Google Certified, What’s your ‘Why’?
I can admit it, I was scared.
Sitting in a room with 35 other educators from around the world, that little voice in my head was saying, “What are you doing here? You don’t belong in this group! You are so out of your league right now! Fraud!” Then, Dean Stokes of the Google for Edu team in London, got up and said, “I bet many of you are thinking right now, ‘What am I doing here? I don’t belong in this group! Fraud!’
We all do it, it’s called Imposter Syndrome.” Dean assured us that by the sheer fact that we were in the room, we belonged and we are worthy. And that people feel this way all of the time. We had only been there for 20 minutes and I already had a “golden nugget” of learning I would carry with me. The experience reminded me that every educator (and student) deserves amazing learning experiences that challenge our thinking, make us better at our job and propel us to the next level.
You are worthy too! You don’t have to be a world-renowned rockstar of all things technology to start down the road of becoming a Google Certified Educator. You just need to choose the mindset and act on the instincts that make you want to leverage every possible opportunity for your students.
The levels of Google certification are a bridge to this learning:
Level I ⇾ Educators who know how to use Google tools in the classroom, this certification proves your proficiency.
Level II ⇾ Educators who are super users and enthusiast of Google tools in the classroom, this certification proves your expertise.
Trainer ⇾ Combine your expertise in Google tools with your love of helping others by supporting educators as they redefine learning with technology.
Innovator ⇾ Recognizes and supports top educators around the globe who are using technology to solve meaningful challenges in education.
Certification might help you gain insights into your work, or it might be the first step on a journey like the one I took this past fall when I was fortunate enough to be selected to the Google Innovator Academy. Google for Edu and the EdTech Team hosted the event and were fantastic facilitators of learning! For three days, I learned with like-minded educators from Denmark, Sweden, South Africa, Switzerland, the UK and the US. It was nothing short of inspiring, the best professional development I have ever experienced, hands down.
What’s my Why? I have several, but my Innovator application video explains one of them.
For the next week, this Flipgrid discussion will be open for those who have been certified to share with those who have not, why they should! Next week, come back to #Innovate624 for a written summary as well as a couple of video responses we receive. The lines are now open…
