Dive Brief:

• Google recently launched a new teacher training center to prepare educators to use its education tools in the classroom.
• The Google Education Training Center offers free professional development resources and courses for teachers who use the Google for Education apps.
• The training center also offers certifications to prove teachers’ expertise, which include Trainer and Innovator designations for teachers who mentor other teachers or experiment with new methods. Both require additional time in Google training camps.

Dive Insight:

The launch of the training center is Google’s latest move into the education sphere. Google for Education, which includes apps like Google Docs and Google Classroom, has become a core part of many districts’ ed tech arsenals. In addition to the virtual training center, the company offers other training tools, including the Google Teacher Academy, a virtual education conference, and awards for innovative teachers.

The company has a fair bit of competition in the ed tech and learning management system sphere, but the out-of-school familiarity it has for teachers and students has boosted its profile and usability. And the company has consistently rolled out upgrades and new features. Its virtual reality viewer, Google Cardboard, was also among the most promising tools to come out of this year’s ISTE Conference last month.