The Summer Program comprises more than 350 hours of learning over a summer (10 days in residence) – school year (3 days in residence) – summer cycle (10 days in residence).
The School Year Program is an alternative to the Summer Program for qualifying teachers and provides options for schools with conflicting summer schedules. It includes two 5-day extended weekend sessions during the school year and a 3-day session in late August, all in residence. This minimizes the time that teachers are out of their classrooms, while still providing deep professional learning.
The expectation is that School Year Program Teacher Fellows will take part in two school years of the program in order to attain the same 350 hours of learning as Teacher Fellows in the Summer Program.
What to Expect: Pre-Work, Program, and Inquiry Projects
Both programs require intensive pre-work. Prior to arrival, Teacher Fellows are required to complete extensive reading, web-based activities, and written assignments. This work provides a common foundation upon which the program is built. In addition, teachers participate in an online community, engaging in discussions focused on their practice and pre-work assignments.
The Summer and School Year Programs consist of 4-5 hours of classroom instruction per day, individual class preparation (1 – 3 hours), and daily study groups each evening (2 hours +/-), with Teacher Fellows preparing for the following day’s class sessions by completing academic and case readings each night. Over the course of the program—among the many learning activities—participants are asked to facilitate small group meetings, lead their peers in group instruction, and prepare and deliver formal public presentations.
Both programs require two embedded Academic Year Inquiry Projects. Teachers design their projects to be aligned with specific needs and goals at their schools and in consultation with their school leaders. Teachers receive regular feedback from peers and program facilitators as they develop, implement, and reflect on their projects throughout the school year.
A cornerstone of the NAATE program is that of feedback. NAATE staff members provide Teacher Fellows with daily feedback on their participation in case discussions. Teacher Fellows also give and receive peer feedback throughout the entire program. NAATE’s goal for feedback is to help teachers to be more reflective about their practice, enabling them to be more astute and effective as teachers, teacher leaders, and communicators.
The NAATE program assumes that experienced, high‐performing teachers bring a wealth of knowledge to their work and are prepared to expand and deepen their practice both in and outside the classroom. The NAATE program combines real‐world problems of practice with seminal writings and principles that serves as a lens for their analysis. A hallmark of the NAATE program is that participants spend a majority of time learning through 