Education Technology – My Journey

The data collection portion of my qualifying project is complete. In some ways I feel as if it is a great accomplishment. With all the roadblocks and mid-stride modifications I had to make to accommodate my workplace if sometimes felt overwhelming. Actually it usually felt overwhelming. I still find myself siting and staring at the data, wondering what does this all mean? Have I actually accomplished anything? Will anyone see value in what I have done? I did not decide to go for my doctorate for anyone but myself, but it seems as if as a doctoral student you reach a point and ask if what you are doing matters. Not in the "Pluto is no longer a planet" change in the paradigm sort of way, or even in a "look I developed a taxonomy that will now be synonymous with instructional design" sort of way, but in a will anyone read this sort of way. Yes it will be nice to be published, but I wonder if my work will ever get referenced by some student or researcher trying to find ...

My qualifying project has finally gotten off the ground. Almost a month late, and scaled back considerably due to concerns from the powers that be here at work. However, the brief elation I felt from finally getting started has yet again come crashing to the ground due to one simple fact. In order to do a project concerned with a cross-functional team's ability to create a useful evaluation tool, you first have to have willing members for a cross-functional team. Due to my shortened time frame to conduct my research there is a shortened time for individuals to do the work. The first hurdle, to get people to agree to participate, was only partially successful. Only half of the members of the working group even responded and some said that they were simply too busy. Maybe I could offer donuts? It is frightening to know that despite all the time and effort I have put into the doctoral program it could all come to naught because I can't get any input. What happens if nothing happen...

As a doctoral students we are told to find an issue we're passionate about, on that's not too small, or too large, too hard or too soft. Use that area of passion, that question that keeps you up at night, to help develop your niche area and therefore your area of research. Easy right? So what keeps me up at night? Lately it's trying to develop a niche. While reading Machi & McEvoy (2009) The Literature Review i can't help but think "what a great idea" if I lived in a parallel universe. "Schedule at time with no interruptions and quiet surroundings" (p. 10). Awesome now if the family, friends and neighbor's kids will just cooperate. For those of us in my Ed.D. program who are online students with full time careers and family responsibilities the idea of taking two hour chunks everyday to do a lit review with no interruptions seems somewhat far fetched. I'm sure it's good advice but not sure my boss will go for it. But doing a lite...