EPN-V2

MGVM4100 Philosophy of Science and Research Methods Course description

Course name in Norwegian
Vitenskapsteori og metode
Study programme
Master Programme in Digital Learning Design
Master's Degree Programme - Primary and Lower Secondary Teacher Education for Years 1-7
Master's Degree Programme - Primary and Lower Secondary Teacher Education for Years 5-10
Master Programme in Educational Sciences for Basic Education, Pedagogy or Educational Leadership
Master Programme in Educational Sciences for Basic Education, Pedagogy or Educational Leadership
Weight
15.0 ECTS
Year of study
2023/2024
Curriculum
FALL 2023
SPRING 2024
Schedule
Programme description
Course history

Description of integrated courses

Lectures and work on practical assignments. Case studies are included as part of the teaching. The students work in groups. Group size is usually 3 to 5 students (Determined by the course leaders).

Introduction

Philosophy of science is a tool for students’ development of their thesis. The course provides an overview of important scientific traditions and positions and on different theoretical approaches. Research methods should be seen in the context of both the philosophy of science and future work with the Master thesis and a career as a teacher.

The tuition is in English if English speaking students attend the course.

Recommended preliminary courses

After completing the course, the student is expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student is capable of:

  • different prototyping techniques
  • user-centered design
  • Research through Design
  • sketching / drawing techniques, simple graphic design, shape and color use
  • general design principles for good user experiences. Emotional design
  • theories of communication, basic psychology, observation
  • tools for making interactive prototypes (digital tools, Arduino, sensor technology)

Skills

The student is capable of:

  • be able to work out ideas in teams and make decisions
  • be able to produce interactive prototypes using simple means (paper) and more advanced digital tools
  • be able to use knowledge of form, color and graphic design in designing products
  • be able to describe goals for usability and user experience
  • be able to perform user tests and use the results in further development of a product
  • be able to use known evaluation methods (heuristic evaluation, cognitive walk-through)

General competence:

The student is capable of:

  • working on the development of concepts for given issues
  • testing ideas on users through early prototyping
  • communicating ideas to other designers, developers, management, users and clients

Required preliminary courses

Ingen.

Learning outcomes

After completion of the course the student will have acquired the following learning outcomes, defined as knowledge, skills and general competence.

Knowledge

The student

  • has advanced knowledge of scientific thinking
  • has in-depth knowledge of different methodological approaches to collection, processing and analysis of research data
  • has in-depth knowledge of research ethics

Skills

The student

  • can use knowledge of philosophy of science and scientific methods to analyse and relate critically to national and international research
  • can use relevant methods for research and development work in an independent manner

General competence

The student

  • has a theoretical and methodical basis for planning and evaluating research and development work that contributes to innovation in school
  • can apply academic standards in research connected to principles such as credibility, validity and realibility
  • can use ethical judgment in relation to one's own role as researcher

Content

The following coursework is compulsory and must be approved before the student can sit the exam:

  • Three compulsory group assignments. They make up three deliveries that build on each other and that must be approved in order to pass the course.

Teaching and learning methods

The working methods are lectures, seminars, and work tasks. Central concepts are discussed in lectures and seminars, in addition the students must carefully read the course literature to become familiar with the relevant theories and methods.

Course requirements

No obligatory assignments.

Assessment

The exam is an individual written exam with the duration of six hours.

New/postponed exam

The new/postponed exam will be conducted in the same way as the ordinary exam.

Permitted exam materials and equipment

No assistance is allowed.

Grading scale

Interaction design is an interdisciplinary discipline in which experts from several disciplines are involved in the development process from idea to final product. Product design, graphic design, anthropology, communication and cognitive psychology are included as subject disciplines in addition to information technology.

In the course the students will get to know these subject areas, but the practical work will be limited to the development of prototypes, user testing, evaluation and some graphic design.

Examiners

No requirements over and above the admission requirements.