MBO teacher starts doctoral research into career guidance
Do doctoral research in addition to your job as a teacher. That is not at all self-evident in MBO. Martha Magee, teacher at the Roc in Flevoland, is going to do it. She recently completed the pre-PhD program. Now she is ready for the examination.
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You followed the pre-doctoral program for fourteen months. What did that mean?
“Search for a supervisor, formulate a research proposal and look at your research skills. I actually wanted to start doing a PhD myself earlier, but then I was reminded of this pre-PhD track. I'm glad I did. The group consisted only of MBO teachers, which was nice. A PhD is not something that often occurs in this sector. I have one colleague who has been promoted. ”
Has research always been something for you?
“Yes, I find following courses and research interesting. I have a master's in English language and literature and later also got my master's in SEN. Changes are often introduced in MBO, but it is good to see why we are doing that and to investigate - in a scientific way - whether it works. ”
What are you going to research?
“I want to do research into career guidance. And especially the question of what needs to be done at management level and in policy so that the career guidance of students becomes more firmly in the curriculum and receives attention from the teachers. Now the government says that career guidance is important, but I notice that the exam subjects remain more important. Lecturers know that career counseling is not examined. Or they have an attitude of: 'I'm a German teacher and not a psychologist.' ”
What do you encounter in practice when it comes to career guidance?
“I myself work as an English teacher and I am also in the 'restart class'. In that class there are MBO students who just don't know what they want. They have stopped training and have to make a choice again. In that class I see the importance of good career guidance every day. Wrong choices are often linked to problems at home. I notice that many students are not heard or seen enough and that you often have to ask the right questions. With my research I want to look at how career counseling can be improved in such a way that the restart class is no longer necessary. ”
Where do you start?
“I first want to see what managers know about career guidance, so what is known. And then how it can be changed or improved. For that I have to take measurements and make observations and interview them. But first I will go next week with my supervisor and co-supervisor to see what we can do to get a grant, for example. Everything has to be done step by step. It also takes four years. ”
Do you have time to graduate from the roc?
“I am now negotiating about that. For the master SEN I received a teacher's grant and time. I hope that I will also have time for this research. ”
The second group of teachers started the pre-doctoral program on 21 March.
