BetterLesson believes that science driven by investigation and student-centered learning is key to engagement and success. BetterLesson shares OpenSciEd’s belief that all students should have access to resources and instruction that prepare them for an ever-changing world. We also believe that engaging, authentic investigative experiences are foundational to developing key skills in a student-centered science classroom. Often, science classes are a space where teachers hold the knowledge and use experiments to deepen learning. OpenSciEd provides a new approach to science education by transferring the process to the students, allowing them to drive the learning through questioning, discussion, sense-making, and investigation. BetterLesson supports educators in implementing this curriculum in a way that drives student ownership of their learning.

BetterLesson Professional Learning is centered around the following outcomes:

• Educators facilitate the classroom learning environment to give ownership to students to drive their own learning through questioning and problem solving
• Educators analyze and use formative and summative data to provide timely, personalized, and actionable feedback to students and make informed instructional decisions
• Educators develop students’ inquiry and problem-solving skills through rigorous academic content and lab investigations
• Administrators support teacher development and growth through facilitating and participating in professional development about OpenSciEd implementation

BetterLesson provides coaching, virtual workshops, and Learning Walks to build teacher and administrator capacity to be inclusive and responsive practitioners in every content area, including science. We build self-inventory skills and expose deep inequities in educational practices while aligning on current systemic inequities and injustices to inform the creation of an implementation plan. We measure our impact using five indicators that address curriculum, caregiver and stakeholder engagement, the learning environment, teacher and leader relationships with students, and students’ appreciation and understanding of diverse cultures and perspectives. Responsive, inclusive, equitable instructional practices comprise one of BetterLesson’s five elements of student-centered instruction.

BetterLesson helps educators understand how OpenSciEd promotes the use of responsive and inclusive practices through providing access to resources and experiences that may not otherwise be available to all students. BetterLesson also supports educators in understanding how to differentiate instruction using the supports in OpenSciEd to meet the needs of all learners.

Adopting a new curriculum is, in many ways, a reframing of your instructional vision for teaching and learning and requires alignment, stakeholder support, training, and most of all, planning. BetterLesson is committed to helping you navigate and plan your approach to a successful implementation of OpenSciEd, knowing that it often takes a multi-year approach to make and manage the change that will result in real impact for students.

BetterLesson supports six distinct Phases of Curriculum Implementation, which include Launching OpenSciEd, Ongoing Support, Assessing Progress, Targeting Support, Building Capacity, and Sustaining Transformation. These phases are defined by consistent traits in curriculum implementation that require building direct and specific supports and systems. At each phase, BetterLesson offers topic-specific workshops or 1:1 coaching to build the internal capacity of teachers and leaders to sustain the implementation of OpenSciEd over time.