Become an expert in Finnish early education
Learn the Finnish-style, play-based approach by joining our online teacher training program. You can enroll anytime and learn at your own pace with a global community of like-minded educators.

The HEI Schools Teacher Diploma
Do you want to take your teaching skills to the next level?
In this course, you will gain a comprehensive understanding of Finnish play-based pedagogy in an engaging and practical way. With a welcoming community and an easy-to-use platform, you will learn how to make learning fun and playful!
In this course, you will receive:
- Video lectures by Finnish educational experts
- Engaging reading materials based on the latest research
- Practical pedagogical assignments
- Peer sharing in an active online community
- An official diploma certified by HEI Schools

10 modules of educational topics

Over 30 practical assignments

A global community of nearly 400 educators
How to Enroll
If you're interested in signing up for the course, it's simple to get started.
Click on the button below to purchase the Diploma program on our web shop and start learning!
Learn More About the Program Content

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.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the required materials for the course?
All you need is access to a computer and the internet. Everything is online and available on demand so that you can study at your own pace.
What kind of background do I need?
No previous experience in education is mandatory! However, studies in education, experience working with children in either teaching or caretaking, and an interest in early childhood education are all helpful in completing the program.
How long is the course?
Our Student Success Stories
See all success stories
It is absolutely wonderful! I found it so informative and I just loved the way it's broken down into milestones and so granular. That's the part that really appealed to me as somebody who is just getting into this space. I think that's a very good first step to take.
Jayaradha Shankar
Diploma Student, Singapore

I like HEI Schools because they have 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
Diploma 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
Diploma Student, Canada

I enjoy the HEI Teacher Diploma 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
Diploma Student, Thailand
Teacher Training for Organizations
Looking for a high-quality teacher training program for your staff? The Diploma program can be embedded or adapted to suit schools, educational programs and academic courses. Contact us to learn more about our custom packages.
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Learn More About the Diploma in Our Webinar
Register below to watch our short webinar and learn more about the program!