How Do I Know if a Training will Count as Approved Training Hours in Develop?
Training | June 2021
By Julia Janik, Achieve Operations Coordinator
As a professional Early Childhood Educator, you probably see all kinds of advertisements for professional development opportunities, but how can you know which of these opportunities actually offer Approved Training Hours in Develop?
Be an Informed Consumer
Do your research when registering for any training, and make sure it is approved BEFORE you invest your valuable time and money! The easiest way to do this is to visit Develop’s Search for Training Calendar. Every training advertised in Develop’s Search for Training Calendar is approved and can be verified on your Learning Record electronically! Contact the training provider directly to see if they offer this service, and with any other questions about the training.
Training organizations will sometimes advertise their trainings are approved for continuing education hours in most states. Don’t assume these trainings are approved in Develop! Even if an organization has scheduled SOME approved trainings in Develop, there is no guarantee ALL the trainings they advertise will count as Approved Training Hours in Develop. This is especially true for national online training providers who offer training in many different states. Always check Develop’s Search for Training Calendar to determine whether a training you’re interested in has been approved in Develop in advance.
If a training is not in Develop’s Search for Training Calendar, chances are good it will not be recognized as Approved Training Hours on your Learning Record. The exception would be trainings offered by an Automatically Approved Training Organization.
What are Automatically Approved Training Organizations, and what’s the catch?
Automatically Approved Training Organizations include:
- Accredited colleges and universities
- Federal and Minnesota State agencies
- Organizations with current IACET accreditation
- Some nationally recognized organizations
- Publishers of curriculum or assessment tools recognized by Parent Aware
- Minnesota Independent School Districts and MDE Recognized Charter Schools
If you’re not sure if a training organization is automatically approved, contact Achieve before you register.
Automatically Approved Training Organizations don’t submit their trainings for pre-approval in Develop. They can’t verify your attendance electronically. Instead, they issue paper training certificates to attendees. Their certificates must meet specific criteria for Automatically Approved Training Certificates.
Buyer Beware!
The Automatic Training Approval Policy expands your options for Approved Training Hours, but it also comes with some trade-offs:
- Your attendance won’t be verified in Develop by the training provider.
Instead, you must renew your Individual Membership in Develop (or become a member) and send a copy of your paper certificate to Achieve to be verified. This process may take up to 6 weeks. - You can’t plan ahead for training hours in specific Minnesota KCF Content Areas.
Since Automatically Approved Training Organizations don’t submit content for pre-approval in Develop, you can’t be sure which Content Area the training hours will be categorized under in Develop before you complete the training and complete the 6-week Individual Membership application process. If you like to plan ahead, choose trainings scheduled in Develop’s Search for Training Calendar. These trainings clearly show guaranteed Minnesota KCF Content Areas before you register!
Do you know of Training Sponsor Organizations that might be interested in Develop Approval?
Let us know at support@mncpd.org, or tell them to check out Achieve’s Resources for Training Organizations!
