MA Digital Technologies, Communication and Education / Course details

Year of entry: 2023

Course description

Digital Technologies, Communication and Education is an award-winning programme that explores how learning and collaboration are being transformed by digital media. This MA is designed to help teachers, lecturers, administrators, managers, e-learning designers, trainers and anyone else with an interest in education to develop their digital skills, collaborate effectively and understand the changing environment in which we all live and work.

Aims

You will:

  • further your career by improving your skills and knowledge base in the area of digital technologies and communication, in order that these can be applied in any educational setting;
  • enhance your interpersonal and group communications skills in order to learn independently and make effective decisions through self-reflection on your own practice;
  • develop the ability to design your own educational materials using digital technologies and in particular to develop creative and innovative approaches to this work;
  • build your confidence and ability to identify and critically evaluate the use of digital technologies, whether in formal educational settings or the informal educational processes of society, and with specific reference to your own needs and practice;
  • develop your ability to systematically understand and critically evaluate research and research methodologies relevant to digital technologies in education, and apply this knowledge in actual research projects;
  • develop an ability to manage and understand rapid technological change and its effect on educational processes, institutions and policies.

Special features

  • Education has been a discipline of study at Manchester since 1890.
  • Our students come from all over the globe and our qualifications are recognised internationally

Teaching and learning

Formalised lectures are infrequent. Instead, classes tend to mix lecturer input with group work, computer and video activities, simulations, problem-based learning and class discussions. 

We make considerable use of enquiry-based learning (EBL), encouraging students' critical reflection on their own practice and beliefs: formed both by their professional experiences and intuitions, and theory and research. 

We encourage both individual and co-operative learning and research and hope to foster an ethos of life-long-learning. 

Some of our participants have professional experience in teaching, e-learning design, or as media professionals. 

We appreciate the knowledge and practical experience that they bring to the course, and we encourage all participants to use all sources of professional insights including their fellow participants. 

We provide training in the use of electronic databases, library resources, and computer-based statistics packages. Many other key skills will be developed during the course.

Coursework and assessment

The form of the assessment varies from unit to unit, including:

  • practical project work (such as the creation of a website or other educational software);
  • a written literature review or other essay of approximately 3,500 words;
  • evaluations of existing software or websites;
  • creation of a teaching portfolio;
  • writing reports on schools or other educational settings;
  • collaborative group work.

For dissertations, you can choose between a Mode A (traditional-type) or a Mode B (portfolio-type) dissertation.

Mode A dissertations report on a research project of your own design or discuss or develop theoretical understanding relevant to the field and/or your professional development.

Mode B dissertations are more practical, and involve you designing, testing and implementing a technological solution to an educational problem, for example a website or piece of interactive multimedia, and then reporting on this process.

Mode A dissertations are 15,000 words long. The length of Mode B work can be negotiated, but the overall workload is expected to be equivalent to that of Mode A.

Course unit list

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
Educational Technology and Communication EDUC70141 30 Mandatory
Digital Education Research 1 EDUC70441 15 Mandatory
Digital Education Research 2 EDUC71272 15 Mandatory
Digital Education Research 2 (Distance Learning) EDUC77012 15 Mandatory
Digital Education Research (Distance Learning) EDUC77081 15 Mandatory
Educational Technology and Communication (Distance) EDUC77301 30 Mandatory
Theories of Teaching and Learning EDUC60491 15 Optional
Intro to Educational Video Production EDUC61632 15 Optional
Digital Media and Information Literacy EDUC61712 15 Optional
Blended Learning in a Digital Age EDUC70032 15 Optional
Teaching and Learning Online EDUC70050 15 Optional
Language Learning and Technology EDUC70061 15 Optional
Educational Technology and Communication EDUC70141 30 Optional
Contemporary Issues in Education Leadership EDUC70331 15 Optional
Multimedia Design and Development EDUC70511 15 Optional
Sustainable EdTech Development EDUC70551 15 Optional
Introduction to Sustainability Education EDUC70661 15 Optional
Digital Education Futures EDUC71221 15 Optional
Intercultural Engagement at Work and in Communities EDUC71232 15 Optional
AI Perspectives on Learning EDUC71242 15 Optional
Digital Education Research 2 (Distance Learning) EDUC77012 15 Optional
Blended Learning in a Digital Age (Distance) EDUC77022 15 Optional
Intro to Educational Video Production (Distance) EDUC77032 15 Optional
Teaching and Learning Online (Distance) EDUC77042 15 Optional
Digital Education Research (Distance Learning) EDUC77081 15 Optional
Digital Media and Information Literacy (Distance Learning) EDUC77082 15 Optional
Digital Education Futures (Distance Learning) EDUC77091 15 Optional
Language Learning and Technology (Distance) EDUC77101 15 Optional
Multimedia Design and Development (Distance Learning) EDUC77401 15 Optional
Theories of Teaching and Learning (Distance) EDUC77501 15 Optional
AI Perspectives on Learning (Distance Learning) EDUC77602 15 Optional
Introduction to Sustainability Education (Distance Learning) EDUC77801 15 Optional
Sustainable EdTech Development (Distance Learning) EDUC77901 15 Optional
Displaying 10 of 33 course units

Facilities

The course is taught by the Manchester Institute of Education (MIE) which has its own Student Hub. Here you'll find all your teaching staff and support staff as well as a place to relax with fellow students.

MIE is based in the University's Ellen Wilkinson building, which is centrally located on the University's Oxford Road campus, close to the Main Library, Alan Gilbert Learning Commons and the Students' Union.

Disability support

Practical support and advice for current students and applicants is available from the Disability Advisory and Support Service. Email: dass@manchester.ac.uk