Perspectives of University of Zambia Trainee Teachers on Research Proposal supervision

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to examine the experiences and challenges student teachers were facing during research proposal writing supervision and the need for change in the existing theories and models of research supervision. The idea was to explore common themes emerging from lived experiences of University of Zambia student teachers’ perception of lectures’ research proposal writing supervision. Research proposal writing is one of the main components for students taking Special Education in the School of Education but developing a research proposal is often an arduous task for a research student. The participants in the study were drawn from student teachers on the teacher education programme at the University of Zambia. The results from the study showed that student teachers had different perceptions about research proposal supervision. These included lack of guidance from supervisors, unavailability of supervisors, unfriendly supervisors, lack of consistency in the supervisors’ comments, delayed feedback for submitted work, and lack of research materials. The study recommended that more time should be allocated to proposal writing.