'Back to School after PhD': Exploring Teachers' Work Experiences
Working in a school after attaining one of the highest research degrees is uncommon in academia. Nevertheless, this is an emerging phenomenon due to an increased number of PhDs in Pakistan. Yet, many PhDs are unemployed. On the other hand, a school is a place that requires content expert and pedagogically skilled teachers. In the present study, the researchers attempted to address the central questions of the study; how is it like to work in schools after completing PhD and how do PhDs experience being the most qualified persons teaching in schools? A phenomenological approach was employed to uncover participants lived experiences of working in schools. Thirteen PhDs were approached through snowball sampling who were teaching in schools. The data were collected through face-to-face semi-structured interviews at different schools that were analyzed using phenomenological analysis. As a result, three main themes and two sub-themes emerged from the interview transcripts. The themes included working in schools, joining the school after PhD (sub-themes; teaching and managing classroom, assessing and interaction with students) and working with non-PhDs. The study results have implications for PhDs working in schools, other school teachers and heads of the school, and the school education department.
-
PhD, School Teachers, Working Experience, School Education, Qualitative Study
-
(1) Muhammad Saqib
Education Teacher, Center of Excellence, GHSS, Jaranwala, Punjab, Pakistan.
(2) Syed Abdul Waheed
Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Research & Assessment, University of Okara, Okara, Punjab, Pakistan.
(3) Nadia Gilani
Assistant Professor, Department of Teacher Education, University of Okara, Okara, Punjab, Pakistan.
- Craig, C. J. (2009). Teacher research and teacher as researcher. International Handbook of Research on Teachers and Teaching, 61-70.
- Creswell, J. W. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
- Doyle, K. M. H., & Vale, R. D. (2013, November). Creating opportunities for science PhDs to pursue careers in high school education. Mol Biol Cell, 24(21), 3292-6.
- Gilani, N., Waheed, S. A., & Shaheen, A. (2020). Making a debut in teaching: Uncovering prospective teachers' first-time teaching experiences in schools. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 8(11), 5443-5452. DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2020.081147.
- Gallagher, S. (1997). Mutual enlightenment: Recent phenomenology in cognitive science. Journal of Consciousness Studies, 4(3), 195- 214.
- Gallagher, S., & Francesconi, D. (2012) Teaching Phenomenology to Qualitative Researchers, Cognitive Scientists, and Phenomenologists. Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology, 12(3), 1-10, DOI: 10.2989/IPJP.2012.12.3.4.1112
- Government of Punjab, Pakistan School Education Department. (2020, December 7). sis.punjab.gov.pk. Https://Sis.Punjab.Gov.Pk/. https://sis.punjab.gov.pk/stats/
- Hussain, D. M. A., Bhatti, D. R., Tufail, M. M., & Rashid, D. F. (2017). Philosophy of Education. Allama Iqbal Open University: Islamabad.
- Philips, w. (2016). Research Methodology in Education. Research Methodology in Education - An LLED Manual. https://lled500.trubox.ca/2016/225.
- Roulston, K. (2018). How to develop an interview guide (Part 1). https://qualpage.com/2018/02/08/how-to- develop-an-interview-guide-part-1/.
- Roulston, K. (2018). Smith, B. (2020). Inside Higher Ed. The benefits of working in an independent K-12 school as a Ph.D. grad (opinion). . to develop an interview guide (Part 1). https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/20 20/02/13/benefits-working-independent-k- 12-school-phd-grad-opinion
- Smith, B. (2020). Inside Higher Ed. The benefits of working in an independent K-12 school as a Ph.D. grad (opinion). https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/20 20/02/13/benefits-working-independent-k- 12-school-phd-grad-opinion.
- Tustin, R. (2018, February). Pros and Cons of Getting a PhD While Teaching Full Time. Study.com. https://study.com/blog/pros- and-cons-of-getting-a-phd-while-teaching- full-time.html.
- Waheed, S. A. (2020). Doctoral students' transition to the academic culture of foreign universities: Setting the stage for PhD. Sir Syed Journal of Education & Social Research, 3(2), 408-419.
- Waheed, S. A., Gilani, N. & Raza, M. (2020). Temporality: Living through the time while doing doctoral studies. Journal of Business and Social Review in Emerging Economies, 6(3), 1111-1117
- Yousaf, A., & Zaheer, M. (2021, March 6). Dilemma of HEC research grants. The Express Tribune. https://tribune.com.pk/story/2287885/dile mma-of-hec-research-grants.
Cite this article
-
APA : Saqib, M., Waheed, S. A., & Gilani, N. (2021). 'Back to School after PhD': Exploring Teachers' Work Experiences. Global Educational Studies Review, VI(I), 78-85. https://doi.org/10.31703/gesr.2021(VI-I).08
-
CHICAGO : Saqib, Muhammad, Syed Abdul Waheed, and Nadia Gilani. 2021. "'Back to School after PhD': Exploring Teachers' Work Experiences." Global Educational Studies Review, VI (I): 78-85 doi: 10.31703/gesr.2021(VI-I).08
-
HARVARD : SAQIB, M., WAHEED, S. A. & GILANI, N. 2021. 'Back to School after PhD': Exploring Teachers' Work Experiences. Global Educational Studies Review, VI, 78-85.
-
MHRA : Saqib, Muhammad, Syed Abdul Waheed, and Nadia Gilani. 2021. "'Back to School after PhD': Exploring Teachers' Work Experiences." Global Educational Studies Review, VI: 78-85
-
MLA : Saqib, Muhammad, Syed Abdul Waheed, and Nadia Gilani. "'Back to School after PhD': Exploring Teachers' Work Experiences." Global Educational Studies Review, VI.I (2021): 78-85 Print.
-
OXFORD : Saqib, Muhammad, Waheed, Syed Abdul, and Gilani, Nadia (2021), "'Back to School after PhD': Exploring Teachers' Work Experiences", Global Educational Studies Review, VI (I), 78-85
-
TURABIAN : Saqib, Muhammad, Syed Abdul Waheed, and Nadia Gilani. "'Back to School after PhD': Exploring Teachers' Work Experiences." Global Educational Studies Review VI, no. I (2021): 78-85. https://doi.org/10.31703/gesr.2021(VI-I).08