The WordPress Facilitator Training Program is built around three things: self-guided courses, facilitation guides, and community.
Self-guided courses. These are the courses you complete to build the knowledge you need to facilitate a given topic. They live on Learn.wordpress.orgWordPress.org The community site where WordPress code is created and shared by the users. This is where you can download the source code for WordPress core, plugins and themes as well as the central location for community conversations and organization. https://wordpress.org/ and are free and openly accessible to anyone. Some courses lead to credentials. All of them build the foundation you need to teach the topic effectively.
You do not need to complete every course in the program. You complete the courses relevant to the topic or topics you want to teach.
Facilitation guides. These are the practical, session-by-session guides that tell you how to deliver a workshop on a given topic. They include timed agendas, facilitator talking points, hands-on activity instructions, participant-facing activity sheets, and everything else you need to walk into a room and teach. Every topic in the program has a corresponding facilitation guide.
Facilitation guides are designed for people with no prior teaching experience. If you can follow a recipe, you can follow a facilitation guide.
Community. You are not doing this alone. The WordPress community includes educators, facilitators, and organizers around the world who are running the same programs and facing the same challenges. The SlackSlack Slack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/ channels, Office HoursOffice Hours Defined times when the Global Community Team are in the #community-events Slack channel. If there is anything you would like to discuss – you do not need to inform them in advance.You are very welcome to drop into any of the Community Team Slack channels at any time., and Make WordPress community are all available to you. You do not need to earn access to them. You just need to show up.
Two Pathways In
There are two ways to get started as a facilitator.
Pathway 1: Complete the self-guided curriculum. If you are newer to a topic or want to build a strong foundation before facilitating, start with the relevant self-guided course on Learn.wordpress.org. Complete the course, review the facilitation guide, and you are ready to teach.
Pathway 2: Come in with existing knowledge. If you already have deep knowledge of a topic and experience in the relevant area, you do not need to complete the course from scratch. Start with the facilitation guide, review the course to understand what your participants will have covered, and identify any gaps to fill. Your existing expertise is an asset. The facilitation guide gives you the structure to deliver it effectively.
Neither pathway requires an application, approval, or any form of gatekeeping. The resources are free and open. You decide when you are ready.
What You Can Teach
The WordPress Facilitator Training Program covers topics across the WordPress ecosystem. Each topic has a corresponding self-guided course and a facilitation guide for delivering a 2 to 3 day workshop.
Currently available:
| Topic | Self-guided course | Facilitation guide |
|---|---|---|
| Leading WordPress Education Programs | https://learn.wordpress.org/course/leading-wordpress-education-programs/ | Available in the Education Handbook at https://make.wordpress.org/community/handbook/education/ |
Coming soon: The program topic library is actively growing. As new courses are developed on Learn.wordpress.org and new facilitation guides are created, they will be added here. Courses already available on Learn.wordpress.org across a wide range of WordPress topics including development, design, content, accessibilityAccessibility Accessibility (commonly shortened to a11y) refers to the design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design ensures both “direct access” (i.e. unassisted) and “indirect access” meaning compatibility with a person’s assistive technology (for example, computer screen readers). (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accessibility), and community organizing are being reviewed for adaptation into the facilitator program format.
If you have expertise in a WordPress topic that is not yet covered and you are interested in contributing a course or facilitation guide, the WordPress Training Team at https://make.wordpress.org/training/ is the right place to connect.
A note on credentials: Some courses in the program lead to WordPress micro-credentials. Where a credential pathway exists for a topic, it is noted alongside the course. Earning a credential is not required to facilitate. It is an optional differentiator that can strengthen your professional profile and signal verified expertise to the institutions and organizations you want to work with.
