EdD - The Sheffield EdD

Program Overview

The University of Sheffield's EdD is a distance learning program that prepares students for high-level research in education. Students engage in critical study weekends while completing modules in research theory, curriculum and pedagogy, critical issues in education, and educational research methods. The program fosters a collaborative research environment with cohort and individual supervision, enabling students to develop their own independent research projects.

Program Outline

Degree Overview:

The Sheffield EdD is a vibrant and successful distance learning program that attracts students from all over the world. The program is structured around study weekends, allowing students to study from anywhere at any time while also sharing experiences with fellow students at the weekend study schools in Sheffield. The main aim of the program is for students to develop their own high standards of research that will be relevant to a range of professional and managerial careers.

Outline:

The EdD is divided into two parts:

• Part 1: The taught element of the course, which runs over two years.
Students are encouraged to engage critically in complex contemporary issues in education and education research.
• Part 2: The research component, where students undertake their own independent research.
This is facilitated through collaborative, collegial relationships, including both cohort and individual supervision.

Part 1 Modules:

• Being and Becoming a Researcher: This module provides an introduction to the program, educational research, and developing a professional identity as a researcher.
It covers topics such as the conceptualization of educational research, its nature and character, its relationship to politics, policy, culture, and society, its past, present, and future aims and purposes, and how educational research articulates with research in other disciplines. The focus is on research as a philosophical, moral, and ethical endeavor, requiring students to reflect critically on their positioning in their own context and area of interest. (30 credits)
• Curriculum and Pedagogy: This module interrogates the discursive mechanisms by which knowledge is selected and communicated through schooling and other educational institutions.
It poses questions about what these mechanisms are, how they are related, the selection of knowledge they communicate, the practices used for communication, and the groups of people they benefit and disadvantage. Students will apply analytic frameworks to interrogate current curricula and pedagogical practices in their own professional settings and wider international contexts. The module asks: are ‘critical’ curricula and pedagogical developments possible in education as a field of practice in the context of globalization and neoliberalism? (45 credits)
• Critical Issues in Contemporary Education: This module introduces students to a range of critical issues in contemporary education, including the aims and purpose of education, social inequality, questions of class, race, and gender, as well as new technologies.
It examines key theoretical and methodological frameworks such as critical race theory, historical analysis, and constructivism as ways to approach and think about these issues. Students are encouraged to identify an educational issue relevant to their own personal or professional context and examine it critically in a short 7-10 minute screencast and accompanying 3000-word essay. (45 credits)
• Educational Research: Theory and Practice: This module enables students to critically engage with interdisciplinary education research theory and practice; methods and methodologies.
Students have the opportunity to develop and apply knowledge and understanding of their own researcher positionality by conducting individual, paired, and group research activities, which they will present and reflect on in an assessed portfolio. The portfolio will include reflective accounts of processes of data collection and analysis, ethical consent, and dissemination activity. Students are also supported in drawing on these broader experiences in devising their own research proposal for progression to Part 2 of the program. (60 credits)

Part 2:

Following induction, students undertake their own independent research, facilitated through collaborative, collegial relationships, including both cohort and individual supervision. Students are invited to become members of at least one research cluster or network in the School of Education and encouraged to take an active role in their related activities such as conferences, seminar series, and reading groups, in order to develop expertise in their chosen field of study and raise or establish their own national and international research profiles.

Weekend Study Schools:

The weekend study schools are held in Sheffield and are a rewarding feature of the program. Students have the chance to take part in lectures, workshops, seminars, and group and individual tutorials. They also benefit from networking opportunities with fellow students.

Confirmed Dates for Study Weekends:

• Weekend 1: 25 to 27 October 2024
• Weekend 2: 28 February to 2 March 2025
• Weekend 3: 9 to 11 May 2025

Teaching:

The School of Education at the University of Sheffield is known for its vibrant and diverse community, with students based locally, nationally, and internationally. Their research has a direct impact on educational theory, policy, and practice, supporting the development of children, families, schools, and learning communities. Seminars are interactive, and everyone is encouraged to take part. The course director knows every student personally, and students receive a lot of individual support across all of their modules. The team of tutors at the School of Education comprises experts in early childhood education, policy and practice, psychological theory of education, and languages and education. Many of their academic staff are internationally recognized in their specialist areas.

Other:

The content of the courses is reviewed annually to ensure it is up-to-date and relevant. Individual modules are occasionally updated or withdrawn in response to discoveries through world-leading research, funding changes, professional accreditation requirements, student or employer feedback, outcomes of reviews, and variations in staff or student numbers. In the event of any change, students will be consulted and informed in good time, and reasonable steps will be taken to minimize disruption.