Postgraduate - UnitEDF5647 - Technology and education key issues and debates

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2015 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

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12 points, SCA Band 1, 0.250 EFTSL

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.

Level	Postgraduate
Faculty	Faculty of Education
Offered	Clayton First semester 2015 (Flexible) Singapore Term 3 2015 (Online)
Coordinator(s)	Dr Neil Selwyn

Synopsis

This unit offers a critical appraisal of the potential and realities of digital technology use in educational settings. Students are introduced to key theories and debates from academic disciplines such as education, sociology, psychology, media studies and social policy. Through these, students come to see a complex array of forces shaping everyday use through to education practice, policy and design. The unit raises key issues such as identity, cybersafety, globalisation, equity, and emerging forms of social practice. Students critically explore the discourse surrounding educational technology from mobiles to eLearning. The unit challenges thinking about how the educational technology of the near future may be more efficiently and equitably shaped. It is designed for all students regardless of their level of familiarity with computers.

Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit students should be able to:

recognise the current and emerging trends in digital technologies being used in education, and the social, political, economic, cultural and historical issues surrounding their adoption
know some of the theories, models and frameworks for understanding digital technology in education and society
develop evaluation skills to critically assess the value of technology use in educational settings
synthesise theory and practice in order to improve understanding of the roles digital technologies play in educational settings.

Assessment

Learning portfolio (4000 words or equivalent, 50%)
Essay (4000 words or equivalent, 50%)

Workload requirements

Flexible mode offers a stand-alone online offering that allows students to learn and engage in content and assessment in a supported way. It also provides a face-to-face component of 12 hours over the semester to engage students with the online learning content, which students can attend if they are able and interested.

Minimum total expected workload equals 288 hours per semester comprising:

(a.) Contact hours for flexible students:

12 contact hours and 24 hours equivalent of online activities over the semester or
36 hours equivalent of online activities over the semester

(b.) Additional requirements (all students):

independent study to meet the minimum required hours per semester

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Neil Selwyn

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

Digital learning
Expert teaching practice
General education studies
Leadership

Prohibitions

EDF6442
EDF6115