Last week Friday, I attended a dynamic celebration of a 31-strong cohort of Belizean students who had successfully completed year-one of their doctorates in education in choices from the following four cognates: Organizational Leadership, Instructional Leadership, Higher Education, and Instructional Technology.
As I sat and listened to the program’s initial struggles cited by administration as they battled with accreditation (both at the university and program levels), recruitment of students, and other logistical challenges, I recalled my own doctoral student days. Although the challenges my cohort of seven faced were somewhat different from an administrative point of view, those of this cohort of students probably were similar, though in a different cultural context.
I can remember the very early days of taking the qualifying exams at the start of the program that would, in a sense, determine if we were doctoral material. After taking these grueling exams and passing, I remember one student who cried intensely from relief and happiness. Nobody wanted to return home — most of the seven were either from out of state or from overseas. When we graduated, only three of the seven had made it to the finish mark at that point. Two had withdrawn within the first year, another had transferred to another university, and one had outstanding credits to complete. It was great pressure all the way down to the finish line.
So as I listened to the speeches given by the Provost and the Assistant Provost of Nova Southeastern University (that is offering the degree), and to those of Dr. Vilma Joseph of the University of Belize, who was instrumental in working with Nova in making the Ed.D progam a reality, I understood why students were celebrating their first year completion of the program.
Although in its first year, attrition has already made its mark on the doctoral group—from 37 to 31 students—it is very likely that with the spirit I saw expressed at the anniversary gathering that a sizeable body will graduate. In addition to the 31 doctoral students from the UB-Nova cohort, there are some 24 doctoral students at Galen University who are pursuing Ed.D’s as well, and they are expected to complete their degrees within the next three years.
To better understand what factors motivate and challenge students as they pursue a doctoral degree in Belize, I carried out an online interview with two students who struck me as passionate and committed to completing the UB/Nova Ed.D program.
To my question: “If you were to list three main reasons for pursuing the Nova doctoral program, what would they be?” Sylvana Woods replied, “(a) it gives me an opportunity to get the skills to apply my lifelong research to proper testing and evaluation methods and procedures, and thus [I can] contribute to the research in language education that drives policy and classroom implementation (b) the degree allows me to work in Belize, thus allowing me to pursue it since I would be unable to consider it because at this time in my life, family responsibilities and mortgage, etc. make moving away hard; thus it is affordable (c) I have a teenager and would not have wanted to disrupt her life anymore, as I am a single parent, thus pursuing it while in Belize is a bonus.” Sylvana’s major is in Higher Education, and she currently lectures full time in the Faculty of Education and Arts at UB.
To the same question, Leroy Almendarez responded: “Firstly, to develop human and intellectual capital; to remain competitive in an ever changing global environment; and to give back to the growth and development of Belize.” Leroy’s major is in Organizational Leadership and Higher Education. He said he chose this area because he envisioned himself taking on leadership roles or assisting with the development and the productive capacity of the organization he works with now, and Belize as a whole.
People generally are interested in understanding what motivates doctoral students and want to know how they will benefit themselves and the community through higher studies. Therefore, I posed the following questions to both students: “How do you think the doctoral degree will change your life, and how do you anticipate to make a difference in the lives of others?”
Sylvana responded, “Already, the pursuit of the degree is making me a more observant person; I listen more before I talk; I check for at least two independent verifications of information – I am already a better critical thinker and lecturer. Above all, it will arm me with more information to bring to the table about the role of first languages in second language acquisition.”
Leroy responded, “Globalization has usurped countries of the world, whether developed or developing and therefore, we must be proactive; where we are not proactive, then our reactions must be relevant education. The knowledge gained through research and knowledge delivery by professors has already changed my life because there is a greater awareness of development systems in different parts of the world. My goal is to continue to teach, to assist with the advancement of my organization—which plays a pivotal role in the development of Belize—and to participate in information sharing exercises and fora that will transfer that knowledge through research and symposiums; finding solutions to many everyday problems that exist.”
Appreciating the role of research in doctoral program, I asked, “How do you plan to use your research skills after graduation?” To which Sylvana replied, “Based on the results of the research I am proposing, I would like to replicate the findings, on a district-wide level first, then nationwide, and use the results to further guide the Ministry’s curricula and educational system as it affects an educational use for the Creole languages of the region, of which Belize Kriol, one of these Creole languages, is my focus.”
Leroy replied, “There are many problems that exist, it’s a matter of identifying those problems and through applied research find relevant interventions that make significant changes to solve those existing problems.”
In response to what were the major challenges during their first year of doctoral studies, Sylvana pointed out, “Learning to navigate peer-reviewed articles, databases, and mastering the nuances of the ‘drier’ type of writing required for research papers; balancing reading/research time with responsibilities.” For his part, Leroy responded, “Disciplining and adjusting to studies at the doctoral level and meeting the expectations, but through all that I have done well; time management, that is working full time and completing course requirements; and the sacrifice with family time since the program is intense.”
Through Sylvana’s and Leroy’s education windows, I wanted to communicate what are some of the trials doctoral students face as they pursue their dreams to become education doctors, and to capture their aspirations and motivations that drive them to weather education storms.
For us who studied abroad, we often became separated from families, or had to make huge loans to enable our families to be with us while we studied; we often were under tremendous pressure to be ambassadors of our country; we often had to measure up because we were not seen only as individuals, but as a Belizean, a scholar from a developing nation; we often had a hovering shadow tracking our scholarly achievements—for example, we had to send back transcripts to our fellowship sponsors; and we often had to define ourselves outside of our cultures.
The opportunity to now complete a doctoral program at home should soon change the face of the nation into a cadre of healers in education—our country right now needs all the help it can get to educate our young citizens and returning adult population who previously, in some instances, did not have the opportunity to pursue even a primary education.