MA Digital Technologies, Communication and Education / Course details
Year of entry: 2023
- View tabs
- View full page
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.
| Title | Code | Credit rating | Mandatory/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 |
| Displaying 10 of 33 course units | |||
| Display all 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.