Scaffolding Learning for Practitioner-Scholars: The Philosophy and Design of a Qualitative Research Methods Course

Abstract

We present our approach to a qualitative research methods course to prepare practitioner-scholars for their dissertation and independent research. We explain how an instructor’s guide provides consistency and rigor, and in-class activities to scaffold learning, and helps faculty connect the content to students’ out-of-school lives. We explain how reflection is used to develop students’ reflective practice and enable us to improve the course in both the short and long term. We argue the necessity of having tools that ensure our teaching philosophy translates into a consistent curriculum and instructional approach, maximizing the chances that faculty facilitate our students’ development into practitioner-scholars.