Chapter 10: Change in Action: The Education Doctorate and Dissertation in Practice

This chapter explores a doctoral journey, as a teacher moves from a practitioner to scholar practitioner and the impacts this process has on my professional, personal, and scholarly work. It will provide personal exploration of the doctoral and Dissertation in Practice (DiP) process during my Doctor of Education (EdD) program and how this work is impacting the educational field. A shift is happening— moving from separate practitioners and academic roles, toward a connected, collaborative field that fosters teacher voice, growth, and emerging leadership (ASCD, 2014).

I specifically reflect on writing the DiP, a unique entity to the professional doctorate, and its influence on my work as an educator. As the landscape of EdD programs is changing it is critical that practitioners, academics, and scholar practitioners have a clear understanding of the DiP and the impact it is having in the field (Carnegie Project on the Education Doctorate, 2015).