Miguel Muhlin, who authors Around the Corner v2, posted a note he received from one of his readers, Andre:

I’ve been reading your blog for several weeks now - not too long ago, I became interested in the field of education and education technology. I recently graduated from college with an undergrad degree in Public and Community Health and I’ve been working in health communications for about 2 years. Now I’m 25 and I’m really putting alot of thought into my career direction.

How did you get into this line of work and what would you suggest I do in this situation to get more familiar with the field? I’m a tech fan and I love how social media as well as “hard” technology can be used to educate and spread knowledge.

Miguel asked, “What would your response to Andre be?” So, my answer to Andre is/would be . . .

Certainly, there’s more than one path into this field career ranging from establishing expertise through a professionally related blog to completing a formal graduate degree. I’ll describe my path which I believe is the most structured and, perhaps, most direct.

There are graduate programs - Master’s and Doctorate - focused on educational technology; those programs could be labeled in many different ways: instructional design, instructional technology, educational technology, e-learning, new media, or distance learning. I’ve encountered a number of even more subtle names like educational psychology, cognitive psychology, curriculum & instruction, curriculum development or adult education with a noted “specialization in learning and technology.” Each label may suggest a slightly different philosophical approach to the field; for example, a cognitive psychology program could perahps focus on learning and technology with a slant toward understanding the biological characteristics of the human brain that impact how learning occurs and how technology may facilitate learning given that information. I’m sure there are many other possible labels as well.

If I were exploring the field to determine my level of interest, I would read several online and print resources describing the field or explaining concepts within the field and begin looking at course descriptions from graduate programs in the field. “Shooting from the hip” - consider reviewing:

• Educational technology per Wikipedia
• Encyclopedia of Educational Technology maintained by San Diego State University
• How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience and School by Bransford et al
• A Primer on the Latest in the Field of Instructional Design by the Borough of Manhattan Community College, City University of New York.
• A snapshot of everything I’m reading and writing on the web via an Educational Technology PageFlakes pagecast.

Also, I’ve recently jumped off into the literature focused on the Diffusion of Innovation(s); Everett Rogers (2003) has written prolifically about the general field of diffusion research; that may be of interest to Andre as well. The 5th edition of his book summarizes a great deal of research. There are several researchers in educational technology working to apply those principles more systematically to the integration of technology in learning spaces.

Most universities will have a graduate program in instructional technology, in some flavor; the focus of the program will be the key. Also, many of the relevant graduate programs are available 100% online. The two programs I’ve attended, I believe, are both available entirely online; the direct links to the specific educational technology program websites are Texas A&M University and University of Houston Clear Lake. Some of the more prominent instructional design and technology graduate programs in the country are (again, these are direct links to the program websites): Florida State, Indiana, Penn State, Penn State Online, and Utah State.

Those are the materials I’d review if I were 25 and considering a career related to educational technology; when I was 25, though, the internet was not widely available (gulp/grin). Of course, this is only a beginning; I’m more than willing to field additional questions about where to find information about the educational technology field.

In real life, Chris (SL: Topher Zwiers, www.muveforward.com) is:

• an educational technologist and instructional designer primarily interested in emerging technologies, institutional technology integration, and distance learning; he earned his M.S. degree with a specialization in Instructional Design.

• a Director of Training & Technology Development for a two-year, community college in the Houston, Texas USA area. Chris works with faculty, staff and students to integrate new technologies into learning spaces and assumes responsibility for directing the administrative technology-related training efforts including office productivity applications, the enterprise management system (Banner), and IT-related projects.
• a graduate student pursuing a PhD in Educational Psychology with a specialization in Learning and Technology; Chris’ studies have included a focus on learning theory, instructional design methods, and distance learning.
• an adjunct instructor for a two-year, community college in the Houston, Texas USA area. He teaches Introduction to Computers to traditional and non-traditional students pursuing vocational certificates or four-year baccalaureate degrees.
• a husband (10 years) and a father to two incredible daughters.