Impact

Meaningful, Measurable Learning

Students of all ages learn best when they are fully engaged with complex, interesting problems.

Extensive research and review of in-depth studies in the field propel Inspired Teaching to transform the school experience. Our program evaluation and research are driven by a our commitment to preparing students and teachers to thrive. Inspired Teaching conducts research through classroom observation, surveys, interviews, and external review.

Real Results

Since its founding in 1995, Inspired Teaching has worked with more than 15,000 teachers to build their practice in engagement-based teaching. These teachers have reached hundreds of thousands of students in and surrounding Washington, DC.

Through our professional learning programs, we see positive changes in teachers’ beliefs, classroom practices, professional leadership, and sense of agency. Through our Residency program, we prepare a talented and diverse group of teacher candidates for long-lasting, successful careers in DC schools. And our Youth programs have engaged hundreds of students in public, public charter, and private schools in DC; more than 75% of whom attended schools with a FARMS rate of 50% or more.

Learn more about our track record of success:

Professional Learning

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Residency

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I have led professional development workshops for the past 5 years and this was of the highest quality. I had so many opportunities to reflect on my own ideas and practice, and to “defend” my philosophy through interaction with others.

— Inspired Teaching Academy Participant

Inspired Teaching Research Briefs

Closing the Engagement Gap: A Social Justice Imperative

This white paper both affirms the benefits of engagement-based education, and confirms the reality of the current “engagement gap” in this country.

Download here

Radically Reimagined Relationships: The Foundation of Engagement

This project was designed to learn about schools and school systems across the United States that are moving beyond conventional, standardized, compliance-based teaching, to create learning experiences that are student-centered and engagement-based. Through our research, we found that while these schools looked different from one another as far as location, status as public/private/charter, grade levels served, and demographics, they felt the same. This realization led to an exciting discovery: the primary element connecting these schools was a shared commitment to radically reimagined relationships between students, teachers, administrators, and families. While the schools had other elements in common, including authentic learning experiences and commitments to educational equity, we found that the commitment to strong relationships was the core element upon which all others depended. The report, which synthesizes the findings from this initiative, has exciting implications for all of us working to re-imagine education.

Download the full report here

Download the report digest here

Inspiring Improvement: A tookit for evaluating and growing professional learning programs that promote engagement-based pedagogy

This toolkit contains resources for organizations who wish to undertake evaluation of their teacher training and professional development programs that promote teacher leadership, cultivate teachers as changemakers, and actively encourage engaging, student-centered instruction.
Download here

The critical need for replacing compliance-based teaching with engagement-based teaching

This white paper promotes the urgent need to adopt engagement-based education in all of our nation’s schools. Most education organizations and education policymakers advocate for the need to raise “student achievement,” but too narrowly define this goal to mean only raising standardized test scores, a goal that is primarily achieved using methods that promote student compliance. Students need to be engaged for lasting, meaningful learning to occur.
Download here

Inquiry-Based Teaching

Inquiry-based teaching invites students to explore academic content by posing, investigating, and answering questions. This approach puts students’ questions at the center of the curriculum.
Download here

Relationship-Based Discipline

Relationship-based discipline is a student-centered approach to classroom management that relies on strong, mutually respectful, personal relationships to engage cooperation in the classroom.
Download here

Investing in Teachers Through Mentoring

Teacher mentoring is an individualized form of professional development that involves a holistic approach to personal improvement. Mentoring is a key aspect of Inspired Teaching’s programs that ensures teachers are able to operationalize best practices.
Download here

AUTONOMY

"I want to have a say in what happens to me."

Autonomy is the need for independence; the ability to make choices, to create, to explore, and to express oneself freely; to have sufficient space, to move around, and to feel unrestricted with opportunities to exercise free will.

Brady Maiden

Outreach Coordinator

As the Outreach Coordinator, Brady helps maintain Inspired Teaching’s social media presence and supports the organization’s mission to connect with DC community leaders, educators, and parents. Brady has her Master’s in Public Policy from George Mason University and her BS in Political Science from Northern Arizona University. She is passionate about community, equity, and coalition building recognizing that learning and growing with the community at large is how we continue to be impactful.

What brings you joy in life?

I find joy in spending time with my friends and family and meeting new people. I like going to concerts and festivals, and finding new books to read.

The Learner’s Cycle, Wonder-Experiment-Learn, and the Teacher’s Cycle, Observe-Plan-Instigate, comprise Inspired Teaching’s approach to engaging students in inquiry-based learning.

When they are engaged in the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, students are immersed in learning. They take the lead in designing authentic learning experiences around their own interests and their school’s standards of learning. Each discovery leads to a new question which in turn leads to more wondering and more learning. In the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, Learn is not a destination or an endpoint; it is a deeper understanding, leading to a deeper wondering and new possibilities that create new entry points to further exploration. The cycle continues because what students have learned generates more wonderings that require more experiments that foster more learning – and on and on.

The Observe-Plan-Instigate Cycle is the work of an Inspired Teacher. While a student is expected to follow the Wonder-Experiment-Learn Cycle, the teacher joins them on the learning journey while following their own cycle of Observe-Plan-Instigate. This cycle ultimately serves to ensure an inquiry-based atmosphere is at play in the classroom.

Jaqueta Abbey

Teaching and Learning Specialist

Jaqueta is the Teaching and Learning Specialist for Inspired Teaching. In addition to her current role with Inspired Teaching, Jaqueta is a first-grade teaching assistant. Her background features a variety of traditional and non-traditional experiences in the field of education, including working as an adjunct professor, teaching summer reading programs to children and adults, and tutoring children in the foster care system. Jaqueta earned a B.A. in Communication Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and an M.A. in Interactive Media from Elon University.

What brings you joy in life?

Creative self-expression! In addition to my passion for storytelling, I love dancing of all kinds. I've studied belly dance, bachata, and Brazilian Zouk among other styles. I also enjoy glass fusing, crocheting, photography, and cross stitching. These art forms allow me to express myself and build connections with other people at the same time. I think life would be a lot less vibrant without artists and storytellers!

Michelle Welk

Communication & Marketing Specialist

As Communications and Marketing Specialist, Michelle is responsible for finding and creating new ways to highlight Inspired Teaching and promote its programs in order to expand and deepen the organization's impact. Michelle has worked in communications in an array of settings, from creative agencies to state politics to national nonprofits. She has a BA in Journalism from Temple University in Philadelphia and is passionate about education, access, and equity.

What brings you joy in life?

My son, the beach, making a persuasive argument and good food!

Max Peterson

Real World History Assistant Teacher

Max received his Bachelor’s degree in History and African American Studies from Boston University in May 2016. He has worked in museum curation at the Museum of the White Mountains in New Hampshire and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Max has worked with young people of varying ages from young children to young adults transitioning to college.

Feedback and Accountability

We grow through feedback and an understanding that the quality of our work is a reflection of what we are learning, but the shift to remote learning this spring disrupted a lot of the tools teachers were used to using to evaluate student growth. How might we do things differently this fall? Participants in this workshop will explore ways to bring meaningful assessment into the virtual and/or socially-distanced classroom and approaches to student feedback that strengthen motivation, and build relationships and achievement.