University of Colorado School of Education Margaret Eisenhart (Chair) Tracy Naber (Student) Lorrie Shepard (Dean) 7 Other Members of the Faculty

First year: Introduction to discipline and department Goal of Program: To develop a cohort of students who form a community of scholars at CU and later become leaders in evidence-based educational research, policy, and practice

Old Approach (required courses): Doctoral Research Seminar (1 course required first Fall) Multicultural Seminar (1 course recommended first Spring) Intro to Disciplined Inquiry (1 course recommended first year) First year: Introduction to discipline and department (cont.)

Intermediate Statistics (1 course recommended first or second year) Ethnographic Methods (1 course recommended first or second year) First year: Introduction to discipline and department (cont.)

New Approach (required cohort): First-year required core “Big Ideas” 1 and 2 Quantitative Methods 1 and 2 Qualitative Methods 1 and 2 On-going Special Seminar (each program area) On-going Special Seminar (each program area) Informal gatherings First year: Introduction to discipline and department (cont.)

Introduction to the research enterprise Old Approach: Various, highly individual apprenticeship experiences Various course activities Sporadic conference attendance Publishable paper Result: Uneven preparation of students

New Approach: Attempt to equalize opportunities for both research and teaching apprenticeships Better coordination of course activities Better monitoring of opportunities Desired Result: More balanced and stronger preparation for all students Introduction to the research enterprise (cont.)

Significant Transition Preparing and defending a dissertation proposal (“the prospectus”)

Dissertation and defense Research Topic: Negotiated between student and major advisor Advisor-Student Relationship: Negotiated Form of Dissertation: Most are standard When to Defend? After ok from advisor

Innovation New first-year core

Novel Idea Field trips to the seats of power More explicit attention to the national education scene (the agenda, the players, implications, opportunities, critiques, alternatives)