Transforming science education through research-driven innovation

Professional Development Provider Institutes

Institute 2

PL Design: Constructing Explanations & Arguments
Leading Curriculum Implementation
Leading Change, Part II

This Professional Development (PD) Provider Institute is the second in the series and is a four-day experience designed to support you as a PD leader by deepening your knowledge, increasing your confidence, and enhancing your abilities to support the implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and the recommendations put forth in A Framework for K-12 Science Education.

Details:

  • Dates: September 22–25, 2026
  • Location: Colorado Springs, CO
  • Time: 8 a.m.–4 p.m. MT
  • Grade Bands: K–12

Goals: 

  • Enhance knowledge of research and literature underpinning the NGSS and increase ability to support teachers as they translate research into the classroom;
  • increase capacity to support teachers in using routines, strategies, tools, and processes for enacting teaching and learning for next generation science; and
  • strengthen ability to design and lead professional learning programs that support teachers in taking on the instructional shifts called for in NRC’s Framework and the NGSS.
Institute 1 PL Design P1: Immersion into Developing and Using Models Leading Change P1 Institute 2 PL Design P2: Immersion into Constructing Explanations & Arguments Leading Change P2 Institute 3 Designing PL Programs to Support Curriculum Implementation Leading Change P3 Institute 4 Curriculum-Based Professional Learning Programs from Launch to Sustained Use Leading Change P4 Four images from past PDPIs in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Who should Participate:

  • Science coaches
  • Science curriculum specialists
  • District and science teacher leaders
  • Professional learning leaders
  • Science consultants and university faculty

What are the benefits?

After participating in the program, PD providers will be able to:

  • plan, lead, and evaluate workshops that help teachers enact three-dimensional teaching and learning in their classrooms;
  • use a variety of “close-to-the-classroom” routines and strategies to support teachers in strengthening their classroom practice;
  • monitor and adjust plans based on data and understandings about leading change; and
  • increase intentionality in leadership practices.

Costs:

  • Individuals and teams: Registration is $1,600/person or $1,500/person for teams of two or more. The registration fee covers institute materials and lunch each day.
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PDPI was a turning point for us in our district. It pushed us to rethink professional learning—not as something 'delivered' to teachers, but as an experience that mirrors what we want for students. We now intentionally plan for genuine intellectual struggle and the breakthroughs that happen when we reflect on our own thinking. This shift created a clear path toward high-quality, three-dimensional learning. Teachers are requesting professional learning like never before, and student reasoning has become clearly visible in the classroom. PDPI transformed our culture, growing teacher leaders who not only facilitate these moments for their students but also for their peers.--Trudy Rogers, district science facilitator at Knox County Schools, Tennessee