Educating Doctoral Students in Kinesiology to Teach Effectively

Abstract

Doctoral program graduates, including in kinesiology, may be inadequately prepared to become effective teachers. The purpose of this study was to examine the required courses in research and teaching for kinesiology doctoral students and the related skills and abilities most important for doctoral students to develop to be successful in their first faculty positions. Through a survey, faculty coordinators of graduate programs in kinesiology were asked to identify required courses, the relative importance of skills and abilities in research and teaching, and the preparation levels of doctoral program graduates in research and teaching. Respondents rated courses, skills, abilities, and preparation in research consistently higher than courses associated with teaching. The authors proposed recommendations for preparing a more qualified cadre of kinesiology doctoral program graduates.