Best Buy’s Geek Squad Academy launches new online learning program

By WiFi HiFi

Best Buy Canada is offering its Geek Squad Academy courses online as an educational resource for young Canadians to use for home learning and to get them excited about technology and enhance their skills.

The courses will be available for free through the Best Buy Canada website. There are four online courses in all, created for learners ages 10-16, including Picture Perfect (Digital Photography), Web Know-How (HTML Basics), Binary Coding, and Game Development with Godot. Each course is 55-75 minutes long and offered in short modules so students can learn at their own pace. All content is designed to be accessible for a wide range of abilities and learning styles. Teachers, parents, and guardians are encouraged to take part as well.

In its original form, Geek Squad Academy partners with local non-profit organizations and schools to teach students about STEM topics in a fun, interactive environment. Camps are led by Geek Squad Agents and Best Buy Blue Shirts.

H.A. Halbert Junior Public School in Toronto took part in a Geek Squad Academy session last spring.

“This is an amazing tool for educators, students and families wishing to learn more about STEM, robotics, critical thinking, language, and coding,” says Principal Karlo Cabrera. “These activities and the skills learned in them draw upon some of the global competencies that we focus on in the TDSB such as creativity, innovativeness, problem solving, collaboration and communication.”

The expansion of Geek Squad Academy to online learning was a natural evolution of a proven successful program, according to Jen Knight, Social Impact Specialist at Best Buy Canada.

“The events of the past few months have highlighted the importance of technology in our lives – to connect, entertain and educate,” she says. “A growing number of Canada’s top jobs require technology skills. Programs like Geek Squad Academy Online Learning provide excellent avenues for youth to learn and enhance their technology skills in an increasingly tech-centric world.”

To access courses, visit www.bestbuy.ca/geeksquadacademyonline.