PA Act 48 • Building Positive Relationships for Better Student Outcomes
3 University Semester Credits • 45 Act 48 Hours
Welcome, PDE educators!
Earning your Act 48 hours can be simple and stress-free. Pennsylvania teachers need 180 Act 48 hours for license renewal — and in many districts, a lane jump often begins at 15–18 graduate credits. We’re here to make that journey as easy, flexible, and teacher-friendly as possible.
✶ 45 Clock Hours:
As a PDE-approved provider (FTBT, AUN 300000925), we offer this course for 45 Clock Hours toward your Act 48 credits. Once you complete the class, we’ll immediately enter your hours into PERMS.
✶ 3 Semester Credits:
If you're interested in earning 3 semester credits (worth a total of 90 Act 48 hours) instead of having us submit your 45 Act 48 hours to PERMS, you can simultaneously register for this course with our accredited university partner, UMass Global, for $210 ($70 per credit). When you finish the course, we'll immediately submit your grade to UMass Global — which will post your 3 credits to an official transcript and digitally submit it to Pennsylvania’s Act 48 office.
OR, you can get those 3 semester credits in addition to your 45 Act hours in PERMS, and use those credits towards salary lane change by downloading your official UMass Global University transcript (or receiving a paper version by mail).
Course Description:
Transform your teaching by unlocking the power of meaningful teacher-student relationships. This engaging, self-paced, quiz-based professional development course for PK-12 educators goes beyond the buzzwords and takes you on a journey to the roots of meaningful human connections. Through it, you’ll uncover why—and how—strong, supportive relationships in the classroom are not just an enhancement to education—they are its very foundation.
What You’ll Learn:
- The Interpersonal Nature of Education: Understand how trust and security between educators and students create a harmonious, safe, and productive learning environment.
- Neuroscience Meets Practice: Explore emotional intelligence principles rooted in social science, and apply them to foster deeper connections.
- Actionable Relationship-Building Strategies: Learn how to build rapport, find common ground, establish mutual respect to strengthen classroom dynamics, and make your job more fulfilling.
- Mindfulness and Self-Compassion: Prioritize your own well-being with practical tools and techniques for reducing stress and maintaining balance.
- Inclusive and Engaging Classrooms: Design learning experiences that promote equity, empathy, and critical awareness for all students.
Why Educators Choose This Course:
- Evidence-Based Approaches: Gain insights backed by expert research, case studies, and cutting-edge multimedia resources.
- Immediate Impact: Walk away with strategies you can implement right away to create a more connected, effective, self-regulated classroom environment.
- Lasting Results: Strengthen relationships that drive both student achievement and educator job satisfaction.
Make Relationships Your Superpower:
This course empowers educators to elevate both their teaching and their students’ success by cultivating trust, respect, and meaningful connections. You’ll create a classroom where students feel supported, valued, and motivated to excel — and reignite your love for teaching along the way!
Enroll Today:
Join us to transform your classroom through the power of educator-student relationships — because, great teaching starts with connection.
Self-Paced, Quiz-Based, and Completely Online:
Forget portfolios or lengthy written assignments — this is stress-free PD designed with YOU in mind. With no start dates and no due dates, you can begin and finish the course whenever it is convenient for you. Plus, you do not need to be working with students to complete it. Entirely self-paced and self-guided, there are no scheduled check-ins, so you are free to work on the content whenever and wherever you want.
To enroll in this course:
Start by completing the $175 registration using the banner link at the top of this page. That will create your For Teachers By Teachers (FTBT) account and give you immediate access to the online classroom. You can begin anytime and work at your own pace. This fee includes your 45 Act 48 Hours and full access to the course and online classroom.
✶ Want 3 university semester credits through UMass Global?
You’ll find full step-by-step instructions for UMass Global’s $210 credit registration process inside the online classroom, after you enroll. Everything you need — the direct link, course code, and payment instructions — will be available to you once you’ve signed up.
University credit issued by UMass Global – a regionally accredited university partner.
* Each semester credit equals 30 Act 48 hours.
"This course has truly changed both my professional and personal life. Thank you for this learning opportunity!"
— Kayleen Pieper, Teacher
"This is honestly one of the best professional development courses I’ve ever taken. I’ve learned practical and applicable content to my profession. I’ve learned so much about myself as a professional and as a person."
— Kehau Morikawa-Marzan, Teacher
"With all the classes I have taken in the past, a class has never affected me as much as this one. I would like to thank you for having this course for teachers."
— Fay Tsurumaki, Teacher
"This is the first online class that I really enjoyed and I feel as though I have so many new ideas, techniques, and tools to apply in my classroom. This course has had a major impact on me as a teacher. I'm encouraging my co-workers to take this course!"
— Kimberly Celebre, Teacher
"Thank you so much for a wonderful learning opportunity that not only made me a better educator but a better person entirely."
— Darcie Horiuchi, Teacher
"This course has empowered me to be a change agent on campus and a dream-releaser in my classroom. Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
— Kamilla Maii, Teacher
"Thank you for this amazing class!
I learned so much about myself and my students."
— Abigayle Butler, Teacher
"Thank you for this very inspirational and user-friendly course."
— Katie Tanaka, Teacher
"This course has given me new tools for life and reinforced the importance of building positive relationships with my students. I am a better teacher. Thank you."
— Brandon Hanagami, Teacher
"I wanted to thank you for creating such an enlightening course. As a new teacher I couldn't have taken this course at a better time."
— Paulina Felcher, Teacher
"Thank you for your dedication to providing teachers with high-quality professional development. I loved everything about this course."
— Sherri Sai, Special Education Resource Teacher
Your Course Instructor
For Teachers By Teachers is a highly dedicated team of licensed educators with professional certifications across grades PK–12. Our areas of expertise include Special Education, Childhood Education, Art Education, and Reading Specialist certifications.
Collectively, our course authors and instructors bring more than 20 years of experience in the field of education. We are passionate about empowering teachers and have contributed meaningfully to school communities in Hawai‘i, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Ohio.
Our mission is to support your professional growth with flexible, high-quality online courses designed by teachers—for teachers. If you have any questions or need support, don’t hesitate to contact us at [email protected]. We’re here to help!