Want to take your teaching skills to the next level?
Join our global community of educators and learn how to implement Finnish-style, play-based learning with our digital teacher training program! Watch the webinar to find out more about the HEI Schools Teacher Diploma.
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HEI Schools Teacher Diploma
We offer an international teacher training program for any teacher looking to develop as an early childhood educator.
The course, developed by Professor Lasse Lipponen from the University of Helsinki and the HEI Schools pedagogical team, is designed for educators who wish to acquire a deeper understanding of the Finnish play-based pedagogy.
You will receive a diploma upon completion.
In this course, we offer:
- Engaging reading materials
- Practical work-related assignments (also applicable if not currently teaching)
- Insightful articles and other academic reading material
- Helpful videos with subtitles*
- Peer sharing within the active online community
- Live Q&A sessions monthly with HEI Schools’ pedagogical team
10 modules with different topics
All modules focus on different aspects of ECE, including topics such as play and learning, special needs and inclusion or working with families.
Over 30 practical assignments
The program includes over 30 assignments. Some of them are very practical, like planning activities to do with children, while some are more reflective in nature.
A community of over 200 educators
The Diploma community is over 200 people strong, with users logging in from over 35 different countries every day.
Who can benefit from the Teacher Diploma?
- ECE Professionals looking to specialize
- Homeschoolers
- Education entrepeneurs
Success Stories from our Community
See all success stories
It is absolutely wonderful! I found it so informative and I just loved the way you broke it down into milestones and it was so granular. That's the part that really appealed to me for somebody who is just getting into this space. I think that's a very good first step you have.
Jayaradha Shankar
Certificate Student, Singapore
I like HEI School because it has the highest standards of safety and education.I have been teaching preschoolers for nine years and counting, and never in my entire career have I experienced this way of training.
Randy Matito
Certificate Student, Vietnam
I feel confident in taking the course even though I’m working in a full-time position simply because the platform is so awesome and practical and I can do it all at my own pace. I also love the fact that I can apply all the methods I’m learning with the kids I work with and improve our daily routines.
Bianca de Cassia Garcia
Certificate Student, Canada
I enjoy the HEI Teacher Certificate program as it's well-designed and easy to follow even for someone who has no foundation in early childhood pedagogy. The program has guided me through important aspects of play-based learning step by step with practical assignments and ideas that could be used in real-life situations.
Nararat Vachiramanaporn
Certificate Student, Thailand
Module 1.How Children Learn
Deepen your understanding of the milestonees of human development, learn pedagogical methods to support holistic development and to promote second language learning.
Module 2.Child Observation, Documentation and Evaluation
Get familiar with the areas, methods and tools for observation, documentation and evaluation. Learn how to engage in self-evaluation and use it to improve your teaching practices.
Module 3.Play and Learning
Learn theories of play and why play is important for children. Deepen your knowledge of the teacher’s role in play and how you can use play to support children’s learning and development.
Module 4.Children’s Rights
Understand how you can make children’s rights visible in the learning environment, teach social sustainability and global awareness, and ensure children’s safety and participation.
Module 5.Learning Areas and Transversal Skills
Module 6.Collaborative Inquiry-Based Learning
Get familiar with inquiry-based learning and how and why to implement it in the classroom. Learn practical ways to create, document and evaluate projects together with children.
Module 7.Inclusion, Diversity and Special Needs
Learn how to recognize and understand diversity and the most common special educational needs of young learners. Get familiar with working methods to promote inclusion.
Module 8.Pedagogical Planning
Get familiar with methods of short- and long-term pedagogical planning in the Finnish early childhood education context and how to incorporate child and family participation into these plans.
Module 9.Working with Families
Get familiar with the diversity of families and how to encounter and work with different family types. Understand common challenges in collaboration and strategies to overcome them.
Module 10.Teacher’s Professional Development
Get familiar with the importance of continuous professional development and reflective practice. Get support in planning your own growth and ways to stay inspired as an early years professional.
Meet Professor Lasse Lipponen Professor of Education in the Faculty of Educational Sciences at University of Helsinki
Awards
First Prize in Future Learning Environment, an educational technology competition at University of Helsinki (1999)
Recipient of Good Teacher award at the University of Helsinki (2008)
Author of over 100 research articles on teaching and learning with a focus on empathy, compassion, play and organizational development
Prof. Lipponen’s development and research work has been funded by:
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European Union
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Singapore Ministry of Education
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Lien Foundation Singapore
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Academy of Finland
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Aaltonen Foundation
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The Finnish Funding Agency for Innovation
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Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture
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Finnish National Agency for Education
