The field of education is continuously being transformed by adaptation of new technologies. Emerging Technologies for Education is a course designed to deepen the understanding of issues shaping the modern learning environments. This blended course explores the evolution of educational technology from philosophical and pedagogical foundations to present, developing and disruptive trends like AI-driven personalization, immersive reality, blockchain, and innovative assessment platforms. We approach the Ed-Tech space from multiple integrated perspectives.
First, we will critically examine the technologies for their transformative and often disruptive potential to change teaching and learning processes. Any educational technology is shaped by theoretical foundations of pedagogy its designers subscribe to, thus to fully understand a technology we must examine its pedagogical roots: what models of teaching and learning it envisages and adapts. The third perspective is the idea of “Open”: we will explore how Open Educational Resources (OERs) and Free and Open Source Licenses (FOSS) Licenses create ecosystems of collaboration, transparency, and shared knowledge production. The “Open” perspective emphasizes democratisation of access to learning materials, participatory innovation in tool development, and the shifting roles of both educators and learners as co-creators in open learning environments. Finally, perspectives of ethics, equity, and accessibility will make our exploration holistic.
In the constructionist spirit, the assessment of the course would be through concrete public artefacts that display your learning. We will use the course Wiki and discussion forum as collaborative learning spaces to document our dialogues, debates and design discourse. You will demonstrate understanding through meaningful design tasks that you will work on. We will finalise the nature and content of the tasks during discussions in the class.
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Analyse the historical and theoretical foundations of educational technology.
- Evaluate what are emerging technologies, their pedagogical potential, and broader social aspects.
- Design and critique technology-enhanced learning experiences.
- Critically examine frameworks and policies affecting Ed-Tech through various perspectives.
- Apply and prototype emerging technologies through hands-on practice to address specific educational challenges.
Who can join the course?
The course will be available to students who have registered or invited for the MA in Education and Technology program.
Note: The best way to access this course is through a laptop/desktop or TISSx mobile app.
