Developing self-editing skills of doctoral students

Mastering academic writing is widely acknowledged as crucial for the professional development of doctoral students and their success in publishing in reputable journals. However, many PhD candidates encounter significant challenges in this area, largely due to inadequate support from supervisors and limited access to training courses. This deficit is particularly pronounced in self-editing skills training, which can result in frustration and decreased confidence in their writing abilities. There is scarce research in pedagogical theory and practice that describes pedagogical models or technologies that contribute to the development of self-editing skills in research paper writing. The aim of this study is to scientifically justify, develop, and test a pedagogical technology aimed at enhancing PhD students’ self-editing skills. The development of the technology is based on systematic and process-oriented approaches, as well as social constructivism theory, which is reflected in the practical implementation of peer learning and project activities. The pedagogical technology is implemented within the framework of an English-language course “English for Researchers: Editing Research Papers”. The empirical study involved 29 graduate students from South Ural State University. The feedback survey conducted after the course's implementation assessed its effectiveness based on the criteria of participant satisfaction. Results indicate high levels of satisfaction with course structure, content, and delivery, with participants reporting significant improvements in their ability to self-edit research papers. The findings have far-reaching implications for enhancing doctoral education by emphasizing the necessity of integrating self-editing training within academic curricula. The novelty of the study lies in the author's proposal and theoretical justification of a pedagogical technology that positions the editing process as a distinct type of activity within publication activity, which enables PhD students to become independent and autonomous authors of research papers and fosters PhD students’ professional growth in the field of academic publishing.