Elevate your STEM teaching with practical, research-informed engineering education practices with our professional learning experiences, which are designed to equip PK–12 educators with the knowledge, instructional strategies, and confidence to integrate engineering meaningfully into classroom teaching. 

Through hands-on exploration, instructional modeling, and collaborative problem-solving, teachers gain practical strategies that deepen student learning. Our professional learning model features interactive workshops that demonstrate engineering design, inquiry-based learning, and cross-disciplinary integration, providing educators with ready-to-apply instructional approaches and lesson plans.

Participants also learn to design responsive engineering experiences that spark student interest, support all learners and their lived experiences, and align with district priorities. All sessions are facilitated by experienced STEM and engineering education experts who bring both technical expertise and real classroom insight, including former public school teachers. Professional learning is differentiated for elementary, middle, and high school educators to ensure applicability across the full PK–12 continuum.

Summer Research Experience for Teachers (RET)

2026 Focus: Exploring Climate Change Through AI and Engineering Research

• Dates: June 22 – July 20, 2026
• Led by Dr. Edgar Lobaton, an award-winning NC State electrical engineer
• Teachers work alongside students, researchers, and faculty to help develop a K–12-accessible robotic imaging device, including a citizen-science component
• Includes weekly meetings during the program and ongoing academic-year support
• Outcomes: hands-on expertise building and testing imaging devices, new classroom-ready instructional resources, and becoming a program “ambassador” at your school

Ongoing Professional Development Workshops

The Engineering Place can develop specific engineering + Computer Science programs to meet the needs of teachers, shcools, and districts. Below is a sampling of past workshops we have offered. Contact us at [email protected] to learn more.

• Youth Engineering Solutions (Museum of Boston) 
• Engineering as Part of Integrated STEM Professional Development
• Encouraging Girls to Pursue STEM* Careers
• Developing Non-traditional K-12 Engineering Activities
• Integrating Engineering into the K-12 Curriculum
• Training in Outreach for Working Engineers
• Infusing computing in the classroom 
• Incorporating programming/coding into the classroom 
• Collaboration in computing  
• Designing a STEM School
• Using the Grand Challenges for Engineering as a Basis for Instruction