Master’s Thesis Writing: Cinderella of Iranian ELT Education

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Yasouj University

2 Bangkok University

Abstract

For the vast majority of the Iranian M.A. students of TEFL, thesis writing is the first individual engagement with research. Despite having some pedagogical merits, such an academic activity generally poses some intellectual and affective challenges to such students. During thesis completion, if students are not effectively scaffolded by supervisors and not supported by universities, they are likely to encounter serious problems that might result in their disengagement, frustration, and withdrawal from doing their theses themselves. This study was an attempt to explore the factors that dissuaded some Iranian M.A. students of TEFL from carrying out their theses themselves. In effect, the study aimed to shed light on the reasons why some Iranian M.A. students of TEFL go to other agents to do their theses in exchange for money. Adopting a purposive sampling procedure, we found 13 M.A. graduates who did not do their theses themselves, but they paid some agents to do so in their stead. Semistructured interviews were used to gather the data. Findings revealed 3 dominant themes including supervisor-related, supervisee-related, and higher education-related factors responsible for the issue under investigation.

Keywords

References

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101.
Day, K., Grant, R., & Hounsell, D. (1998). Reviewing your teaching. United Kingdom : University of Edinburgh, Center for Teaching, Learning, and Further Education.
de Kleijn, R. A. (2013). Master’s thesis supervision: Feedback, interpersonal relationships, and adaptivity. Unpublished dicroral dissertation, Utrecht University. Retrieved June 13, 2013, from the World Wide Web:  http://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/283068
de Kleijn, R. A., Mainhard, M. T., Meijer, P. C., Pilot, A., & Brekelmans, M. (2014). The relation between feedback perceptions and the supervisor-student relationship in master’s thesis projects. Teaching in Higher Education, 19(4), 336-349.
Delamont, S., Atkinson, P., & Parry, O. (2001). Supervising the Ph.D. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Hasrati, M. (2005). Academic writing in Iranian university: The lost ring of the chain. Quarterly Journal of Research and Planning in Higher Education, 11(1), 103-138.
Hasrati, M. (2013). Why bother about writing a master’s dissertation? Assumptions of faculty and master students in an Iranian setting. Asia-Pacific Education Review, 14(3), 455-465.
James, R., & Baldwin, G. (2006). Eleven practices of effective postgraduate supervisors. Australia: University of Melbourne, Center for the Study of Higher Education and the School of Graduate Studies.
Ketteridge, S., & Shiach, M. (2009). Supervising research students. In H. Fry, S. Ketteridge, & S. Marshall (Eds.), A handbook for teaching and learning in higher education: Enhancing academic practice (pp. 166-185). London: Routledge.
Marshall, S. (2009). Supervising projects and dissertations. In H. Fry, S. Ketteridge, & S. Marshall (Eds.), A handbook for teaching and learning in higher education: Enhancing academic practice (pp. 150-165). London: Routledge.
Murray, R. (1998). Research supervision. Scotland: University of Strathclyde, Center for Academic Practice.  
Powles, M. (1992). Policy and program issues in research recruitment and training. In O. Zuber-Skerritt (Ed.), Starting research-supervision and training (pp. 25-49). Brisbane: University of Queensland, Tertiary Education Institute.
Rahimi, A., & Askari Bigdeli, R. (2014). Iranian EFL learners at loggerheads with perceived social support. Iranian Journal of Research in English Language Teaching, 1(3), 31-38.
Rahimi, A., & Askari Bigdeli, R. (2015). Student authorship in applied linguistics: A case of ghost authors. Research Papers in Language Teaching and Learning (RPLTL), 6(1)25-34.
Reynolds, J. A., & Thompson, R. J. (2011). Want to improve undergraduate thesis writing? Engage students and their faculty readers in scientific peer review. CBE-Life Sciences Education, 10(2), 209-215.
Sachs, J. (2002). A path model for students’ attitude to writing a thesis. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 46(1), 99-108.
Semeijn, J. H., Semeijn, J., & Gelderman, K. J. (2009). Master’s thesis supervision. In Daly, P. & Gijbels, D. (Eds.), Real learning opportunities at business school and beyond (pp. 211-222). Routledge: London.
Semeijn, J. H., Velden, R. V. D., Heijke, H., Vleuten, C. V. D., & Boshuizen, H. P. (2006). Competence indicators in academic education and early labour market success of graduates in health sciences. Journal of Education and Work, 19(4), 383-413.
Strauss, P. (2012). The English is not the same: Challenges in thesis writing for second language speakers of English. Teaching in Higher Education, 17(3), 283-293.
Thomas, C. (1995). Helping students complete master’s theses through active supervision. Journal of Management Education, 19(2), 240-249.
Todd, M., Bannister, P., & Clegg, S. (2004). Independent inquiry and the undergraduate dissertation: Perceptions and experiences of final‐year social science students. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 29(3), 335-355.
Wisker, G. (2005). The good supervisor: Supervising postgraduate and undergraduate research for theses and dissertations. Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan.

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics