Educational Technology: Program Information

Overview

Texas State University-San Marcos was founded as a teachers college in 1899, and more than a century later, it continues the tradition of producing only the highest quality educators. The master of education technology program at Texas State has taken that tradition to the cutting edge.

The program is designed for teachers who want to become leaders in technology by becoming technology coordinators for campuses or school districts or by improving their own technology skills for the classroom. Graduates will be prepared to teach web 2.0 technology applications, use technology to support student learning of subject-area content, and provide professional development, mentoring, and basic technical and instructional assistance to other professional educators.

The program meets the International Society for Technology in Education’s standards for Technology Facilitators that are required by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education.

  • Technology Facilitation: Demonstrate an in-depth understanding of technology operations and concepts in order to model for and assist teachers.
  • Planning and Designing Learning Environments & Experiences: Plan, design, and model effective learning environments and multiple experiences supported by technology.
  • Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum: Apply and implement curriculum plans that include methods and strategies of utilizing technology to maximize student learning.
  • Assessment and Evaluation: Apply technology to facilitate a variety of effective assessment and evaluation strategies.
  • Productivity and Professional Practice: Apply technology to enhance and improve personal productivity and professional practice.
  • Social, Ethical, Legal, and Human Issues: Understand the social, ethical, legal, and human issues surrounding the use of technology in P-12 schools and assist teachers in applying that understand to their practice.
  • Procedures, Policies, Planning, and Budgeting for Technology Environments: Promote the development and implementation of technology infrastructure, procedures, policies, plans, and budgets for P-12 schools.
  • Leadership and Vision: Contribute to the shared vision for campus integration of technology and foster an environment and culture conducive to the realization of the vision.

Note: This is not a program for learning to teach Technology Applications in a high school setting such as Microsoft Office or Adobe products. The program is about helping teachers integrate technology into the classroom curriculum. If you wish to be certified for Tech Apps EC-12 you will need to contact the Office of Educator Preparation for a certification plan.

Mission Statement

  1. The mission of the Educational Technology graduate program is to prepare professionals to use digital tools to investigate, evaluate, and improve methods of delivering instruction and assess learning.
  2. The program aims to advance the effective use of educational technology through supporting teacher leaders, promoting technology-enhanced curriculum, and exploring promising innovations that use emerging technologies.

Is the Masters in Educational Technology the Program for You?

  1. Are you a certified k-12 teacher? (Although most of our students answer “yes” to this question, you do not need to be a teacher at all, you just need to have a love for learning about using technology in the classroom or online. Additionally, Higher Ed and teachers with students of any age are welcome!)
  2. Do you want to learn how to use technology effectively in the school classroom and evaluate school technology use?
  3. Do you want to learn about the newest web based tools for learning?
  4. Are you interested in learning to design courses for online deliver?
  5. Are you interested in learning to use digital fabrication, 3D printing, digital media creation, and other technologies for teaching?
  6. Do you want to learn about the theories of successful technology integration and learning?
  7. Would you like to train other teachers to use technology and conduct faculty workshops?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, EdTech may be the fit for you!

What Jobs Do Graduates Have?

Our graduates are working in many varied jobs and positions.

Most Typical

Many of our graduates are still teaching in the classroom (either K-12 or higher ed) and using their technology skills to enhance teaching and learning in their classrooms and courses.

A good many of our grads have gone on to:

  • be educational technology coaches / coordinators or teacher trainers at either the campus or district level
  • enroll in a Ph.D. program in Educational Technology or related degree

Less Typical

We have had several graduates find jobs in less typical roles such as:

  • instructional designer in higher education or for a business
  • head of Professional Development at TCEA (Texas Computer Education Association)
  • director of Reading at TEA
  • trainer for educational software companies working with teachers all across the country
  • working in education division at CISCO