Tech skills are considered an important part of the 21st-century classroom. But what if you’re a teacher who didn’t learn tech skills when you earned your degree?
That’s no longer a problem.. With online certificate programs, teachers can learn the skills they need to put technology into play in their classrooms, improving their ability to reach modern students and improve student outcomes. Fresno Pacific University offers a variety of certificates teachers can earn through online courses that provide tech tools for teachers. These online courses offer educators the flexibility to attend certification classes while maintaining busy professional and personal schedules.
Technology Certificates for Teachers
As part of its vast continuing education course for teachers, Fresno Pacific University offers certificates in various teaching areas. Three of those are technology-related certificates that offer tech tools for teachers. They are:
- Classroom Technology Integration
- Digital Innovator
- Technology Skills for Educators
Each gives teachers a chance to pick from an extensive list of courses that focus on individual technologies that can be used in the classroom.
The U.S. Department of Education offers a long list of reasons why teachers can benefit from technology certificates. Among them is the fact technology “ushers in fundamental structural changes that can be integral to achieving significant improvements in productivity” for teachers.
For students, technology can expand educational offerings, offer more learning materials, help students build 21st-century skills, increase student engagement and accelerate learning.
Examples of Tech Tools for Teachers
Each certification program offers teachers many different courses to take to improve their digital skills. The following are some of those areas.
Google Tech Tools for Teachers
Google offers many different tech tools that teachers can use to engage students and impact classroom practice. Fresno Pacific University offers courses on the use of Google Drive, Chrome Browser, Google Classroom, Blogger, YouTube, Google Earth and Google MyMaps.
Cloud Computing for Teachers
Cloud computing allows teachers and students to work with free tools available online that store their work on an offsite server - Google Drive is an example of this for documents. That means you don’t need to store massive amounts of information on your laptop’s hard drive, and you also don’t need to buy expensive software. Cloud computing is available for just about everything - images, video, graphics, anything you need for presentations or spreadsheets.
Kahoot in the Classroom
Kahoot is a popular game-based platform that teaches students important skills through games. It’s available online and is free. A course on Kahoot shows how to set up an account, different uses of Kahoot and how to leverage the gaming platform to teach students valuable skills.
Twitter for Educators
Yes, Twitter is much, much more than a tool for celebrities to Tweet about what they are wearing. With Twitter, teachers can set up worldwide networks with fellow educators. That allows the real-time sharing of ideas, lesson plans, teaching strategies and the use of tech tools for teachers.
Pinterest for Teachers
Much like Twitter, Pinterest allows teachers to create worldwide networks of fellow teachers. It’s never been easier to share ideas and teaching strategies, as well as links to important research or articles on areas of interest.
That is just a taste of what is offered. Among the dozens of classes, there are courses on Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft PowerPoint, creating computer graphics, Adobe Acrobat Pro and data-driven decision making for teachers.
The vast number of tech tools for teachers might seem overwhelming at first. However, the bottom line is that they offer more productive ways for teachers to spend their time and offer new ways to expand their students’ knowledge and skills.