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Frequently Asked Questions

Are the courses only available to NEA members?

Many courses offered through the NEA Academy are available for either members or non- members, although there will usually be a discounted price for members.  Click on the course name to determine if it is offered to non members.

How much do the courses cost?

NEA produced courses are usually free of charge to members.  Those courses developed by an outside non-profit or for-profit vendor will have a fee, although we will attempt to negotiate a reduced rate for members.  Many courses will have an option of university graduate credit for an additional fee.

Are courses from the Academy eligible for renewal credit in my state?

Many of the vendor-produced courses have arrangements with state departments of education or state standards boards to accept their courses for renewal credit.  Once a course is approved by the Content and Quality Review Board, we will work with state affiliates to quality the course for renewal credit.

Can I complete the courses in my own time frame?

Most course have a time frame (e.g. six months) in which they must be completed.  Courses marked as “facilitated” will generally follow a tighter time frame, with weekly assignments and expectations.  “Non-facilitated” courses will allow you to work at your own pace.  Most courses are “asynchronous” meaning that you are not required to be on-line at a specific time.  Check the summary by the Quality and Content Review Board to determine the structure of the course you are interested in.

Doesn’t it isolate educators when they take an on-line professional development course?

We encourage participants to go through these courses in district or school-based cohorts, so you can work together with your colleagues to complete the expectations.  Many participants report to us that their “on-line” cohorts, who may be across the country, become close collaborators and confidants, and they feel freer to express themselves with someone in another state than they do with a colleague down the hall.

Is there any research about the effectiveness of on-line learning?

The research base for on-line learning is sketchy.  Mostly it is self-reporting—with participants indicating whether or not it was useful, impacted their teaching, etc.  We hope to stimulate a more robust research agenda concerning on-line professional development.  To be fair, there is not a very strong research base for most workshop-based professional development experiences, either.

How can we use the NEA Academy courses to strengthen the Association?

It is our hope that local and state affiliates can organize cohort groups to participate in Academy courses, and that building representitives, IPD staff, Uniserv Directors, and others will use these course offerings to increase the value of NEA membership.  We will document and publicize the creative ways that our members and affiliate staff use the Academy to promote membership.  The Academy courses will be a very visible demonstration of NEA’s commitment to creating great public schools for all students.

Is there any follow up to a course after completing it?

We hope to develop chat rooms or discussion forums for educators who complete a course, to allow them to continue to interact with their colleagues that they were “in class” with.  This option is not yet available.

I have a great idea for a course (actually I've already taken a course that was great).  Is the NEA interested in my idea?  Who do I contact?

Yes!  We are interested!  Course offering and course selection is guided by member needs and experience.  The Content and Quality Review Board has a submission form that they will send you;  you can fill out the form and they will review all submissions.

Do I have an opportunity to tell you what I think of an NEA Academy course?

Yes, we will have an evaluation form at the completion of every online course.  Participant experience and evaluation will be available to those wishing to take a course.

I have registered for a class, when I click on it nothing happens

This is most likely because you need to install or update the Java plug-in. You can do that right here. You must have administrative rights to install this on your computer. Go to the Help Desk. Click on the Plug-in Installation Center.  Scroll down and select the Java icon.  Download Java for Microsoft Windows and follow the instructions to complete the installation.