14 Free Online Courses for Teachers Professional Development

This post is a compiled list of free online courses for teachers professional development and the details of each of the courses to help you know which one is free.

No kidding, teaching is a daunting task so you may want to think twice about being a teacher but if you already are then you’re doing a fantastic job. Teachers have no breaks, not even during the summer because while you’re chilling at a poolside, these guys are organizing classes, setting up lesson plans, gathering ideas, and becoming better through professional development.

So, yea, if you are thinking about being a teacher, you should really think about it deeply.

Teachers receive a lot of recognition both at home and abroad, through their sacrifices, skills, intelligence, and understanding they can develop young minds into established men and women. We can say the – teachers – are one of the strong pillars of every society, they introduce new ideas, develop potential, and move society forward.

Teachers, just like every other profession and even more than some profession requires professional development. This is to help teachers become better at what they do, equip them with better ideas and strategies to promote classroom learning, and more.

We at Study Abroad Nations have compiled this list of free online courses for teachers’ professional development for teachers to choose the one that best works for them. Also, they get to tap from the advantages of online learning; you could finally get to chill at the poolside while learning online.

The flexibility of online learning can help you advance as a professional teacher while having a fun time, online courses are self-paced thus you get to learn at your own preferred time. It could be before going to chill with some friends, in the middle of the night, early mornings, etc. whenever you feel is right for you, you learn and develop yourself.

What’s more?

You probably missed out where it said “free” online courses for teacher development, yes, you don’t get to pay a dime while advancing as a professional teacher.

What qualifies as professional development for teachers?

This is when the skills, knowledge, and expertise are developed through coaching, collaborative planning and teaching, and the sharing of good practices.

How do teachers get professional development hours?

Teachers can get professional development hours via online courses, workshops, summer events, and conferences.

With these cleared out, let’s proceed to the free online courses for teachers professional development for you to enroll in and begin developing your career.

Free Online Courses for Teachers Professional Development

Free Online Courses for Teachers Professional Development

Below are the list and then details of the free online courses for teachers professional development:

  • Understanding Student Development and Diversity
  • Teaching Science and Engineering
  • Orchestrating Whole Classroom Discussion
  • Diploma in Education Psychology
  • Physical Education – Coaching Styles and Techniques
  • Growth Mindsets for Teachers and Learners
  • Introduction to the Learning Process for Teachers and Trainers
  • Getting Started with Online Teaching
  • Instructional Methods in Health Professions Education
  • Preparing for Teaching
  • Powerful Tools for Teaching and Learning: Digital Storytelling
  • Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Developing Relationships
  • Teaching Students Who Have Suffered Complex Trauma
  • Diploma in Teaching Skills for Educators

1. Understanding Student Development and Diversity

This is one of the free online courses for teachers’ professional development that equips them with the knowledge and skills to improve teaching and instructional techniques in the classroom.

Enroll now

2. Teaching Science and Engineering

This is another of the free online courses for teachers professional development designed to help doctorate-level teaching assistants develop their teaching skills in scientific and engineering disciplines at university level.

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3. Orchestrating Whole Classroom Discussion

As a teacher, the whole class has to flow with you, engage in discussions, input their ideas, thoughts, etc. and it takes a special skill to get that to happen in the classroom. You can learn the techniques and strategies in making it happen when you enroll in this course.

The course is one of the free online courses for teachers professional development from the University of Pennsylvania.

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4. Diploma in Education Psychology

Understanding the psychology of education will help you perform better in the classroom as a teacher, you will be able to understand your students easily but you have to gain the skill.

How do you do that?

By enrolling in this course you gain an understanding of educational psychology which will help in improving your teaching, instructional, and training methods among students.

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5. Physical Education – Coaching Styles and Techniques

Physical education is one of the compulsory school curriculums and every student is involved and, of course, some coaches guide them. If you are a physical educator or want to one, then this course is for you.

It is one of the free online courses for teachers professional development and designed to teach physical educators or coaches the various coaching styles and techniques that can be implemented on the field and achieve successful results.

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6. Growth Mindsets for Teachers and Learners

This course is one of the free online courses for teachers professional development provided by Alison and designed to help teachers get the best out of their students and themselves with a focus on the learning approach and attitudes in your classroom.

This course will further help you as a teacher to improve your skills by adopting and promoting a growth mindset.

Enroll now

7. Introduction to the Learning Process for Teachers and Trainers

In this course, you will learn various techniques such as Bloom’s Taxonomy of Learning and others to help you gain an understanding of the teacher learning process, improve your teaching abilities, and be capable of delivering and planning effective lessons.

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8. Getting Started with Online Teaching

Online teaching is the new system used in delivering online classes and as a teacher, it is important to evolve with trends in the educational sector. Online learning is one of the biggest changes in education and every teacher should be equipped with skills to handle it effectively.

The course, Getting Started with Online Teaching, is another of the free online courses for teachers professional development and guides you on how to get started with online teaching.

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9. Instructional Methods in Health Professions Education

This course is specifically designed for those involved in educating members of the health professions in an asynchronous, interdisciplinary, and interactive way to obtain, expand, and improve their teaching skills. At the end of this course, you will gain skills in various teaching methods, simulation, and instructional design.

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10. Preparing for Teaching

Do you think teaching is for you? Are you certain you have what it takes to be a teacher?

Then this course is for you.

It is designed to test your ability to be a teacher, more like test the waters before you take a thorough dive. The course prepares individuals for a profession in teaching by learning the qualities of a good teacher reflecting on your own experiences of education.

Hurry and enroll in the course to gain teaching experience, after all, you have nothing to lose since it is absolutely free with a flexible learning option.

Enroll now

11. Powerful Tools for Teaching and Learning: Digital Storytelling

This is one of the free online courses for teachers professional development provided by the University of Houston and offered online by Coursera. This course explores the use of digital stories by teachers to promote students’ learning experiences.

The course is focused on K-12 teachers in all disciplines but it is also open to anyone with an interest in digital storytelling.

Enroll now

12. Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Developing Relationships

The course, Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Developing Relationships, is one of the free online courses for teachers professional development offered by the Common Wealth Education Trust and delivered online via Coursera.

The course is designed for those already teaching or aspiring to be teachers in any subject and context and instills high-quality teaching skills, professionalism, and assessment in them to become professional teachers.

Enroll now

13. Teaching Students Who Have Suffered Complex Trauma

What is complex trauma? How does complex trauma affect children and adults? What can be done to help them?

Find out answers to these questions above and gain more understanding on how you as a teacher can support students who have suffered complex trauma.

Enroll now

14. Diploma in Teaching Skills for Educators

This is another of the free online courses for teachers professional development offered by Alison and it is designed for those already in the teaching profession and those who want to become teachers. For those who are already teachers, enrolling in this course will help polish their teaching skills and equip them with modern effective teaching skills.

For those who aspire to become teachers, taking this course will help them understand the tasks of being a quality teacher. They also get to explore the various techniques to effectively communicate with students and motivate them to learn.

Enroll now

Conclusion

So, here are the free online courses for teachers professional development that you may want to try out, you can enroll for as many as possible. There is no limit to the skills you can gain from these free online courses for teachers professional development, they are, after all, free and online although you may have to pay for the certificate to show potential employers proof that you are skilled in that area.

Old, new, and aspiring teachers can enroll in free online courses for teachers professional development to upgrade their skills, learn new ones, and, above all, become professionals.

Below are some of the free online professional development courses for teachers in Texas to enhance their teaching skills without leaving the comfort of their beds.

5 Free Online Professional Development Courses for Teachers in Texas

Below is the compiled list along with details of free online professional development courses for teachers in Texas:

Teaching Entrepreneurial Thinking

Teaching Physical Computing with Raspberry Pi and Python

Instructional Design: Digital Media, New Tools, and Technology

Understanding Classroom Interaction

Teaching Entrepreneurial Thinking

Entrepreneurship is the backbone of the current business model and it has a high success rate thus has to be taught in schools. As a teacher, it is your job to impart this knowledge to your students, and to that you’ve got to learn how to.

Here in this course, you will be introduced to entrepreneurial thinking and how it should be taught to students.

Enroll now

Teaching Physical Computing with Raspberry Pi and Python

Every technology today is controlled by electricity and programming, they are the backbone of the tech world and students must understand the way they work, and as a teacher, here’s how you can do that.

This is one of the free online professional development courses for teachers offers by FutureLearn and here you will explore the exciting world of physical computing and design electric circuits that be controlled with code.

Through the knowledge gained here, teachers can then impart the knowledge to students thereby developing their knowledge of electronics and programming.

Enroll now

Instructional Design: Digital Media, New Tools, and Technology

This is one of the free online professional development courses for teachers offered by the University of Maryland and offered online via edX. In this course, teachers will explore the design, development, and use of digital media and new technologies to support online learning.

Since online learning has become the new classroom, having this knowledge will come in handy for you. You can use all kinds of internet tools, such as social media, to educate your students and create effective engagement among students all through online teaching.

Enroll now

Understanding Classroom Interaction

The level of classroom interaction and engagement tells a lot about the teacher, you get to know if the teacher is a professional or not. In this course, you’ll explore critique and practice methods for analyzing interaction in classrooms, and developing tools to build more engaged, effective, and equitable classroom communication.

Enroll now

Understanding Young Minds Course

This course has been created by Virtual College in partnership with SelfharmUK in order to help teachers speak to children and young adults about emotional resilience and self-harm and does so in a sensitive and informational way.
 
Thousands of children and young people in the UK are thought to be impacted by self-harm each year. Spotting the signs can be difficult, and approaching the subject with your children can be an uncomfortable experience.
 
The course has been designed to provide you with a basic awareness of the subject to help you approach your children with confidence about the issue.
 

Conclusion

This brings an end to the free online courses for teachers professional development designed to empower teachers at no cost, except for your time. These courses are self-paced and flexible which means you get to learn and conclude on your own time.

With online learning, the stress of going to a physical classroom is already terminated you can learn wherever and whenever you want.

Enroll in these courses and gain exceptional professional teaching skills and how to effectively impart them to needs (students) and watch them move society forward.

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