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This article describes the evolution of the conceptualization of the "problem of practice" dissertation in the new EdD Program at the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. Our definition and conceptualization of the professional practice dissertation is grounded in a review of relevant literature and a description of the definition of a problem of practice developed by Rutgers' EdD faculty. To illustrate how to define a problem of practice dissertation, this article includes an analysis of several students' dissertation topics, and questions. This analysis highlights how practice can be understood as nested circles surrounding students that begin closest to the center in the specific job site (e.g. classroom) and move outwards to the institution (e.g. school, university) and then to the community (e.g. state). Broadly understood, the problem is always how to improve learning opportunities. Problem of practice dissertations use inquiry and evaluation to study current conditions as a way to make effective decisions on how to address the problem or by using the research literature to select and then test an intervention.
In 2010, the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers University launched a redesigned Education Doctorate program. Previously, the school had offered 11 separate programs whose goals, expectations and formats were often indistinct from PhD programs. The new cohort-based, interdisciplinary, school-wide program is designed to help future and current leaders develop the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to solve problems of practice and improve instructional quality. Our learning goals are that students will have the skills to work with instructional staff to enact improvements; diagnose, frame, and address organizational and practice problems; create networks and community partnerships to enact policy; analyze data and draw implications for programs, policy, and practice; hone their pedagogical skills to lead instructional improvements at the classroom and local levels; and advocate on behalf of their educational communities. The guiding principles direct the program to reflect the challenges of practice, apply directly to solving problems of practice, and build ways through course work and other program requirements for student to engage in, interpret, and apply educational research (Graduate School of Education, 2013).Our intent is that graduates will learn to be change agents who work to improve the lives of students and their...