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Digital Education Futures

Module description

In this module you will critically explore the role of digital technology in education and education futures with the aim of developing a critical and holistic understanding of 21st century education.

We will draw on current social perspectives on education, that foreground the importance of dialogue, thinking skills and creativity in our networked lives. We will consider some of the key issues that impact education, such as datafication, inclusion and trust, while also exploring some of the ways in which education is changing because of the advent of technology, for instance through the lens of digital and data literacies, the role of AI in education and the possible role of neuroscience for education.

Lastly, we will look towards the future by exploring futures thinking and sustainable digital futures for education.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The main aims of the module are:

• To introduce you to social perspectives of learning with new technologies and to develop your understanding of the way in which technology, creativity and thinking skills can be integrated in education
• To explore key issues around educational technology, such as digital literacies, sustainability and inclusion
• To introduce you to a range of theories, methodologies and research that are central to understanding the role of technology for education and education futures
• To enable you to critically explore the connections and tensions that may exist between theories and practices, and also between the needs and aims of different stakeholders in education technology (teachers, learners, policy makers, commercial companies, etc)

To encourage you to critically consider the ways in which technologies may shape the ways in which you understand education and pedagogy, and vice versa – both now and in the future.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate a sound understanding of theories and methodologies which have underpinned the study of technology in education.
• 2. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the significance of technology, thinking skills and creativity in education and pedagogy
• 3. Demonstrate a critical understanding of the different ways in which new technologies impact education, learning and pedagogy

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Demonstrate the ability to critically examine issues around technologies in education and to draw sound conclusions based on relevant and related theories, research and practice.
• 5. Synthesise and analyse ideas and research findings in relation to technology, creativity and thinking skills in education in order to reflect on, question and inform your own educational practice and future

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 6. Present and communicate ideas clearly, reflectively and creatively, in oral, written and multimodal formats
• 7. Synthesise and organise ideas to present an argument
• 8. Undertake both directed and independent study to recognise, justify and analyse key ideas in the literature

Syllabus plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover at least some of the following topics:

• Theories for connected learning
• Creativity and digital futures
• Digital literacies
• Data-literate schools
• Critical thinking in a digital world
• Digital technology and inclusion
• The role of AI in education
• Networked technologies: global dialogues or echo chambers
• Neuroscience in education
• Sustainable digital futures

You will be provided with opportunities to discuss ideas with peers, both through online media and face-to-face in seminars throughout the module.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Alexander, R. (2018). Developing dialogic teaching: genesis, process, trial. Research Papers in Education, 33(5). pp. 561-598
• Brown, John Seely and Douglas Thomas. (2011). A New Culture of Learning: Cultivating the Imagination for a World of Constant Change. World Future Review (World Future Society), Vol. 3(2), p115-117
• CASTELLS, Manuel (2000). The Rise of the Network Society.  Blackwell.
• Craft, A. (2005). Creativity in schools:  tensions and dilemmas. Abingdon: Routledge Falmer.
• Gormley, K. (2020) Neoliberalism and the discursive construction of ‘creativity’, Critical Studies in Education, 61:3, 313-328, DOI: 10.1080/17508487.2018.1459762
• Higgins, S. (2015) 'A recent history of teaching thinking.', in The Routledge international handbook of research on teaching thinking. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, pp. 19-28. The Routledge international handbook series.
• Kirschner, P. & Stoyanov, S. (2018). Educating Youth for Nonexistent/Not Yet Existing Professions. Educational Policy. Pp. 1-41.
• Kleine Staarman, J. & Ametller, J. (2019). Pedagogical link-making with digital technology in science classrooms: new perspectives on connected learning. In The Routledge International Handbook of Research on Dialogic Education. Mercer, N., Wegerif R., Major, L. (Eds). London: Routledge
• Lee, C. and Soep, E. (2016). None But Ourselves Can Free Our Minds: Critical Computational Literacy as a Pedagogy of Resistance. Equity & Excellence in Education 49.
• Littleton, K. and Mercer, N. (2013). Interthinking: Putting talk to work. Abingdon: Routledge.
• Pithers, R. T.,  & Soden, R. (2000). Critical thinking in education: a review. Educational Research, 42:3, 237-249.  DOI: 10.1080/001318800440579
• Wegerif, R. (2013). Dialogic: Education for the Internet Age. London and New York: Routledge.
• Wegerif, R, Kaufman, J. C. & Li , L., (2015). Routledge International Handbook of Research on Teaching Thinking. Routledge.
• Wing, J. M. (2006). Computational Thinking. Communications of the ACM, 24(3), 33

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• Beghetto, R. A., & Kaufman, J. C. (2007). Toward a broader conception of creativity: A case for 'mini-c' creativity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 1(2), 73-79 https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/26aa/096578798a27c093bae0a66ceb701a543931.pdf
• Mercer, N., Hennessy, S., & Warwick, P. (2019). Dialogue, Thinking Together and Digital Technology in the Classroom: Some Educational Implications of a Continuing Line of Inquiry. International Journal of Educational Research https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2017.08.007
• Siemens, G. (2004). Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age. Retrieved from http://www.elearnspace.org/articles/connectivism.htmWegerif , R.B. (2011). Towards a dialogic theory of how children learn to think. Thinking Skills and Creativity, 6(3), 179-190.
• Swart, J. (2021). Experiencing Algorithms: How Young People Understand, Feel About, and Engage With Algorithmic News Selection on Social Media. Social Media + Society, 7(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051211008828

Key words search

Educational technology; Education Futures; Digital Futures