Educational Technology: Curriculum for Ph.D.

The Ph.D. program is designed to offer students both the rigorous methodological preparation required to undertake educational inquiry at the highest levels and the flexibility for students to work with their Program of Study Committees (POSCs) to pursue coursework and experiences that support the students’ individual research interests and professional paths. The TLLP Ph.D. requires a minimum of 72 credits.

School-Level Requirements

School of Education requirements for students starting summer 2018 or later*

All Ph.D. students in the SOE are required to take the following three courses:

  • RESEV 6010: Foundations of Educational Inquiry
  • RESEV 603X: Foundations of Qualitative Inquiry in Education
  • RESEV 604X: Advanced Qualitative Inquiry in Education

All Ph.D. students must also take statistics up through multiple regression. The SOE strongly prefers that students take the following courses, which are SOE educational statistics classes that will ground students in educational research and design.

  • RESEV 5520: Basic Educational Statistics
  • RESEV 5530: Intermediate Educational Statistics

There are, however, other pathways to meet the statistics requirement, including 4040 and 5680 (formerly STAT 4010) in the Department of Statistics. If you are entering the Ph.D. program already versed in multiple regression, please discuss with your POSC in order to determine whether the requirement has been met.

*If you started in the Fall of 2017 or prior, please review the requirements in this document and meet with your advisor to ensure all School of Education Ph.D. requirements are met.

Division-Level Requirements

Division requirements for students starting Summer 2018 or later*

All students must take the following: 

  • HPC / EDUC 5820: History of Public Schooling in the United States
  • ELPS 6300: Education Policy and Analysis
  • One of the following:
    • CI / EDUC 5330: Theories of Learning
    • CI / EDUC 5360X: Sociocultural Learning Theory
    • CI / EDUC 6120: Socio-psychological Foundations of Educational Technology 

Note 1: Students may transfer in courses that substitute for the TLLP division-level Ph.D. course requirements if the POSC determines that the student has already taken an equivalent graduate course at another institution or ISU. 

Note 2: CI / EDUC 5330, CI / EDUC 5360, and CI / EDUC 6120 all meet the core requirement for a course in theories of learning. The POSC will determine which course a student must take to meet the requirement.

*If you started in the Fall of 2017 or prior, you have no division-level requirements.

EdTech Courses

  • EDUC 5010: Foundations of Educational Technology  
  • EDUC 5030: Designing Effective Learning Environments
  • EDUC 5040: Evaluating Technology-based Learning Environments
  • EDUC 5050: Using Technology in Learning and Teaching
  • EDUC 5060: Social Justice Education and Teaching: Advanced
  • EDUC 5070: Principles and Practices of Distance Learning
  • EDUC 5100: Foundations of Game-based Learning
  • EDUC 5110: Technology Diffusion, Leadership, and Change
  • EDUC 5120: Research Trends in Educational Technology
  • EDUC 5770: Historical Perspectives on Technology Equity: Implications for Policy and Practice
  • EDUC 6030: Advanced Learning Environments Design
  • EDUC 6080: Social Media and Education
  • EDUC 6100: Digital Learning in Teacher Education
  • EDUC 6120: Socio-psychological Foundations of Educational Technology

Note: Course descriptions and offerings can be found at the Iowa State University A-Z course catalog.

Program of Study Committee Requirements

All coursework in addition to the School of Education, division, and area of emphasis requirements will be determined in consultation with the student’s Program of Study Committee. It is strongly recommended that students take courses outside the School of Education.