Multivoiced supervision of Master’s students: a case study of alternative supervision practices in higher education

Abstract

This article describes and analyzes an alternative supervision model at the Master of Education Programme at the University of Bergen aimed at improving research supervision. A three‐pronged approach was introduced, combining supervision groups, student colloquia and individual supervision. The supervision groups consisted of two supervisors and their Master’s students, while the student colloquia consisted of the same students without teachers. The case study of this alternative supervision practice is based on sociocultural perspectives on knowledge and learning, combining theoretical concepts from Lave and Wenger and Bakhtin. The three arenas were found to supplement one another: while student colloquia provided personal support, and served as a first filter for ideas and texts, the supervision groups provided multivoiced feedback on student texts and enculturation into the discipline. Individual supervision provided more specific advice. Critical factors for supervision groups were regular attendance, mutual obligation, structure and clear rules.