Professional Development | News

Palo Verde College Offers Online PD for Early Childhood Ed

Palo Verde College in California has partnered with Hatch, a provider of early childhood education technology, to provide an online professional development course for teachers using technology in the classroom.

The course, Digital Learning in the Classroom, is available for college credit through the Palo Verde College online education program, and teachers can take it as part of their continuing education. According to Hatch, the course is designed to help teachers integrate technology into their classrooms for the purpose of engaging students in the learning process.

"Giving teachers access to devices and software is only part of incorporating technology successfully into schools," said Sheri Jones, interim vice president of Instruction and Student Services at Palo Verde College, in a prepared statement. "Integrating technology into classrooms depends on the teachers’ readiness to use it. If teachers do not feel comfortable with the technology, they are less inclined to incorporate it into their plans."

The goal of this course is enhance teachers' comfort level with technology so they can "successfully align it with student learning goals and integrate it into the curriculum," according to the company. The course will train teachers in the Hatch Learning Management System for early childhood education.

The course is taught by Bruce H. Wallace, a professor of child development at Palo Verde College.

About the Author

Leila Meyer is a technology writer based in British Columbia. She can be reached at [email protected].

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