In August, Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) was awarded a $1 million grant from the Indiana Department of Education as part of the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEERF).
IWU received approval under the GEER funding for a project titled: “Online Teaching and Learning: A Solution for Today, A Path for the Future.” This project seeks to quickly provide Indiana educators with the skills most needed to teach online during the pandemic, while also providing a series of credentials to help interested teachers continue their education.
“The world has been transformed in 2020, and that includes classrooms. Brick-and-mortar teachers were taught in a very specific way, but online teaching has no history other than these last few years,” said Theresa Henderson, an assistant professor for the School of Educational Leadership. “On-time learning is relevant and gives students bite-sized training opportunities to help them become more effective online educators.”
Through this project, IWU is creating pathways that will equip educators with virtual teaching skills in the form of badges and micro-credentials, a graduate certificate, a new master’s degree, and an Education Specialist (EdS) degree in Educational Technology & Learning Engineering. The learning experience is stackable, meaning students can start with just-in-time learning opportunities and later apply those to a master’s or EdS degree, if desired, saving students time, resources and money as they advance their learning and careers.
The cost per badge will be $99. Badges and micro-credentials will be available to all educators nationwide, and scholarships will be available to eligible educators in the state of Indiana. This means Indiana teachers can engage relevant training at a very low cost to schools and individuals.
Micro-credential development will be rolled out in phases starting with a course called Foundations of Effective Online Teaching, which will be available on January 15, 2021.
To learn more about academic programs from the School of Educational Leadership, visit https://www.indwes.edu/academics/caps/school-of-educational-leadership/ or follow IWU–National & Global on Facebook for updates at facebook.com/IWUGlobal.