Master’s of Arts in in Educational Technology: Handbook

This handbook is meant to give candidates and current students in MA in Educational Technology an overview of the requirements for the degree and the steps to successfully complete the program.

Application Requirements

The MA in Educational Technology welcomes applications from students with a variety of backgrounds and undergraduate majors. Students don’t need a formal technology or design background, but their application should demonstrate a strong interest and ability to study technical topics.

Specific requirements:

• applicants must have a bachelor’s degree
• a minimum GPA of 3.0 is required in almost all cases; if you are applying with a lower GPA, you should explain why in your application materials
• GRE scores are not required
• all undergraduate and graduate transcripts (even if it’s just one course that transferred into a later degree)
• a personal statement explaining your interest in the degree
• a resume or CV
• two letters of recommendation

Teaching Certification

This program does not lead to New York State teaching certification. Many of the students are interested in K-12 teaching and either work in the field or have an undergraduate degree with initial certification. In this case, this Master’s will count towards permanent, professional certification in New York State. For example, if you did your undergraduate degree in math education with an initial license. You will be eligible for professional certification upon completion of this Master’s.

Some students have also used this degree to pursue certification as an Educational Technology Specialist via the individual pathway. While the course of study meets all of the NYS requirements, all of the specific certification requirements are the responsibility of the student, and New York State, not Adelphi decides on granting certification.

Plan of Study

The MA in Ed Tech is a 32-credit Master’s consisting of 7 required courses, 3 electives, and the thesis. Part-time students typically take 2 courses per semester. Full time students take 9 and sometimes 12 credits per term. You should plan approximately 6-8 hours of work per week per course.

Your plan of study will vary depending on which electives are being offered, if you have an transfer credits or substitutions, etc. Electives are drawn for our re-curring elective classes, special topics courses, and graduate courses from other programs that you take with the prior approval of your advisor.

The following show sample plans of study.

Please Note:

• students must receive a grade of B- or better for a course to count towards the degree
• students are expected to maintain a GPA of 3.0 or better
• typically, courses run during the regular Fall and Spring semesters
• Educational Information Systems and Networks is typically only offered in the summer
• the thesis course is Pass/Fail and students must successfully pass to complete the degree
• students must meet the highest standards of academic integrity throughout their time in the program

Fall Start

Spring Start

Educational Technology Integrated Thesis Project

Educational Technology 0858-793

The integrated thesis project of the Master’s of Arts in Educational Technology is the culminating experience of a student’s time in the program, and displays the range of new knowledge and abilities they have acquired during their studies.

All thesis projects:

• reflect a deep understanding of the research around educational technology and instructional design
• address a specific issue or problem of significance and importance to the student
• produce a “professional” level work
• introduce something “new” to the field: new research, instructional method, tech used in a novel way, a new technology

There is no fixed format for the project — we encourage creative and innovative ideas. Frequently, thesis projects fall into one of these broad categories:

• production of a multimedia or interactive educational artifact (e.g. a game, mobile app, website, data visualization, animation, or video)
• design of curriculum, teaching resources, or scholastic program integrating digital technologies
• a theoretical paper that forwards an original idea or concept related to educational technology
• an empirical study that tests a research hypothesis related to educational technology
• a research project that is part of ongoing research being conducted by one of the Educational Technology faculty or partners

Projects vary and should be designed in collaboration with the student’s advisor. The best projects focus on an area of intense interest to the student, and serve to forward the students’ professional goals; whether those goals are to change careers, advance in their current profession, or continue studying at the doctoral level.

Registering for the thesis project

You do not register for EDT 793 through CLASS. You must register by submitting a proposal to your advisor by completing the EDT 793 Thesis Proposal Form. Once you submit the form, you must notify your advisor to review your proposal.

Often, the best way to start a proposal is to send a few ideas to your advisor.

Think about:

• what technologies you wan to work with and learn more about (e.g. augmented reality, data visualization, interactive video)
• think about what domain or population you are interested in serving (e.g. science education, adult learners, early childhood, literacy)
• consider what you will produce at the end, and you will use it:
  • multimedia or software that is part of your portfolio
  • a new course or program that can be used in your school
  • a report or paper that is useful where you work
  • an scholarly article that can be submitted for professional or academic publications, or used as a writing sample for PhD programs

You can start writing down 3-5 different ideas, sharing them with friends and mentors, and sending them to your faculty advisor(s). These ideas can start the conversation around your thesis project and lead to the eventual proposal.

In general, creating a website is not sufficient for a thesis project. If you propose to create a video, it should be on a topic with scarce resources, and the video should be “professional” quality for an instructional technologist/multimedia producer.

Completing the thesis project

The thesis project is completed individually. There are no class meetings or regularly scheduled assignments. Your adviser will help you set goals, create a timeline, and provide guidance and feedback as needed. The thesis is pass / fail — you should present periodic drafts/prototypes to your adviser to ensure that you are on track.