Vernon Trafford

Professor Emeritus

Emeritus Professor Vernon Trafford


Qualifications & Memberships

  • BA (Political science), Liverpool University, 1968
  • PhD Southampton University, 1987
  • DPA Liverpool University, 1965

  • British Educational Leadership, Management and Administration Society
  • Society for Research into Higher Education
  • International Association of Teaching English as a Foreign Language
  • Member, QAA Working party on Doctoral Degree Characteristics


Courses

  • Workshops related to doctoral education

Outline of Career

My career in higher education commenced after employment in the Royal Air Force, commerce, an international bank, local government and then attending University. Appointments in HEIs have included business schools or education faculties in UK Polytechnics and Universities, and similar institutions in Scandinavia, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka and India. Complementing this have been consultancy contracts for the British Council, OECD, TEMPUS, UNICEF, the World Bank and government agencies.

Such a diversity of contexts, cultures, disciplines and opportunities helped me to appreciate commonalities on which learning and development are based. This experience was invaluable in creating the MSc (Education Management) within the Anglia Business School and then, in 1996/7, designing and directing the first DBA and EdD programmes at Anglia Ruskin.

In recent years my professional activity has concentrated on developing and delivering doctoral education workshops for candidates, supervisors and examiners.

For details of my publications, research projects and conference presentations see: www.vernontrafford.com


Research interests

The emphasis of my research and its associated publications has inevitably altered over the years in keeping with my career. However, although the focus of these works has changed my primary discipline of organization theory provides a constant reference point for analyzing and interpreting my evidence.

Since 2001 my primary research interest has been the nature of doctorateness and the operation of doctoral vivas. As an under-researched aspect of the doctoral experience these investigations have developed theory to explain practice. Attending over 100 doctoral vivas as an examiner, chair or supervisor in attendance has provided evidence to understand, and so de-mystify, the dynamics of doctoral vivas.

Not every doctoral candidate progresses smoothly through their doctoral experience. Some 'get stuck' and others have difficulty in 'thinking like a researcher'. My research uses Land and Meyer's notion of threshold concepts to explain the former and Perkins' concept of episteme to explain the latter. This illustrates how issues within a discipline can often be explained by scholarship outside that discipline and this is why research - for me - is always exciting.

Dissemination is an integral part of the research process. My research findings are shared through national and international conference presentations, workshops, research projects and publications. These activities provide continuing professional development for me as a researcher, doctoral supervisor and examiner.

Thus, my research is inductive and adopts an insider approach to the development of professional practice.

Selected Publications

Books

Trafford, V.N. and Leshem, S. 2008. Reprinted 2010, 2011, 2012. Stepping stones to achieving your doctorate: by focusing on your viva from the start. Maidenhead: Open University Press.

Sanger, J., Schratz, M. and Trafford, V.N. (Eds.) 2004. The pied piper: an only book of research essays. Chelmsford: Earlybrave.

Stott, K. and Trafford, V.N. (Eds.) 2000. Partnerships: shaping the future of education. London: Middlesex University Press.

Chapters

Trafford, V.N. 2012. Reviewing the literature or creating theoretical perspectives? In: Savin-Baden, M. and Major, C.H. (Eds.) Qualitative research: the essential guide to theory and practice. London: Routledge.

Trafford, V.N. 2008. Conceptual frameworks as a threshold concept in doctorateness. In: Land, R., Meyer, J. and Smith. J. (Eds.) Threshold concepts within the disciplines. Rotterdam: Sense Publications.

Recent Articles

Trafford, V.N. and Leshem, S. 2009. Doctorateness as a threshold concept. Innovations in Educational and Teaching International. 46. 3. 305-316.

Leshem, S. and Trafford, V.N. 2007. Overlooking the conceptual framework. Innovations in Educational and Teaching International. 44. 1. 93-105.

Trafford, V.N. 2003. Questions in doctoral vivas: views from the inside. Quality Assurance in Education. 11. 2. 114-122.

Leshem, S. and Trafford, V.N. 2002. Anatomy of a doctoral viva. Journal of Graduate Education. 3. 33-40.

Leshem, S. and Trafford, V.N. 2002. Starting at the end to undertake doctoral research: predictable questions as stepping stones. Higher Education Review. 35.1. 31-49.

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