VARNA FREE UNIVERSITY LAUNCHES DIGITALIZATION PROJECT THROUGH A GOOGLE PLATFORM IN PARTNERSHIP WITH A CENTER FOR CREATIVE TRAINING

09 December 2019

For the first time in Bulgaria a university will be established in the Cloud, a space will be created - a model for an innovative technological educational environment and a teacher training center will be launched on the territory of Varna Free University. This will be part of the pilot project of VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar” and the Creative Training Center for the implementation of Google G suite at the university. The partnership is based on a signed memorandum between the two organizations.

Varna Free University is introducing experimentally the cloud technology Google G Suite for Education. It creates electronic profiles of students, administrative and academic staff. The Google G suite facilitates Learning Management System and day-to-day email and file sharing. Students and lecturers will actively communicate through over 10,000 electronic accounts in the university domain and will have full access to a range of applications - Gmail, Classroom, Drive, YouTube Live, Expeditions, etc. The platform improves the functionality of distance learning of students and is a prerequisite for optimization of administrative processes at the university. Cloud technology has already been working successfully at world-renowned universities such as Stanford, Cambridge University of Carolina, etc.
The first of its kind space will be established on the territory of the university - a model for innovative technological educational environment, which will create conditions for making trainings, showing presentations and delivering lectures. Students, teachers, university lecturers and citizens will be trained there, as Google Chromebook devices are provided for each learner, over 20 square feet of presentation space, and full wireless device connectivity.

The University Teachers Training Center will work on Google for Education certification programs, bringing together the know-how, trademarks and good practices of VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar" and the Creative Learning Center. The first joint programs are scheduled to take effect as early as March 2020.
The establishing of joint educational products by Varna Free University and the Center for Creative Training will be directed mainly to school headteachers, teachers and other pedagogical specialists. The Center for Creative Training will contribute through expertise and contacts at the Committee for Innovative Schools to the Ministry of Education and Science, with its training programs for pedagogical specialists and managers in the field of education, hardware and software.
The Creative Learning Center is Google's only partner for education in Bulgaria and provides services in three Google areas: Chromebook computers, the G suite cloud platform and Google Certified Educator professional development programs.
Varna Free University "Chernorizets Hrabar" is a leading higher education institution with the highest accreditation mark among private universities in the country. The university is a leader in training in informatics, computer science, international relations, entrepreneurship, economics, management, law, national security, psychology, architecture, construction of buildings and facilities, as well as in the arts - choreography, fashion and design. The University has traditions and experience in training headteachers and teachers in modern STE(A)M technologies.
Pictures: http://bit.ly/389rImg

More about the technology:
What is Google G suite?
The Google G Suite for education is a special version of the popular Google G suite of productivity apps. The G suite for education is completely free of charge for schools and offers "business" variants of Google Drive, forms, calendar, websites and Gmail. Over 170 schools in Bulgaria use the G suite for education for free. The active user profiles for teachers and students in Bulgaria are over 35,000.
What is a Google classroom?
The Google Classroom app is free for schools, runs on all operating systems and mobile devices, and allows teachers and students to share content, grades, tests and comments. The Google Classroom is used by thousands of students and teachers in Bulgaria and over 50 million worldwide.
Video: http://bit.ly/12googleclassroom

What is a Chromebook?
Chromebooks are portable computers that start the operating system in less than 8 seconds; all software updates are made automatically and allow different users to use the same device. Some Chromebook devices are designed especially for the classroom environment, where the body, screen, keyboard, and device price are tailored to the specific needs of the school.
Chromebook is No. 1 in sales in the education sector in the U.S., Canada, Sweden, and New Zealand. Chromebooks can have up to 61% lower purchase and maintenance costs compared to the other computers.