Last fall, the Toronto Catholic District School Board jumped on board the GAFE train and launched their Google domain for elementary schools. In anticipation of this exciting change, I decided to do some online training and obtain a Google Educator certificate. This consisted of completing a series of five online competency tests. There were four mandatory tests on Gmail, Calendar, Sites, and Google Docs/Drive, and as my elective, I chose Chrome. It was a great learning experience and a step towards possibly becoming a Google Certified Trainer. Unfortunately, they no longer offer this certification and my certificate will expire in October. Now I am tinkering with the idea of following in the footsteps of my French teaching hero Sylvia Duckworth and applying to become a Google Certified Innovator. For that, I would need additional certification as a Google Certified Educator.

This new certification program is broken down into two levels. Level 1 validates fundamental competencies in using Google Apps for Education and standard technology implementation skills. Level 2 validates advanced technology integration skills. The good news is that, if you are a super user, you can by-pass Level 1 altogether and complete the Level 2 online test, which is what I opted to do. Keep in mind, though, that you only have three chances to complete an individual test and there is a waiting period in between attempts if you fail. I know this because I first attempted the Level 2 test in April and did not complete all the tasks within the three hour time limit. Therefore, I received a mark of 75% which fell short of the 80% requirement for a pass and had to wait at least two weeks before attempting it a second time. Yes, it was disheartening since I could have completed it all if I had had an extra 30 minutes but at least the cost to take the test is only $25 and I felt much more confident the second time around. I re-took the test last night and am happy to report that I completed it successfully with 30 minutes to spare!

UPDATE (May 2019):

I have been officially re-certified as a Google Certified Educator: Level 2 and just recently received certification as a Google Certified Educator: Level 1. I'm working my way towards becoming a Google Certified Trainer. Fingers crossed!

If you yourself are interested in Google for Education certification, visit the Google for Education Training Centre online for more information.