The doctoral studies programme "Diversity and Educational Achievement"

Context

The doctoral studies programme "Diversity and Educational Achievement" was developed at the Central Institute for Didactic Research and Teacher Education (Zentralinstitut für didaktische Forschung und Lehre - ZdFL) in Augsburg. It was initiated by Prof. Dr. Leonie Herwartz-Emden, Prof. Dr. Markus Dresel, Prof. Dr. Andreas Hartinger, Prof. Dr. Martina Rost-Roth, and Prof. Dr. Werner Schneider, and is financed with the generous support of the Hans Böckler Foundation. As of 2009 eight fellowships have been made available, with the first accepted applicants taking up studies at the end of the year.

Objectives

The main objective of the "Diversity and Educational Achievement" programme is to promote research and and the creation of dissertational theses that explore and analyse the structural, societal, and cultural factors responsible for success (or lack thereof) in education and which are likely to present a challenge to teachers in the instruction or supervision of their students.

Within this context, it is of particular interest to attempt to advance the professionalisation of teacher training approaches by consolidating the knowledge base of several relevant disciplines (educational science, psychology, sociology, elementary/primary school education, German as a second/foreign language), including the use of "best practice" instruction models to ensure higher quality of education.

To this end, graduate students in the programme carry out empirical research projects geared towards strengthening interdisciplinary collaboration and enabling analytic access from different angles of approach, while at the same time receiving excellent guidance through the topic-oriented doctoral programme. These aspects - making use of different perspectives, adopting interdisciplinary approaches, and a specialized study programme - are what sets this programme apart

The strength of this approach lies in satisfying an increasingly apparent need: connecting pedagogical and psychological learning research with general didactics and specific didactic methods.

Interdisciplinary Research Areas

Keeping in mind the complex network of relationships that encompass the determining factors of educational success, the programme is intended to concentrate on the aspect of education that lies within the influence of educational scientists and is immediately accessible within the context of vocational teacher training - the teaching professional in and of themselves. Their personality, knowledge, and skillset not only shape the instructional environment, but inform their relationship with students, parents, and other professionals. Other avenues of access include characteristics of, and conditions necessary for, successful learning experiences for children and adolescents.

This core focus is expanded upon on four different levels of analysis:

1. instructional context of teaching and learning

2. social surroundings in the school environment

3. social context of family

4. properties of the educational system

This creates a diversified perspective on the interaction of individual factors in the educational process, which allows for insightful findings and resilient statements about their interdepency.