The M.Ed. in educational technology (EDTC) program is based on the assumption that new media and the internet can have a positive effect on teaching and learning. The EDTC program provides the master's degree candidate with both a theoretical and a practical grounding in educational technology methods and techniques, emphasizing theories of teaching and learning that support these methods. To demonstrate mastery of the program's goals, all candidates complete the same series of seven program assessments.
Depending on the candidate's career path, these assessments are evaluated by rubrics developed according to standards of the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) or the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT). Candidates who hold a basic teaching license follow the ISTE standards, which are assessed via rubrics through which K-12 teachers exhibit the knowledge, skills and dispositions needed to teach technology applications, support student learning and prepare other teachers to use technology effectively across the curriculum. Candidates from higher education, government and industry are assessed via rubrics based on the five AECT standards involving content knowledge, pedagogy, learning environments, professional skills and research.