IN-Person Opportunities
In-person Opportunities
Since the COVID pandemic started, in-person educational opportunities for educators (such as professional development) have declined. Below is a very limited list of in-person opportunities (available before and after the pandemic) that are known to be "tried and true."
Spring 🌼
Each year, NSTA hosts a national conference on science education (in the spring), three area conferences (in the fall), and a STEM Forum & Expo. A virtual for summer 2021 was held.
Summer 🌵
We urge you to consider looking into opportunities through educational institutions of interest. Stanford, Caltech, MIT all have teacher development programs that meet on their campuses. Often their local alumni associations will pay transportation and residency expenses for full time teachers.
The Forestry Institute for Teachers is a multi-day residence workshop developed by the Northern California Society of American Foresters, University of California Cooperative Extension, Shasta County Office of Education, The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, and Project Learning Tree. It is high quality professional development that provides cross-curriculum training that emphasizes and models Next Generation Science Standards. This program takes place a various National Parks during the summer.
The goal of FIT is to provide K-12 teachers with knowledge, skills and tools to effectively teach their students about forest ecology and forest resource management practices using award winning environmental education curriculum; Project Learning Tree, Project WET and Project WILD.
The program brings together natural resource specialists and teachers from rural and urban settings for one week, working side by side to gain a deeper understanding of forest ecosystems and human use of natural resources.
Come on your own or as a TEAM! If you register as a Team the team leader sets up the Team with a Team Name (school name for example) and then other team members select from the list of team names.
JPL (Jet Propulsion Labs) have a variety of educational opportunities - online and in person through their website and partnerships with NASA, and CSUN (California State University Northridge). Before COVID, various "institutes" were held to help teachers develop techniques for encouraging students in NGSS science and engineering practice using data collected by NASA earth-observing satellites
Professional development opportunity for K-12 teachers that pays a $3,000.00 stipend upon completion of program and graduate course requirements. Participants spend between four and six weeks in a NPS unit developing a major educational project and participating in an online graduate course from CU Denver. The goal of the program is to train teachers in the resources and themes of the NPS so that they can return to their schools in the fall and incorporate their new skills into their classroom activities.
SCSP Summer Institute
FREE weeklong training sponsored by the South Coast Science Project focusing on Environmental Science held from 8am to 4pm at Carpinteria Middle School. Emphasis is TK-6th grades NGSS aligned science lessons.
Fall🍂
Join more than 2,000 educators who share your passion for science from Friday, 8:00 am to Sunday, at 1:00 pm. You’ll make connections, gain new classroom ideas, and grow professionally.