Last September I wrote about “Quick Guides” a series of short and snappy PDF Guides for a host of Microsoft Learning Tools, commissioned by Microsoft and developed by Scottish teacher Heather Aird. At that time there were 14 guides available and I mooted my expectation that the list would continue to grow and in time and encompass the entirety of the 365 suite. And the MS Edu Team have done just that with an a host of new additions (24 and counting), including A QUICK GUIDE TO BING CHAT providing a step-by-step quick start PDF guide to Microsoft’s Copilot and how it can be used to support teaching, learning and assessment by providing inspiration, answering complex questions, finding comprehensive answers, and getting summarised information.
I’ve specifically highlighted the Bing Chat guide as there is also an accompanying Microsoft Learn Course, Enhance teaching and learning with Microsoft Copilot that goes in-depth on using this powerful tool in the classroom and this resource (And many more) are now available through a new AI Resource Hub designed to be a good jumping off point for both novice and experienced users to explore AI in education. Here you’ll find a list of all relevant Educator Center trainings, access video tutorials, read selected Microsoft Education AI blog posts, browse Technical AI paths, review resources you can use with your students and more…
There’s also a Resources from our partners section that details additional training and resources available outside of the LEARN Educator Centre. I was particularly impressed with AI 101 for Teachers from code.org, a comprehensive free, online learning series for teachers interested in learning more about AI and its transformative potential in education. Its development is the result of a collaboration between Code.org, ETS, ISTE and Khan Academy are offers in-depth video tutorials and discussions with household names including Satya Nadella Sal Khan, Hadi Partovi, Mira Murat and Cristóbal Valenzuela.
As mooted previously, IMHO Microsoft’s LEARN Educator Centre has been the pre-eminent educator portal since its 2015 launch, providing a fantastic range of cutting edge resources and professional development opportunities to teachers and this latest AI in Education Hub reiterates Microsoft’s commitment to it’s ongoing development and evolution. All online and for free, time to upskill on GEN AI me thinks🤔.