Program Location
Education Building
Start Term
Fall Semesters
Program Type
Thesis, Project, or Coursework
Schedule
Full-Time/Part-Time
Credits
45 Credits
Average Duration
Full-Time: Up to 3 Years
Part-Time: Up to 5 Years
The M.A. in Education and Society offers students the opportunity to explore educational issues within various societal contexts, encompassing cultural, historical, philosophical, economic, and political factors. This program provides two primary pathways: 1) Culture, Values, and Education, which delves into areas like philosophy, art, gender, and international education, and 2) Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum, which focuses on contemporary pedagogical perspectives and classroom practice. Drawing from diverse theoretical frameworks such as philosophy, sociology, and cultural studies, this M.A. program encourages critical inquiry into education's multifaceted nature. Students may choose from three program options, as outlined below:
Master of Arts Education and Society (Course Work)
Full Program Details from the Course Catalogue
Education and Society (Non-Thesis) (M.A.): Course Work (45 credits)
Offered by: Integrated Studies in Ed (Faculty of Education)
Degree: Master of Arts
Program credit weight: 45
Program Description
The M.A. in Education and Society; Non-Thesis-Course Work program consists exclusively of course work. This option is less research-oriented than the thesis and non-thesis project options and is suitable for practitioners interested in professional development with a theoretical orientation.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Required Courses (9 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EDEM 609 | Critical Perspectives in Educational Theory and Research. | 3 |
Critical Perspectives in Educational Theory and Research. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Critical exploration of contemporary issues in educational theory and research, in terms of current scholarship in the field, current educational contexts, and various research paradigms. Educational issues as expressions of social, ethical, political, economic, epistemological and cultural reconfigurations. Students will learn to be critical consumers of educational theories and research. | ||
| EDER 600 | Globalization, Education and Change. | 3 |
Globalization, Education and Change. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The impact of globalization on educational institutions, processes and practices. Topics may include the politics of change, teachers' work, educational reform, technology, environment, educational management and leadership. | ||
| EDER 609 | Education and Philosophical Thought. | 3 |
Education and Philosophical Thought. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An analysis of the educational implications of various philosophical positions concerning the nature of reality and the nature of knowledge. | ||
Complementary Courses (21 credits)
21 credits from the following:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EDEC 602 | Foundations in Curriculum. | 3 |
Foundations in Curriculum. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course introduces the field of curriculum studies, including a historical approach to the discourses, debates and issues that have shaped it. Students will actively explore relationships between curriculum theory and professional as well as pedagogical practice. | ||
| EDEC 606 | Self-Study, Autoethnography, and Autobiographical Research . | 3 |
Self-Study, Autoethnography, and Autobiographical Research . Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Critical and ethical engagement with the relationship between self and other through various auto/biographical approaches to research in education, such as self-study, autoethnography, currere, life writing, artistic practices, writing the self, and memory-work. Exploration of various forms of writing, representation, analysis and critical discussion | ||
| EDEC 612 | Digital Media and Learning. | 3 |
Digital Media and Learning. Terms offered: Summer 2025 This course addresses emerging theories, pedagogies, and practices related to youth learning through digital media and online participatory cultures. Through direct engagement with multiple forms of digital media and youth, students will consider implications for teaching and learning within and beyond schools. | ||
| EDEC 617 | Special Topics in Educational Studies. | 3 |
Special Topics in Educational Studies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Explores important current issues in the field of Educational Studies. (Content varies from year to year). | ||
| EDEC 620 | Meanings of Literacy. | 3 |
Meanings of Literacy. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Investigation of basic issues related to definitions of literacy. Issues include new directions in literacy and education, the need for non-print literacies in contemporary life, and the challenges these changes present for educators. | ||
| EDEC 627 | Critical Discourse Studies in Education. | 3 |
Critical Discourse Studies in Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Examines critical theories of and approaches to studying discourse, with a focus on the roles of discourse as social and ideological practice in (re-)producing, questioning or challenging power relations, subject positions and established social orders. Emphasis is placed on theory and practice of discourse studies in educational contexts. | ||
| EDEC 628 | Literacy - Multilingual/Multicultural Settings. | 3 |
Literacy - Multilingual/Multicultural Settings. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course examines the teaching of literacy in a range of multilingual and multicultural settings in schooling and society, primarily from the sociocultural perspectives of self and group identity as well as empowerment within majority-minority group relations. | ||
| EDEC 635 | Research Writing. | 3 |
Research Writing. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The course offers a research-led introduction to processes and practices of research writing. Working to develop their research writing projects, students learn to examine, critically reflect on, and participate in the research writing practices in their fields, guided by current research on the discursive construction of knowledge. | ||
| EDEC 650 | Critical Race Studies and Education . | 3 |
Critical Race Studies and Education . Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Investigates the relationships among race, racialization, and education. Defines education as the processes through which we claim identities, make knowledge claims, and how we learn to take action in the world. Concerned with 1) how we come to know and produce knowledge through race, 2) the pedagogical processes that normalize racial inequity; and 3) the impact of racializing knowledge and structures for variously racialized persons in educational settings. Surveys a range of intersectional critical race theoretical frameworks particularly in Canada. Relevant for developing a critically-engaged educational practice, for whom race, racialization, and social justice are central concerns. | ||
| EDEM 644 | Curriculum Development and Implementation. | 3 |
Curriculum Development and Implementation. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Explores and critiques the processes of curriculum development, implementation and evaluation in relation to the field of curriculum studies. The focus will be on the role of the educator/leader as a curriculum professional in formal and non-formal learning environments. | ||
| EDEM 655 | Indigenous Research Methodologies. | 3 |
Indigenous Research Methodologies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Explores theoretical and methodological foundations of Indigenous research. Pays special attention to research positionality as seen through the lenses of settler colonialism and Indigeneity. Highlights importance of Indigenous-led research and decolonizing methodologies. Considers various dimensions of Indigenous research including relationality, responsibility, respect, and reflexivity. Examines the process of decolonizing research by centering Indigenous knowledges, languages, cultures, histories, and identities. | ||
| EDEM 660 | Community Relations in Education. | 3 |
Community Relations in Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Examines the role of school community relations to foster high quality learning environments. Explores and discusses methods for encouraging public involvement in education, the role of the leader in facilitating community engagement, and issues and dilemmas in community relations. | ||
| EDEM 676 | Organizing Non-Formal Learning. | 3 |
Organizing Non-Formal Learning. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Critically examines policies, structures, pedagogies, theory and practice related to non-formal learning as found in community development, voluntary organizations, trade unions and social movements at local and global levels. Also considers methodological and theoretical issues in conducting research about non-formal education. | ||
| EDEM 690 | Research Methods: Theory and Practice. | 3 |
Research Methods: Theory and Practice. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Overview of the epistemological foundations of a range of research methods, including but not limited to quantitative, philosophical, qualitative, arts-based, and mixed methods. Students will learn techniques to conduct research and to develop a research proposal. | ||
| EDER 606 | Philosophy of Moral Education. | 3 |
Philosophy of Moral Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A study of principles underlying contemporary moral education such as what constitutes moral values and judgments, normative basis for morality, and differing foundations employed in determining moral norms. | ||
| EDER 607 | Ethics and Values in Education. | 3 |
Ethics and Values in Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Considers education as a concept and practice influenced by values (ethical, religious, aesthetic, cultural, political, etc.). Includes a critical examination of selected approaches to values education. | ||
| EDER 608 | Educational Implications of Social Theory. | 3 |
Educational Implications of Social Theory. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An analysis of some of the educational implications of various social and political theories: liberalism, Marxism and others. | ||
| EDER 614 | Sociology of Education. | 3 |
Sociology of Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Social context of schooling, including education and social stratification and socialization processes within and outside schools. | ||
| EDER 615 | Introduction to Philosophy of Education. | 3 |
Introduction to Philosophy of Education. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Explores questions, aims, debates and modes of inquiry that characterize philosophical approaches to studying educational questions. Introduces philosophy of education as a distinctive field of educational research and may focus on figures or themes of contemporary interest. | ||
| EDER 617 | Aesthetics and Education. | 3 |
Aesthetics and Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An examination and critical analysis of selected readings on the topic of aesthetics, with specific reference to their application to educational practice. | ||
| EDER 622 | Studies in Comparative Education. | 3 |
Studies in Comparative Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Comparative study of the economic, political and social aspects of education systems. | ||
| EDER 625 | Special Topics in Educational Studies. | 3 |
Special Topics in Educational Studies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Explores important current issues in the field of Educational Studies. (Content varies from year to year.) | ||
| EDER 626 | Theory and Praxis of Culture and Citizenship. | 3 |
Theory and Praxis of Culture and Citizenship. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Study and critique of contemporary ethics and cultural education models with a specific emphasis on Quebec’s Culture and Citizenship program. Introduction to a variety of theoretical and practical perspectives on the roles culture and citizenship play starting from our personal lives to the classroom. | ||
| EDER 643 | Women, Education and Development. | 3 |
Women, Education and Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course will trace the major theoretical developments in women and development and relate them to educational issues in the formal, non-formal and informal settings. There will be an emphasis on the significance and policy implications of women's education for sustainable developments in the countries of the South. | ||
| EDER 649 | Education: Multicultural Societies. | 3 |
Education: Multicultural Societies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Majority-minority relations and their implications for educational policy and practice. | ||
Elective Courses (15 credits)
15 credits at the 500 level or higher. An elective course can be any course in DISE. If the course is outside of the department, the student should consult with the Program Director or Coordinator prior to registering for the course. A maximum of 6 credits, at the 500 level or higher, may be taken outside of the Department, selected in consultation with the approval of Program Coordinator or Director, and Department Chair.
Graduate Supervision
(Note that individual supervisors may list further details, such as when they are taking new students and application instructions in the Graduate Supervision section at the bottom of their individual profile pages.)
Application Deadlines
- Fall Admission: January 1
Master of Arts Education and Society (Project)
Full Program Details from the Course Catalogue
Education and Society (Non-Thesis) (M.A.) (45 credits)
Offered by: Integrated Studies in Ed (Faculty of Education)
Degree: Master of Arts
Program credit weight: 45
Program Description
The M.A. non-thesis option consists mostly of coursework, and includes two 6 credit projects. This option is suitable for practitioners interested in professional development with a research and theoretical orientation. The project creates an opportunity for students to investigate a particular interest.
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Research Project (12 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EDER 633 | Project 1. | 6 |
Project 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Theoretical or practical project to explore and analyze an area of interest relevant to education and society. | ||
| EDER 634 | Project 2. | 6 |
Project 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Theoretical or practical project to explore and analyze an area of interest relevant to education and society. | ||
Required Courses (6 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EDEM 609 | Critical Perspectives in Educational Theory and Research. | 3 |
Critical Perspectives in Educational Theory and Research. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Critical exploration of contemporary issues in educational theory and research, in terms of current scholarship in the field, current educational contexts, and various research paradigms. Educational issues as expressions of social, ethical, political, economic, epistemological and cultural reconfigurations. Students will learn to be critical consumers of educational theories and research. | ||
| EDEM 690 | Research Methods: Theory and Practice. | 3 |
Research Methods: Theory and Practice. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Overview of the epistemological foundations of a range of research methods, including but not limited to quantitative, philosophical, qualitative, arts-based, and mixed methods. Students will learn techniques to conduct research and to develop a research proposal. | ||
Complementary Courses (15 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EDEA 555 | Applied Theatre. | 3 |
Applied Theatre. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Exploration of the practices of theatre and drama in non-traditional settings, encompassing theatre practices and process drama that tackle areas of social and cultural policy such as public health, education, housing and social welfare. | ||
| EDEA 655 | Arts-Based Educational Research. | 3 |
Arts-Based Educational Research. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Forms of thinking and portraying that emanate from the arts: music, dance, drama, visual art, poetry, which provide an aesthetically-oriented lens from which to examine perspectives and premises that influence educational practice, and to develop processes that use one or more of the arts. | ||
| EDEC 602 | Foundations in Curriculum. | 3 |
Foundations in Curriculum. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course introduces the field of curriculum studies, including a historical approach to the discourses, debates and issues that have shaped it. Students will actively explore relationships between curriculum theory and professional as well as pedagogical practice. | ||
| EDEC 606 | Self-Study, Autoethnography, and Autobiographical Research . | 3 |
Self-Study, Autoethnography, and Autobiographical Research . Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Critical and ethical engagement with the relationship between self and other through various auto/biographical approaches to research in education, such as self-study, autoethnography, currere, life writing, artistic practices, writing the self, and memory-work. Exploration of various forms of writing, representation, analysis and critical discussion | ||
| EDEC 612 | Digital Media and Learning. | 3 |
Digital Media and Learning. Terms offered: Summer 2025 This course addresses emerging theories, pedagogies, and practices related to youth learning through digital media and online participatory cultures. Through direct engagement with multiple forms of digital media and youth, students will consider implications for teaching and learning within and beyond schools. | ||
| EDEC 617 | Special Topics in Educational Studies. | 3 |
Special Topics in Educational Studies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Explores important current issues in the field of Educational Studies. (Content varies from year to year). | ||
| EDEC 620 | Meanings of Literacy. | 3 |
Meanings of Literacy. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Investigation of basic issues related to definitions of literacy. Issues include new directions in literacy and education, the need for non-print literacies in contemporary life, and the challenges these changes present for educators. | ||
| EDEC 627 | Critical Discourse Studies in Education. | 3 |
Critical Discourse Studies in Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Examines critical theories of and approaches to studying discourse, with a focus on the roles of discourse as social and ideological practice in (re-)producing, questioning or challenging power relations, subject positions and established social orders. Emphasis is placed on theory and practice of discourse studies in educational contexts. | ||
| EDEC 628 | Literacy - Multilingual/Multicultural Settings. | 3 |
Literacy - Multilingual/Multicultural Settings. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course examines the teaching of literacy in a range of multilingual and multicultural settings in schooling and society, primarily from the sociocultural perspectives of self and group identity as well as empowerment within majority-minority group relations. | ||
| EDEC 635 | Research Writing. | 3 |
Research Writing. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The course offers a research-led introduction to processes and practices of research writing. Working to develop their research writing projects, students learn to examine, critically reflect on, and participate in the research writing practices in their fields, guided by current research on the discursive construction of knowledge. | ||
| EDEC 650 | Critical Race Studies and Education . | 3 |
Critical Race Studies and Education . Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Investigates the relationships among race, racialization, and education. Defines education as the processes through which we claim identities, make knowledge claims, and how we learn to take action in the world. Concerned with 1) how we come to know and produce knowledge through race, 2) the pedagogical processes that normalize racial inequity; and 3) the impact of racializing knowledge and structures for variously racialized persons in educational settings. Surveys a range of intersectional critical race theoretical frameworks particularly in Canada. Relevant for developing a critically-engaged educational practice, for whom race, racialization, and social justice are central concerns. | ||
| EDEM 655 | Indigenous Research Methodologies. | 3 |
Indigenous Research Methodologies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Explores theoretical and methodological foundations of Indigenous research. Pays special attention to research positionality as seen through the lenses of settler colonialism and Indigeneity. Highlights importance of Indigenous-led research and decolonizing methodologies. Considers various dimensions of Indigenous research including relationality, responsibility, respect, and reflexivity. Examines the process of decolonizing research by centering Indigenous knowledges, languages, cultures, histories, and identities. | ||
| EDEM 679 | Special Topics 3 in Educational Leadership. | 3 |
Special Topics 3 in Educational Leadership. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Selected topics in educational leadership. | ||
| EDEM 688 | Critical and Participatory Research Methods . | 3 |
Critical and Participatory Research Methods . Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Exploration of several critical and participatory research methodologies (such as Black radical, feminist and activist ethnography) to understand their implications for study methods (framing research questions, data collection and analysis). | ||
| EDER 600 | Globalization, Education and Change. | 3 |
Globalization, Education and Change. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. The impact of globalization on educational institutions, processes and practices. Topics may include the politics of change, teachers' work, educational reform, technology, environment, educational management and leadership. | ||
| EDER 606 | Philosophy of Moral Education. | 3 |
Philosophy of Moral Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. A study of principles underlying contemporary moral education such as what constitutes moral values and judgments, normative basis for morality, and differing foundations employed in determining moral norms. | ||
| EDER 607 | Ethics and Values in Education. | 3 |
Ethics and Values in Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Considers education as a concept and practice influenced by values (ethical, religious, aesthetic, cultural, political, etc.). Includes a critical examination of selected approaches to values education. | ||
| EDER 608 | Educational Implications of Social Theory. | 3 |
Educational Implications of Social Theory. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An analysis of some of the educational implications of various social and political theories: liberalism, Marxism and others. | ||
| EDER 609 | Education and Philosophical Thought. | 3 |
Education and Philosophical Thought. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An analysis of the educational implications of various philosophical positions concerning the nature of reality and the nature of knowledge. | ||
| EDER 614 | Sociology of Education. | 3 |
Sociology of Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Social context of schooling, including education and social stratification and socialization processes within and outside schools. | ||
| EDER 615 | Introduction to Philosophy of Education. | 3 |
Introduction to Philosophy of Education. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Explores questions, aims, debates and modes of inquiry that characterize philosophical approaches to studying educational questions. Introduces philosophy of education as a distinctive field of educational research and may focus on figures or themes of contemporary interest. | ||
| EDER 617 | Aesthetics and Education. | 3 |
Aesthetics and Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An examination and critical analysis of selected readings on the topic of aesthetics, with specific reference to their application to educational practice. | ||
| EDER 622 | Studies in Comparative Education. | 3 |
Studies in Comparative Education. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Comparative study of the economic, political and social aspects of education systems. | ||
| EDER 625 | Special Topics in Educational Studies. | 3 |
Special Topics in Educational Studies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Explores important current issues in the field of Educational Studies. (Content varies from year to year.) | ||
| EDER 626 | Theory and Praxis of Culture and Citizenship. | 3 |
Theory and Praxis of Culture and Citizenship. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Study and critique of contemporary ethics and cultural education models with a specific emphasis on Quebec’s Culture and Citizenship program. Introduction to a variety of theoretical and practical perspectives on the roles culture and citizenship play starting from our personal lives to the classroom. | ||
| EDER 643 | Women, Education and Development. | 3 |
Women, Education and Development. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. This course will trace the major theoretical developments in women and development and relate them to educational issues in the formal, non-formal and informal settings. There will be an emphasis on the significance and policy implications of women's education for sustainable developments in the countries of the South. | ||
| EDER 649 | Education: Multicultural Societies. | 3 |
Education: Multicultural Societies. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Majority-minority relations and their implications for educational policy and practice. | ||
Elective Courses (12 credits)
12 credits at the 500 level or higher. An elective course can be any course in DISE. If the course is outside of the department, the student should consult with the Program Director or Coordinator prior to registering for the course. A maximum of 6 credits outside DISE is permitted.
Graduate Supervision
(Note that individual supervisors may list further details, such as when they are taking new students and application instructions in the Graduate Supervision section at the bottom of their individual profile pages.)
Application Deadlines
- Fall Admission: January 1
Master of Arts Education and Society (Thesis)
Full Program Details from the Course Catalogue
Education and Society (Thesis) (M.A.) (45 credits)
Offered by: Integrated Studies in Ed (Faculty of Education)
Degree: Master of Arts
Program credit weight: 45
Note: For information about Fall 2025 and Winter 2026 course offerings, please check back on May 8, 2025. Until then, the "Terms offered" field will appear blank for most courses while the class schedule is being finalized.
Thesis Courses (24 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EDEM 621 | Thesis 1. | 6 |
Thesis 1. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Departmental seminar to guide students through the process of developing a thesis proposal, identifying a supervisor, research sites and participants, and considering ethical issues. | ||
| EDEM 623 | Thesis 2. | 6 |
| EDEM 699 | Thesis 3. | 12 |
Thesis 3. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Final synthesis of the research project. | ||
Required Courses (6 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EDEM 609 | Critical Perspectives in Educational Theory and Research. | 3 |
Critical Perspectives in Educational Theory and Research. Terms offered: Summer 2025 Critical exploration of contemporary issues in educational theory and research, in terms of current scholarship in the field, current educational contexts, and various research paradigms. Educational issues as expressions of social, ethical, political, economic, epistemological and cultural reconfigurations. Students will learn to be critical consumers of educational theories and research. | ||
| EDEM 690 | Research Methods: Theory and Practice. | 3 |
Research Methods: Theory and Practice. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Overview of the epistemological foundations of a range of research methods, including but not limited to quantitative, philosophical, qualitative, arts-based, and mixed methods. Students will learn techniques to conduct research and to develop a research proposal. | ||
Elective Courses (15 credits)
15 credits at the 500, 600, or 700 level, chosen in consultation with the Thesis Supervisor or Graduate Program Director. The student may take a maximum of 6 credits from outside the Department.
Graduate Supervision
(Note that individual supervisors may list further details, such as when they are taking new students and application instructions in the Graduate Supervision section at the bottom of their individual profile pages.)
Application Deadlines
- Fall Admission: January 1
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