Data literacy is a highly sought-after skill in the classroom and beyond. As technology advances, it’s becoming increasingly important for teachers to understand how to interpret and leverage data in order to stay ahead of the curve.
If you’re unsure of where to start, there are plenty of amazing data literacy training programs available today—from certification courses to online tutorials. In this blog post, we’ll explore the five best data literacy training programs for teachers, what they entail, and why they’re worth the investment.
Grab your coffee, get comfortable, and let’s dive right in!
- InnoBeta Data Literacy Training for Educators
- The Data Literacy Project
- Introduction to Data Science for Educators
- Analytics for the Classroom Teacher
- Learn Data Literacy Crash Course for Teachers
1. InnoBeta Data Literacy Training for Educators
InnoBeta is an exciting new 16-week data literacy training program for teachers and educators. Specifically designed for traditional public school districts and charter networks, the program seeks to empower educators with the skills, tools, and knowledge needed to drive meaningful improvements in student outcomes. This comprehensive program combines practical exercises, personalized mentorship, and your school’s data to enhance your data literacy skills and lead your institution to success.
One of the standout features of InnoBeta is the emphasis on onboarding educators with Inno™, a world-leading educational data dashboard. As a participant, you’ll enjoy free use of this powerful tool for an entire year—allowing you to harness its capabilities to the fullest extent to support your data-driven decision-making and organizational goals.
The program caters to teachers, school leaders, academic officers, data professionals, IT leads, and accountability/research assessment representatives who are seeking to supercharge student outcomes.
Price: Free
2. The Data Literacy Project
The Data Literacy Project offers a range of instructor-led and self-paced courses to develop your fundamental understanding of data, both in everyday life and within your organization. From the foundations of data to data-driven decision-making, you’ll find a comprehensive library of short courses and resources to get your journey to data-savvy underway.
While this isn’t data literacy training for teachers specifically, the modules offer a beginner-friendly introduction into the applications of data in a range of sectors. In other words, teachers will no doubt find the material highly relevant to classroom contexts.
The Data Literacy Project also provides certification options, allowing educators to validate their data literacy expertise at a higher level.
Price: Free
3. Introduction to Data Science for Educators
FutureLearn’s eight-week Introduction to Data Science for Educators course aims to equip educators with a solid understanding of data science concepts and their applications in the classroom.
Guided by experts from the University of California (known for their online Master of Science in Engineering – Data Science program), the course offers a deep dive into the world of data science, giving teachers a practical understanding of the different types of educational data and how to manage them, as well as data integration techniques to organize and convert raw data effectively. While the course isn’t free, the FutureLearn platform allows for flexible payment plans—or a one-off payment.
Price: $150
4. Analytics for the Classroom Teacher
Analytics for the Classroom Teacher by EdX is the ideal course for teachers who aspire to be more reflective in their teaching practice—and explore how data-driven practices can improve student learning. The six week, self-paced course provides insights into the use of educational data analytics to enhance teaching, support data-driven decision-making, and improve school operations.
As a participant, you’ll lear your way around industry-standard analytics tools and methods, explore how data analytics can drive classroom delivery, and mine invaluable insights from educational data to transform your approach to instruction.
Price: $138
5. Learn Data Literacy Crash Course for Teachers
For teachers seeking a more flexible and accessible option, the Learn Data Literacy Crash Course for Teachers on YouTube offers a convenient and free way to dip your toes into data before making any commitments to a program. Delivered by Digital Skills Education, this video series covers key data literacy concepts, techniques, and tools, providing teachers with a foundational understanding of data analysis and interpretation in short, bitesized lessons under five minutes each.
The Crash Course features helpful examples and interviews with data experts, making it a great first foray into the basics of data in school contexts.
Price: Free
Wrapping up
The usefulness of data literacy training for teachers is undeniable: having the knowledge to make better decisions, see relationships between data sets, and help students succeed are invaluable tools to have in your arsenal.
Data literacy also opens up opportunities for collaboration and makes it easier to identify trends and potential areas of improvement throughout a school district. With these five best programs and certifications, you can gain a better understanding of the world of data analysis and become more adept at making data-driven decisions that end up being beneficial for educators and students alike.
If you’re looking for comprehensive data literacy training for teachers, designed to give teachers the confidence they need to unlock insights from their datasets, look no further than InnoBeta. This dedicated program was created by industry leaders with a first-hand understanding of the challenges facing educators today—and the role data plays in overcoming them.
There’s no time like the present to get data-savvy, so why not join the InnoBeta waitlist today! Not quite ready just yet? You can also read our roundup of five ways educators can become more data literate.
