Design of Learning Technologies EdM

* For AY 2025-26 Degree Requirements, please visit the Academic Catalog website.

The Design of Learning Technologies degree programs focus on how technology design intersects with culture, social interaction, and learning. Courses provide extensive exposure to theories of cognition and design, applications of these theories in practice, and deep dives into methodologies used to study designed learning environments.

Students will encounter a wide range of cognitive, social, and design theories, and are encouraged to consider the power, equity, and ethical implications of context and culture in their application across learning spaces and environments. In this degree program, students will have the opportunity to design and study existing and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality, the design of toys and digital games, maker education and digital fabrication, and robotics and social pedagogical agents.

Students graduating from the Ed.M. program in Design of Learning Technologies have pursued a wide variety of career paths, in accordance with their goals and interests. Some of these include:

• Faculty, teaching, and research positions in higher education;
• Administrative and teaching positions in elementary, middle, and high schools;

• Creating educational technology startups and joining established industry leaders such as PBS, Nickelodeon, Google, Amazon, Sesame Workshop;
• Research and design positions in informal learning contexts such as museums and non-profit organizations to leverage new media technologies in effective and empowering ways;
• Research positions and design of technology-based training in corporations;
• Conducting formative and evaluative research on the use of media in/for learning, both within classrooms and beyond;
• Designing and implementing innovations in the use of new media for educational, social or civic purposes; or
• Working in government or nonprofit settings to shape the conversation and policy around new media and learning through research and policy work.

Participants in all our program areas share a basic conviction that good design in educative matters starts with careful attention to the needs and characteristics of the individuals that the design will serve. For example, the ability to understand the individual through empirical research and empathic engagement will make the design of instructional technology not only technically proficient but educationally valuable as well. In all, this attention to the individual in society and culture defines the technological humanism we seek through all components of the programs in the Technology, Media and Learning program—a humanism that combines the use of sophisticated technology with humane commitments for guiding purposes.

The Ed.M. degree requires 60 points, typically completed over two years of full-time study. It can serve as a step toward doctoral work or as a stand-alone credential for professionals who already hold a master’s degree. Students may transfer up to 30 points of graduate credit from other institutions.

Those with an M.A. in TML or a similar program should choose advanced courses to deepen their expertise. Students transferring credits from other fields should include TML core courses in their plan of study.

In addition to completing the minimum course requirements and developing a skill specialization, candidates for the Ed.M. degree culminate their work through a research or development project submitted to the faculty.

Core Requirement: (1 point)

• MSTU 4000 is a requirement for 1 credit in the first semester of study.
• MSTU 4900 IP Seminar is a requirement for 0 credits in the last semester of study.

Foundational Knowledge: At least three areas must be represented. (9 points)

• Cognitive Issues and Technology
  • MSTU 4133 Cognition and Computers
  • MSTU 4088 Introduction to Learning Sciences and Educational Technology

• Social Issues and Technology
  • MSTU 4005 Equity, Ethical, and Social Issues in Educational Technology
  • MSTU 4020 Social and Communicative Aspects of the Internet

• Cultural Issues and Technology
  • MSTU 4028 Technology and Culture
  • MSTU 5002 Culture, Media, and Education

• Educational Practice and Design
  • MSTU 4001 Technology and School Change
  • MSTU 4050 Online Schools and Online Schooling K-12
  • MSTU 4083 Instructional Design of Educational Technology

Research Methods and Design: (3 points)

Students must complete one research method or research design course offered either in or outside the CMLTD program. Suggested courses include the following:

• HUDM 4122 Probability and Statistical Inference
• ITSF 5000 Methods of inquiry: Ethnography and Participant Observation
• MSTU 5025 Researching Technology in Educational Environments
• MSTU 5001 Assessing the Impact of Technology In Schools

Breadth Requirement: (6 points)

All students must complete 6 points at Teachers College outside of the Technology, Media and Learning program.

Additional Requirements: for Ed.M. students in Design of Learning Technologies

• Two programming courses must be taken. This requirement can be met by taking the two-course Interactive Media programming sequence: MSTU 5003 and 5013 Theory and Programming of Interactive Media I & II
• 5 points of additional MSTU courses
• Other courses chosen in consultation with an advisor

Integrative Ed.M. Project

The Integrative Ed.M. Project is a research or development project that should result from independent effort equivalent to that of a 3-point course. Like the M.A. integrative project, it should provide tangible evidence of a student’s skills and strengths and should represent the student’s interests, as well as display the specialized skills developed for the degree.