• Home
  • General
  • AACTE Awards Program Recognizes Excellence in Doctoral Dissertation Research

AACTE Awards Program Recognizes Excellence in Doctoral Dissertation Research

 2018 AACTE Outstanding Dissertation Award recipient, Molly Baustien Siuty
The AACTE Awards Program recognizes excellence in educator preparation in nine categories. One category is the Outstanding Dissertation Award, which honors doctoral research that contributes to the knowledge base of educator preparation or of teaching and learning with implications for educator preparation. Overseen by AACTE’s Committee on Research and Dissemination, the award includes a $1,000 cash prize as well as special recognition at AACTE’s 72nd Annual Meeting in Atlanta, GA, February 28 – March 1, 2020.

The video above features the 2018 AACTE Outstanding Dissertation Award recipient, Molly Baustien Siuty, assistant professor of inclusive teacher education at AACTE member institution Portland State University (PSU). She was recognized for her study (Re)constituting Teacher Identity for Inclusion in Urban Schools: A Process of Reification and Resistance. Her dissertation investigated how teacher candidates’ learning about diversity and inclusion in their preservice preparation programs translates—or struggles to translate—into their practice as new teachers. The study uncovered important insights for bridging gaps between teacher preparation and induction.

“Dr. Siuty’s research explores how teacher candidates’ learning about diversity and inclusion in their teacher preparation programs translates into their practice as new teachers. This is absolutely essential to the future health of our nation’s public education system,” said Rahmat Shoureshi, president of PSU. Learn more in this blog.

Eligible candidates for the Outstanding Dissertation Award are individuals receiving a doctorate since January 1, 2018. The primary selection criterion is quality of scholarship. The narrative summary file should answer the following questions about the dissertation:

  1. What conceptual, methodological, or research question did it address?
  2. What was the rationale for the study?
  3. What was the knowledge base for the study?
  4. What research methodology was employed?
  5. What were the findings? What is important, surprising, or particularly illuminating about the findings?
  6. What are the theoretical and/or practical implications of the findings?
  7. What were the strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of the study’s design?

For more information, read the full criteria for the Outstanding Dissertation Award.

Applications for the 2020 AACTE awards are open on AACTE’s online submission site.  Entries for the Outstanding Dissertation Award are due August 20 and all other awards are due October 9.

Winners will be decided by the AACTE standing committees and recognized formally at the 2020 Annual Meeting. For more information, refer to the official Call for Entries, visit the submission site, or contact AACTE Director of Meetings and Events Linda Minor at lminor@aacte.org.


Tags: ,

Jerrica Thurman

Director of Marketing & Communications, AACTE