three core themes emerged that illustrate the salience of race in the doctoral program experiences of Black males: (1) Underrepresented & Undervalued, (2) Challenging Transitions, and (3) Gendered Racism. First, each participant attended doctoral programs at predominantly White institutions, and all shared the commonality of being the only or one of a few Black male doctoral students in their program. Being underrepresented in the program led to challenges finding faculty members who valued their burgeoning research interests and were willing to support them through the dissertation process. Additionally, participants described challenging transitions at each stage of their doctoral program, which ultimately contributed to extending their time as students. Not only did they describe having different levels of preparedness to begin doctoral study, limited feedback from faculty through coursework and on dissertation proposal drafts prolonging their time as doctoral candidates. Finally, participants described their experiences navigating gendered racism, or racism that was attributed to their identity as Black men. Exasperated by their underrepresentation in the academy, participants talked about being surveilled on campus, having their intellect questioned, and the struggles associated with getting approval for their research. Recommendations for Practitioners: The experiences highlighted by participants offer insights into the institutional policies and procedures that can be implemented to support Black men. Specifically, findings speak to the importance of diversity. Campuses should work to ensure there is structural diversity within programs, and that faculty can guide students through a diverse array of research interests and topics as well. Faculty should offer clear and consistent feedback on student writing at all stages of graduate education to better prepare students for the transition to writing a dissertation independently. Finally, as racism is endemic to education, administration should promote spaces where students of color can talk about their racially charged experiences navigating the academy. Recommendation for Researchers: This work would benefit from additional research exploring the experiences of doctoral candidates across diverse institutional contexts. This includes intentional exploration of experiences of students enrolled in online doctoral programs, executive doctoral programs, and other types of programs that have emerged.

A Qualitative Case Study of All-but-Dissertation Students at Risk for Dissertation Noncompletion: A New Model for Supporting Candidates to Doctoral Completion

This study identified emergent themes from the interview data of at-risk-for-completion doctoral candidates ( N = 13; 59%), from a diverse demographic, who participated in a successful dissertation completion intervention program. The findings revealed four major themes including extrinsic factors, socioemotional, formal structures of the program, and personal development. The findings highlight the need for conscious processes used by vital leaders to develop program design in four key areas of leadership within a framework of open vital systems. Vital leadership acts as proxy agents to influence development of formal structures in the university leading to equity in educational opportunity for all students. Conclusions and parsimonious explicit implications are provided for doctoral program redesign focused on improving graduate student retention and completion rates for diverse student populations.

Gloria E. Anzaldúa

Gloria Evangelina Anzaldúa was born in Raymondville, Texas in 1942. A self-described Chicana feminist lesbian writer and cultural theorist, her work has been pivotal for the development of Chicana and Chicano Studies (also Chicana/o Studies) and has had a significant impact in the fields of queer studies, disability studies, women’s and gender studies, Chicana feminism, and critical race theory. Anzaldúa’s works are as multifaceted as she was. They comprise a wide range of genres, from the more traditional essay to the self-developed autohistoria, along with drawings, children’s books, fiction, and poetry. Her writings engage in complex theorizations regarding identity, subjectivity, epistemology, embodiment, politics, spirituality, and social transformation—all written in an approachable style. Borderlands theory, arguably her most notable contribution across different fields and disciplines, is developed at length in Borderlands/La Frontera and based on her own experiences growing up in the U.S.–Mexico border as a sixth generation Chicana. This acclaimed book has been consistently engaged with across the disciplinary board in Western academia and beyond. Her series of edited collections of writings by women of color and, in particular, This Bridge Called My Back have also become canonical texts for literary studies. A devoted student and educator, Anzaldúa graduated college with a bachelor of arts in English and Education, taught in the Texas school system, earned a master’s degree, and later made most of her income as a lecturer in universities all over the country. At the time of her death, she had attained all but dissertation status in a doctoral program at UC Santa Cruz and was working on her dissertation. A doctoral degree was awarded to her posthumously on the basis of previous merits. However, her relationship with academia was always tense, marked by a constant struggle to legitimize her chosen topics of study, methods, and writing style—famously unwilling to conform to Western academic standards through her signature use of code-switching, the resignification of indigenous symbolism, and her engagement with spirituality in serious theoretical terms. She died in May 2004 from diabetes complications. Upon her death a wealth of materials from her life and work were collected in a dedicated archive housed at the University of Texas at Austin. In 2007, Chicana writer and professor Norma Elia Cantú founded the Society for the Study of Gloria Anzaldúa (SSGA) to establish a space for academic communities and beyond for the development of Gloria E. Anzaldúa’s inspirational intellectual contributions.

Cognitive Apprenticeship for Dissertation Writing

The purpose of this chapter is to make explicit how faculty members at one institution adopted the cognitive apprenticeship model as a way to support doctoral students' development from student to scholar. The efforts in doing so focus heavily on dissertation thinking and writing because the dissertation is such a significant, culminating element in any doctoral student's experience. Writing a dissertation is something one only does once, and the process is typically designed to be an individual test of the ability to make connections between theory and practice, conduct research, and communicate about research in a scholarly manner. The isolation of dissertation writing often results in doctoral students' remaining ABD (all but dissertation). Most professors who have mentored a doctoral student through the dissertation process can attest that success in completing coursework does not necessarily lead to success in completing a dissertation. Because dissertation writing is markedly different from other kinds of academic and professional writing, many doctoral students need explicit support such as cognitive apprenticeship to guide their journey through the dissertation writing process.

Avoiding the A.B.D. Abyss: A Grounded Theory Study of a Dissertation-Focused Course for Doctoral Students in an Educational Leadership Program

More than half of all graduate students drop out before graduation. Doctoral students often become mired in the “all but dissertation” (ABD) phase of the process. This grounded theory study focused on the perceptions and experiences of doctoral students in an educational leadership program, who were ABD, regarding their participation in a dissertation-focused intensive writing course called the Dissertation Boot Camp (DBC). Findings revealed participants had particular challenges with time, writing, and advisement. The DBC attended to many of these challenges by providing time, structure, encouragement, and support. Results of the study led to the development of a conceptual framework, which helps to better understand the complexities involved in a student’s pathway to ABD status.