An innovative LU teaching certificate program is proving popular globally as it prepares teachers to effectively use the latest technology in their teaching. Recently, the first graduates in the United Kingdom, all teachers at South Gloucestershire and Stroud College, received their certificates from Steve Molyneux, adjunct professor in educational innovation at LU and CEO of the Tablet Academy, LU’s delivery partner in Europe.
 
The “Certificate in Technology Enhanced Teaching’” was developed by the LU’s Center for Educational Innovation and Digital Learning and the College of Education and Human Development.
 
“The college principal of SGS College was so proud and amazed at our joint program that he requested that Simon Kay, head of digital learning and development at the college, regularly put a further 20 teaching staff through the program next academic year as part of an ongoing professional development program,” Professor Molyneux wrote in his departmental email.

“In addition, Birmingham Metropolitan College, a consortia of five large colleges, are also putting teaching staff through the program who are due to graduate in July, as is Wellington College, one of the most elite schools in the world, who’s teachers will graduate before Christmas.”
 
Participants in the program complete three self-study online courses and produce an ePortfolio of evidence of technology use in their teaching. Successful participants are awarded a non-credit bearing certificate which can be converted into full Lamar University credits toward an online M.Ed. in Digital Learning and Leading. The program equates to one-sixth of the credits needed for the degree.

Participants first take three online courses from Microsoft: Teaching with Technology (Basics), Teaching with Technology (2016) and 21st Century Learning Design. In the U.K., participants are also supported by face-to-face training delivered by highly qualified educators from Tablet Academy, a respected platform agnostic educational services company that is also the third largest Microsoft in Education Global Training Partner worldwide.
 
“These courses are designed to assist educators in their understanding of how technology can be used to enhance 21st Century education,” said George Saltsman, director of the Center for Educational Innovation and Digital Learning at LU.  The courses are aligned with the Technology Literacy learning objectives of the UNESCO ICT-Competency Framework for Teachers (UNESCO ICT-CFT), he said.

After completing these courses, participants prepare an ePortfolio of digital assets that demonstrates their understanding of the issues covered in the course materials; the application of what they have learned to their teaching practice; and the impact that this implementation has had on their students learning, Saltsman explained. A Lamar University professor grades each ePortfolio, and after successful completion a certificate is awarded.

Completion of the three online courses will also allow participants to use the title “Microsoft Innovative Educator” whether they are using Apple, Microsoft or Google platforms and, for an additional fee they can also take the Microsoft Certified Educator and/or Google Certified Educator examination, Saltsman said.

Molyneux concludes, “This partnership program demonstrates that it is possible, at low-cost, to fulfill the appetite teachers have to continue with their professional development, and to provide today’s young people with highly skilled educators fit to teach in the 21st century. As such both our organizations are looking forward to collaboratively rolling out this innovative program globally.”

For more information from our UK partner visit tablet-academy.com/current-projects/lamar-university-certificate/