Education Major, PhD – Learning Environments and Educational Studies Concentration

The Learning Environments and Educational Studies (LEEDS) doctoral concentration explicitly links the fields of cultural studies, human learning and development from an applied educational psychology perspective, and instructional technology to prepare graduates to work in high level professional careers in a wide range of settings such as higher education, K-12 education, community-based agencies and community-based participatory research, research institutions and other applied educational, social and political settings. The mission of the doctoral concentration in Learning Environments and Educational Studies (LEEDS) in the Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling is to ground students in theoretical, philosophical and research foundations of human learning and development, cultural and social contexts of educational environments (both formal and informal), the design process of technology-supported learning environments, and skills for inquiring into and critiquing these environments (https://epc.utk.edu/learning-environments-educational-studies-leeds/).

The program features

• Emphasis on participatory theories of learning, social justice, and innovative uses of technology
• Interdisciplinary research team involvement in design, analysis, presentations at regional and national conferences, and publication of studies
• Focus on learning in community
• International and intercultural atmosphere
• Opportunity to gain higher education teaching experience

Requirements

Admissions requirement includes a Master’s degree in Instructional Technology or this requirement can be met by a Master’s degree in another area with prerequisites prescribed by the admissions committee. Students need to meet regularly with their advisor to determine courses they need to meet Graduate School and LEEDS program requirements, and personal goals. In addition, all students must complete a minimum of 24 dissertation credit hours and a minimum of 6 credit hours as a cognate in a related field outside the department. Many students take additional credit hours to (a) meet prerequisites for some required courses, (b) earn one or more credentials in areas such as qualitative research or measurement and evaluation, and (c) to further personal scholarly interests.