Center for Inspired Teaching believes that all children have the potential to think critically, solve problems, and become creative, thriving citizens who positively contribute to our complex and rapidly changing world. We further believe that teachers—if they have the right tools, training, and support—can unlock this potential by building the Intellect, Inquiry, Imagination, and Integrity of every student. Inspired Teaching strives to create radical change in the way students are educated. By changing the ways teachers teach, we are changing school from a place that prizes compliance – especially in low-income communities and communities of color – to one that promotes engagement among all students.
For the past twenty years, Center for Inspired Teaching has transformed the role of the teacher in preK-12 classrooms from information provider to Instigator of Thought, proving our teacher training method and instructional model in one of the most challenging urban school districts in the United States. Our powerful, engaging, research-based professional development has documented success in shifting the mindsets and practice of thousands of educators. The high-performing Inspired Teaching Demonstration School has won local, national, and international accolades, while our programs and materials have generated interest around the world. We have earned special recognition from the Stanford Social Innovation Review, the Bridgespan Group, Education Week, NPR, the LRNG Innovation Challenge, and the LEGO Foundation and Ashoka Changemakers’ Re-imagine Learning Challenge.
Inspired Teacher Certification Program: Inspired Teaching Fellows are prepared for successful and sustainable careers as teachers and changemakers in Washington, DC while earning a DC teaching license and a Master of Arts in Teaching. Through a year-long residency, Fellows learn the skills and dispositions of an Inspired Teacher under the guidance of a lead teacher, arming them with the knowledge and experience necessary for a smooth transition into their teaching career. In their second year, as teachers of record in District of Columbia public schools, Fellows continue to receive intensive classroom mentoring.
BLISS: Building Literacy in the Social Studies, and SCALE: Science Curriculum Advancement through Literacy Enhancement, are Teacher Leadership development programs that focus on strengthening participants inquiry-based practice while also equipping them with the tools to provide professional development for their schools. These yearlong professional development programs include a two-week summer intensive, monthly professional learning community meetings, and regular classroom coaching from Inspired Teaching staff.
PD Academy: Inspired Teaching leads customizable professional development workshops and sequences for teachers and school leaders in the Washington, DC area. Workshop topics span a broad range including inquiry-based teaching and learning, student-centered instruction, curriculum development, project-based learning, school culture development, standards-based instruction (CCSS, NGSS, and C3), and more. Workshop lengths range from half-day to week-long.
Inspired Teaching staff regularly lead professional development sessions at local, national, and international education conferences including Learning Forward's Annual Conference, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards' Teaching & Learning Conference, the LEGO Idea Conference, and the Ashoka Changemaker Education Summit.