Professional Development


Closing Digital Divide Requires Focused PD to Support Teachers

Initial results are in for Digital Promise's Dynamic Learning Project, a program to see what impact there would be on closing the "digital divide" by placing technology coaches into 50 high-need schools in 20 districts and five states. The results so far look "promising," according to Karen Cator, who leads Digital Promise.

Institute of Play Offers Free PD for Math Teachers in Grades 6-12

Participants will learn how to use game-design principles and tie games into their lessons. Teachers have until September 21 to get their applications in.

Flipped Learning Global Launches Lesson Planning Credential

The Certified Lesson Planning Specialist is a set of online courses designed for teachers who want to see what flipped classes look like and hear from other educators about the reasons for their instructional choices.

6-Week Crash Course Brings Nontraditional Teachers to Classrooms in NC District

This summer a North Carolina district launched a crash course for career-changers and nontraditional college graduates who want to become teachers.

Future Ready Schools Takes Free Personalized Learning PD to 5 Cities

A set of free, two-day professional development events taking place this fall will enable school leaders to learn the basics of delivering personalized education to their students, which includes the use of technology.

LEGO Adds 110 Master Educators to New Ed Community

LEGO Education has launched a new education community — LEGO Education Master Educators — and has named 110 members to its initial cohort, Applications will soon be accepted from educators around the world.

4 Models for Competency-Based Education

The challenge for CBE proponents, according to a new report, is that districts and schools are making the transition to this model of instruction and learning "through different entry points and roll-out strategies," resulting in "significant variation" in the education itself. "To a degree, these differences can be traced to regional priorities and needs," the report noted. Others, however, are a result of how well or poorly people understand what they're doing.

Digital Promise Digital Badge Platform Offers 282 Micro-Credentials

Micro-credentials, also known as digital badges, allow people to express their competency in a specific skill. In the education arena, schools and districts have begun promoting the credentials as a way for teachers and others to gain professional learning in discrete topics and practices.

Online Non-Profit University Offers Teacher Training Scholarships

Western Governors University made the offer for people who want to earn their bachelor's or master's degree in education and aren't already enrolled there.

D2L Pursues Usage for LMS as K–12 PD Platform

Learning management company D2L has tweaked its learning management system to accommodate professional development management for K–12 teachers as well. In April the company announced a similar offering for the higher education edition of its cloud-based Brightspace platform. Among the features: a dashboard to manage teacher PD and new kinds of assessment support.

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