Professional Development Built on a Research-Based
Model of School Transformation and Student Achievement

Catapult Learning provides comprehensive and flexible school transformation solutions that build organizational capacity, address academic needs and non-academic barriers to learning, and accelerate student achievement.

Catapult Learning’s professional development solutions are grounded in the Five Strand Design for Exemplary Schools, a holistic framework that strengthens five critical areas of a learning organization:

1. Leadership: Fostering the capacity to lead and manage change effectively.
2. Pedagogy & Curriculum: Enhancing teaching practices and curricular alignment to support learners.
3. Assessment for Learning: Leveraging data and feedback to drive academic growth.
4. Learning Environment: Creating spaces that motivate and inspire learners.
5. Student & Family Support: Connecting resources to meet the diverse needs of all students.

Through targeted or comprehensive school transformation initiatives, we partner with schools to develop clear, actionable roadmaps for achieving desired outcomes. Using a Diagnose-Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle of continuous improvement, we ensure efforts remain aligned with school goals, adapting strategies as needed to deliver lasting results.

Literacy First: The Science of Reading is a data-driven process with a proven record of improving student reading achievement by building teachers’ instructional capacity in the area of literacy and knowledge of research-based best practices in the science of reading. By putting Literacy First, your schools:

• Create a literacy-rich culture that motivates and engages students in their own learning
• Develop a student-centered approach to classroom instruction and classroom management that pinpoints and addresses specific skill gaps to ensure increased student achievement
• Accelerate the literacy skills of all students, across all subjects

Building Instructional Coherence (BIC) supports educators as they leverage best practices in planning, instruction, and assessment across all grade levels and content areas. During professional development sessions, teachers and leaders learn how to:

• Implement a consistent instructional model that incorporates research-based best practices for organizing, designing, and delivering instruction to promote student success
• Utilize the key components of a well-designed lesson, including Activating Relevant Knowledge (ARK), Direct Teacher Input (TIP), Student Active Participation (SAP), and Identifying Student Success (ISS)
• Analyze the importance of adopting practices that allow teachers to monitor and adjust to achieve maximum impact for all students throughout the lesson
• Strengthen the use of formative assessment strategies to gauge student progress and inform instructional decision-making Transforming Climate and Culture

Transforming Climate and Culture explores the tenets of our proven-effective school-design model and supports schools in determining the best tools and strategies suited to their unique needs and local context. Foster a strong, student-centered culture of engagement in the following ways:

• Implementing a whole-child approach, identifying and addressing student needs with a caring, nurturing posture
• Building skills to develop meaningful relationships and engagement self-awareness, self-management, pro-social skills, and responsible decision making
• Elevating student voice and agency by creating goals and purpose along with communication and self-advocacy skills to help achieve them
• Applying trauma-informed practices to move students from a survival mindset to a learning mindset
• Using evidence-based pedagogy and universal instructional strategies to improve student engagement

Our comprehensive school needs assessment is designed to identify strengths and opportunities for growth. The Collaborative Quality Analysis (CQA) serves to assess the quality of a learning organization, providing a prescriptive lens through which we can effectively recommend a range of professional development solutions designed to move a school forward. The 5 essential questions guide the process and allow our team of specialists to identify areas of strength and opportunities for growth. The findings of the CQA can inform a customized plan for achieving your desired outcomes. Led by the Catapult Learning team, the CQA process:

• Combines observation data, stakeholder perception feedback, and documented evidence in order to assess the quality of a school
• Benchmarks these findings against best practices utilizing the Catapult Learning School Development Rubric
• Identifies underlying beliefs, attitudes, values, and expectations that drive decisions and behaviors
• Yields a comprehensive report that describes a school’s strengths, areas for growth, and potential short-term wins and long-term goals

Take our PD needs assessment as a preview of the in-depth Collaborative Quality Analysis (CQA) process. Catapult Learning is ready to work collaboratively with your team to assess and discuss your school’s unique needs.

day schools and in-district classrooms that focus on behavior support

Successful professional development program implementations in more than 500 school districts nationwide