Ensemble work as a 21st century model for the Doctorate in Education nontraditional Dissertation in Practice(DiP) at Lynn University

Abstract

The purpose of this article was to demonstrate the ensemble work of 11 doctoral students (known as Cohort 5) as a 21st century model for the Doctorate in Education nontraditional Dissertation in Practice (DiP) at Lynn University in Boca Raton, FL. The research provided an opportunity to explore three objectives: (1) The first objective was to explore how the entire Cohort 5 decided upon the process. (2) The second objective was to describe how the entire Cohort 5 navigated challenges to become an ensemble. (3) The third objective was to discuss the challenges to complete the process of the nontraditional DiP into one ensemble work instead of several small group traditional DiPs. This article used a case study as the research strategy thus collected and analyzed qualitative data. The researchers analyzed and interpreted the findings to demonstrate the ensemble style group collaboration of 11 doctoral students can succeed as a 21st century model for the Ed.D. nontraditional DiP.

Keywords: Educational cohorts, doctoral students, educational doctorate, group dissertation