Reflections on the IMAESC Dissertation Journey (Part 2)
12 August 2022
After all what I have been through these past few months, the universe, my passion and vision conspired to make this finally come true. The first draft of my IMAESC dissertation was far from perfect. But it gave me the best feeling of satisfaction and purpose. The voices of the research participants I interviewed for this research have been finally given the spotlight they deserve to be. My fear of completing a self-authored dissertation paper was finally dispelled.
The feeling was momentous. It was grand. It deserved a great celebration after years of disbelieving, finally I can say, "I made it happen!"
Below was the facebook post I wrote that day to remember this moment. I thank all the people behind this journey for supporting me and for their unconditional love and support.
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I imagined this moment. With faith (in God) and belief in myself, I made this happen.
I promised myself that I will complete the first draft of my Master's dissertation today. I really did not expect it to be of high quality, I just needed the first draft to sustain my hope. I acknowledge that writing and research are my personal limitations and weaknesses. The memories of a failed attempt to complete an MA thesis on my first programme haunted me until last night.
But I persisted. I dreamt about this day that I will finally conquer this fear. I fought hard. I cannot imagine how I managed to interview 16 participants without the help of my mentors and channels of blessings (I thank and honour them!). I risked a well-paid career to be in this journey to understand how my previous career has contributed in expanding, as well as in limiting participation to professional development and lifelong learning opportunities.
I reflected and focused my dissertation questioning how teacher professionalism has been largely focused on making them better teachers and in meeting professional standards; when they are also actively working in our communities as second parents, resource speakers, community builders, among many others. They are the ones who risked their lives during this pandemic - visiting their students' homes with the aim of bringing them back to virtual classrooms so that students can still continue learning. However, many people thought they were not doing their jobs simply because teachers' work is not widely celebrated.
And I think, this exercise became reflexive of my own personal and professional struggles and journey. Similar to my experiences as a migrant, teachers experience many precarities and vulnerabilities. My work was not just a graduation requirement. It was a commitment to acknowledge these unsong heroes' valuable contributions to our communities. In doing this project, I attempted to change the course of our aspirations for lifelong learning that is not solely focused on employability or skills, and in preparing for the disruptions of the 4th Industrial Revolution. In doing so, we can look at lifelong learning and professional development as sites of dialogue, reflection and transformation by meaningfully participating in our communities through our professions.
This may not be the best paper I have written just yet. But one thing's for sure - I will leave this chapter with my head held up high. I am finishing soon a postgraduate programme almost held online during these uncertain times.
Certainly, my experiences as an online learner during COVID-19 crisis can be a good topic for a next publication material too!
That is why, allow me to tap myself and say, "McRhon, you have done your best. This is a big victory for you. Now, relax and celebrate, and reflect on what you have done. You still have a few more days to refine it."
Merci mon Dieu! Merci Universe! Salamat po Panginoon! May you always, always be glorified!
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Read my blog post here on my experiences writing my self-authored research proposal - the same proposal that ushered my journey to this dissertation. The feelings were the same. But now, I finally conquered. I am sure you can do this as well!
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