There are many online learning platforms available for teachers, but not all of them are free. This is why it’s important to choose only the best.
To help you choose the best teaching courses, I’ve researched and created a list of quality online courses for teachers.
Teacher.org
Who knows what a teacher needs better than a teacher? Teacher.org offers a vast array of tools and resources created by K-12 teachers from across the United States. From lesson plans organized by grade level and subject, to teacher guides and helpful articles, Teacher.org has everything covered. Best of all, they also offer scholarship information for teachers continuing their own educations.
Discovery Education
Discovery Education offers free classroom resources for a number of subjects and also features its own “DEN Community” where teachers can share their own ideas and resources.
From social studies to STEM, Discovery provides interactive lessons and real-world examples to make learning fun and engaging. Students will also love their programs with partners like Myth Busters and the NBA.
NSTA
The National Science Teachers Association gives teachers access to the NSTA magazine, books and journals, and lessons that cover everything from climate change to safety in the classroom. Teachers can also find tips on curriculum planning and professional learning.
Purdue Owl
Purdue Owl has saved many a high school student as they pulled all-nighters finishing up research papers. Not only does the site offer all of the critical information needed for proper citations, it also offers succinct answers to common grammar questions. Instead of wasting time scouring the web for solutions, your students can focus on finishing their papers.
Grammarly
Grammarly is another excellent resource for simple clarifications of common grammar issues. But that’s not all—students can also install plugins that will make helpful suggestions as they compose their papers, or even check their work for plagiarism before submitting an assignment.
Educreations
Educreations is an excellent tool for teaching your students how to write and revise their papers. Teachers can record their voices and iPad screens to create dynamic video tutorials that students can access and revisit any time they need. It’s great for editing sample papers and explaining the revision process.
The Literacy Shed
When you need a little visual reinforcement, The Literacy Shed is here to help. The site offers films, photos, animations, and picture books that add to literary themes. Although most films are aimed at elementary school students, there are quite a few that even the “big kids” will love.
Poetry 180
Teaching poetry to high school students can be hard—but Poetry 180 makes it easier. The site contains 180 poems that appeal especially to teens, designed to cover each of the 180 days in a school year. The poems can be used to teach writing techniques, poetry basics, or even be used as writing prompts.
Breaking News English
This site can be a great resource for ESL students in particular. Breaking News English posts real news stories written in plain language. Levels of difficulty range from easy to advanced. Students can read and summarize the articles, or answer questions for comprehension. Daily practice with these will certainly help both vocabulary and writing skills.
Smithsonian’s History Explorer
Developed by the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian’s History Explorer offers hundreds of free online resources for teaching K-12 students about American history. Teachers can find interactive lessons and even show their kids museum artifacts.
General Resources
JumpStart
JumpStart provides free online resources aimed primarily at elementary school educators. With their helpful worksheets, lesson plans, classroom activities, learning games, and audio-visual teaching tools, kids will never be bored while they brush up on math, social studies, science, and more.
Everfi
Everfi provides free, interactive online courses based on national academic standards. With emphasis on real-world learning, Everfi offers courses on everything from health and wellness to financial literacy, social-emotional learning, and more.
Teaching Tolerance
For instructors who want to bring more social awareness to their classrooms, Teaching Tolerance provides free resources that emphasize social justice and anti-bias. Lessons, learning plans, and student texts are available to integrate themes of justice, diversity, and equity into your every day curriculum and promote productive conversations in the classroom.
PBS Learning Media
PBS Learning Media offers free, standards-based resources for Pre-K to 12th grade students. Materials include lesson plans, videos, news articles, activities, and more. There’s even a section on professional development, where teachers can find tips for better planning and preparation, as well as more effective instruction.
Kelly Gallagher’s Article Database
For a weekly writing exercise, teachers can borrow from Kelly Gallagher’s archive of articles that he uses as prompts for his students. Many are very thought-provoking and will still be relevant all throughout the school year, so your students will have no shortage of writing inspiration.
Audubon for Kids
Nature activities, videos, games, DIY projects, and lessons to inspire children to explore and feel connected to the natural world.
Sample Lessons: How to Make Hummingbird Nectar, Migration Story Interactive Game, Birds of Prey Poetry
Amazon Ignite
Amazon Inspire is an open collaboration service that allows K-12 teachers to easily discover, gather, and share quality educational content with their community.
Sample Lessons: Figure It Out Critical Thinking Puzzles, Spring Math Craftivities for Second Grade, 6th Grade Math Daily Problem Solving
Arts Edge
Sponsored by the Kennedy Center, Arts Edge provides arts-centered, standards-based resources for K-12.
Sample Lessons: Animal Habitats, Five Artists of the Mexican Revolution, Creating Comic Strips
Code.org
Learn to code with these one-hour tutorials designed for learners of all ages in over 45 languages.
Sample Lessons: Dance Party for grades 2+, Tractor Traversal for grades 6+, Space Adventure Code Monkey for grades 2-8
Common Lit
Free collection of reading passages in all literary and non-fiction genres for grades 3-12. Passages come with text-dependent questions which help you track student progress.
Sample Lessons: Life Isn’t Fair- Deal With It, Who Was Anne Frank, Witchcraft in Salem
Common Sense Education
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit dedicated to providing educators and students with resources to harness the power of technology for learning and life. Free lessons K-12
Sample Lessons: My Writing, My Peer and Me, The Three Billy Goats STEM Challenge, The Ants Go Marching
Education World
Education World is a complete online resource for teachers, administrators, and school staff to find high-quality and in-depth original content. They offer more than 1,000 free lessons.
Sample Lessons: Wacky Weather, What Would Oprah Say?, Changes in Habitat
5 Reasons Why Online Learning is the Future of Education
It’s flexible.
Online education enables the teacher and the student to set their own learning pace, and there’s the added flexibility of setting a schedule that fits everyone’s agenda. As a result, using an online educational platform allows for a better balance of work and studies, so there’s no need to give anything up. Studying online teaches you vital time management skills, which makes finding a good work-study balance easier. Having a common agenda between the student and teacher can also prompt both parties to accept new responsibilities and have more autonomy.
It offers a wide selection of programs.
In a space as vast and wide as the internet, there are infinite skills and subjects to teach and learn. A growing number of universities and higher education schools are offering online versions of their programs for various levels and disciplines. From music composition to quantum physics, there are options for every type of student. Studying your program online is also a great option for getting an official certificate, diploma, or degree without physically setting foot on a university campus.
It’s accessible.
Online education enables you to study or teach from anywhere in the world. This means there’s no need to commute from one place to another, or follow a rigid schedule. On top of that, not only do you save time, but you also save money, which can be spent on other priorities. The virtual classroom is also available anywhere there’s an internet connection, and a good way to take advantage of this is to travel. For example, if you’re studying abroad and want to get a job, online education is a great choice. There’s no reason to give up on working or studying while exploring new and exotic places.
It allows for a customized learning experience.
We’ve mentioned before how flexibility can help you to set your own study pace. But online education is also flexible for each student’s individual requirements and level of ability.
Online classes tend to be smaller than conventional class size. Most of the time, online learning platforms only allow one student at a time, and in almost all cases, this allows for greater interaction and more feedback between you and your tutor.
There’s often access to very diverse material such as videos, photos, and eBooks online as well, and tutors can also integrate other formats like forums or discussions to improve their lessons. And this extra content is available at any moment from anywhere, which will offer you a more dynamic and tailor-made education.
It’s more cost-effective than traditional education.
Unlike in-person education methods, online education tends to be more affordable. There’s also often a wide range of payment options that let you pay in installments or per class. This allows for better budget management. Many of you may also be subject to discounts or scholarships, so the price is rarely high. You can also save money from the commute and class materials, which are often available for free. In other words, the monetary investment is less, but the results can be better than other options.
Conclusion
While education technology is often directed toward personalised learning for students, remote online courses can also provide online training for teachers. Online learning for educators is gaining traction in the education world. Online courses give teachers access to some of the world’s best curriculum while providing new opportunities for edtech entrepreneurs to get involved in K-12 education, especially in underserved areas.