It's time to rethink the dissertation process

The recent completion of my doctorate in instructional technology and distance education brought with it a mixed bag of relief and annoyment. While the end result was certainly rewarding, I found the process an excruciating experience in isolation. The coursework was rich in interaction with classmates, instructors, and outside resources. And this is how it should be, considering that the remainder of ones career as a high-level academic will be spent in discussing, researching, analyzing, refuting, defending, and revisiting the topics of the field. And yet, the dissertation process was, by its very nature, a one person, lone wolf, isolated affair. One person creates the project, writes the sections, reviews the literature, creates and implements the experiment, writes the results, and summarizes the findings. Yes, there was the dissertation committee that provided guidance, much like an English instructor provides formative feedback during a writing assignment. But the actual process of creating a dissertation was done by a single person. In fact, collaborative efforts in the creation of a dissertation would, at the very least, reek of academic dishonesty and accusations of cheating if discovered. And yet when the doctorate is completed, the remainder of research projects are typically done in a highly collaborative and collegial atmosphere. 

There is a movement in higher education towards authentic assessment, the creation of assessment activities that are similar to the activities a student would encounter in their workplace. It's time for the dissertation process, which is arguably the grand-daddy of all assessment activities, to be redesigned so that the experience not only adds to the body of knowledge but also provides the researcher with an authentic experience that would be a model for future research activities. Wow, the possibilities of collaborative research projects created by doctoral students sharing expertise and working off each others strengths could provide exceptional results! It was recently stated (and my apologies for not knowing the source) that Abraham Lincoln could walk into a modern day classroom and feel at home and how it's time to redesign the classroom model to take advantage of recent advancements in education so that he would not at home. The same can be said for the dissertation process: let's revise the dissertation process to create an authentic assessment opportunity that could add significant value to the student experience.