How are undergraduate students supervised? Perceptions of students and supervisors in a Malaysian university

Razlina Razali, Eleanor Hawe and Helen Dixon
The University of Auckland, New Zealand

Supervision is intrinsic to institutional-based research projects as it acts as a catalyst for the successful execution and completion of said projects. If students are to be independent in research and learning, they need to experience a supervision approach that supports their engagement in learning dialogues alongside their supervisors. This article explored undergraduate research supervision in a Malaysian university. Data were collected using individual, semi-structured interviews with students and supervisors. Findings indicated that undergraduate supervision was perceived and practised as a traditional, supervisor-centric process. The paper argues that a psy-supervision approach which focuses on the academic and pastoral aspects of supervision is catalytic to producing independent and active students in research and learning.
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Authors: Razlina Razali has a doctorate in education from The University of Auckland. At present, she is a senior lecturer in the Academy of Language Studies, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Perlis Branch, Malaysia. Her research interests include research supervision, feedback, English as a second language and qualitative case studies. Email: razlinarazali@uitm.edu.my ORCID: 0000-0002-1671-1793 Eleanor Hawe is an associate professor in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at The University of Auckland. Her teaching and research focuses mainly on assessment for learning - goal setting, feedback (including peer feedback) and the development of students' evaluative and productive expertise across a range of educational contexts and teaching subjects. Email: e.hawe@auckland.ac.nz ORCID: 0000-0001-9146-2777 Helen Dixon is an associate professor in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at The University of Auckland. Her teaching and research interests are focused on all aspects of assessment for learning, both within the compulsory schooling sector and in higher education. She also has a particular interest in teacher beliefs, including their efficacy beliefs and how these influence assessment practices. Email: h.dixon@auckland.ac.nz ORCID: 0000-0002-2850-2542 Please cite as: Razali, R., Hawe, E. & Dixon, H. (2020). How are undergraduate students supervised? Perceptions of students and supervisors in a Malaysian university. Issues in Educational Research, 30(4), 1484-1501. http://www.iier.org.au/iier30/razali.pdf