Use of Learner-Centered Strategies in the Preparation of Community and Technical College Leaders: Assessments by Participating Doctoral Students

This paper presents assessments by students actively engaged in a recently redesigned Doctor of Education (EdD) program, delivered at a research-extensive university participating in the the Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate (CPED), to prepare leaders for a statewide system of community and technical colleges. Because a unique feature of the program is a required group dissertation, small-group and team-development activities were initiated during the first semester of coursework and continued throughout three subsequent semesters. Assessments of cohort members' experiences presented in this paper were derived from two sources: (a) Students' reflections about learning activities and outcomes gathered through post-assignment Web-based surveys and (b) their group-authored papers for a conference in which they described program elements and how those elements impacted their learning. These data sources are complete; member checking of final conference papers, including this one, by doctoral students in the program provides quality assurance. The next section presents a research overview of learning cohorts and communities of practice as well as learning-centered principles, adult learning theories, and recommended leadership-development practices. Following this review is a description of the EdD program and cohort, followed by the presentation of student assessments. The authors conclude with implications and recommendations for using student-centered instructional strategies in doctoral education. (Contains 2 tables.)